Paint Night / Food Studio Inc.
Paint Night
https://www.paintnite.com/
Food Studio Inc.
http://www.foodstudio.net/
3200 Roblin Blvd
204-888-FOOD (3663)
fdstudio@mts.net
Poplar Grove Winery
Manitoba Rep: Honoure Black
431-999-3234
honoure@poplargrove.ca
http://www.poplargrove.ca/
February, 2017
As a club member of the Poplar Grove Winery based out of Penticton BC (producing some of the best Canadian wines around), I am entitled to a number of events throughout the year. Today's event is a Paint Nite held at the Food Studio.
I have many talents--but art isn't one of them. I probably would never had attended a Paint Nite under my own volition but admittedly, I walked by a number of events and thought it to be fun. Thanks to Poplar Grove, this opportunity knocked on my door and I couldn't resists.
The event starts with a wine glass as you enter the door and a choice of red or white. Today's pours include the Pinot Gris and the Merlot.
I've never been a huge fan of pinot gris / pinot grigio. The finicky wine world trends much like the fashion world. For a while, everyone raved about chardonnay and then came the ABC movement (anything but chardonnay). Pinot gris now dominates the white world as the chic, go-to wine.
As an avid wine fan, I always found pinot gris to be too light, too acidic and frankly, too flavourless (Alsatian notwithstanding). Perhaps these make up the very reason they're popular among wine novices today. Firstly, the pendulum usually swings hard, so it's natural for tastes to morph from the powerful and full-bodied chardonnay, to the light and approachable pinot gris. Secondly, the light taste and lower alcohol levels means that even wine wannabees can down it without making much of a face.
Generally, new world wines have more fruit power and flavour than old world wines, which is one of the reasons why I enjoy the Poplar Grove pinto gris so much. Today's pour appears gold in colour with a bright nose of peaches and apples. Retaining a balance of acidity, this wine marries the sweetness of the fruit with the tartness of the acids wonderfully.
The red today features the venerable Merlot, which should be a joy for all red fans. The herbaceous bouquet juggles a hint of oakiness with light berries. The oak carries through in the taste, highlighted by vanilla with a cigar-like edge. Cherry carries the dominant flag, augmented by a dash of anise and dill.
Both of today's wine pair beautifully with the food today, created by Food Studio Principal Chef Maria Abiusi. The Food Studio offers a wide variety of cooking and food classes, promotes local products and learning, and supports all things food-related.
Dinner starts with a simple but delicious vinaigrette salad. The head lettuce tastes fresh crisp and bright. There's nothing fancy about the light dressing but there's nice depth and body here.
The highlight comes with the main course, featuring two kinds of pizzas. I'm normally not a huge fan of meat lovers' pizzas. I believe that pizza (most dishes actually) need vegetables to add texture, moisture, flavour and depth to make it complete. Without vegetables, I find foods taste one dimensional and often bland. Not so with the meat lovers' version here. They use enough of a variety of meats to give variety and dimension to the dish and there isn't too much meat to dominate. I couldn't stop eating it and unfortunately, I ran out before I could snap a pic (sorry).
The vegetarian option is even more delicious.
Witness the beautiful colours here! Often, pizzas (especially non-tomato sauce pizzas) taste empty when there isn't enough sauce to support the ingredients. There's plenty of pesto here to augment all the ingredients on the plate. The ingredients themselves taste wonderful; from the rich tomato and pepper, to the crunchy mushroom, every component tastes spring fresh.
Let's be honest here--how many people like eating the crust on pizza? I mean honestly going out of your way to seek the edge pieces? I bet there aren't many. Happily, there are no crusts to be found today. Chef Maria delicately and carefully places each ingredient on the slab to ensure there's a beautiful melange of flavours in each bite. She then trims off the crust so there's nothing but ooey-gooey goodness on every slice.
For dessert, we have a delicate and moist chocolate cake with a light sauce and a wonderful custard-whipping cream combo. I immerse each bite into this fluffy topping and it's very difficult to stop as the food continues to flow from the kitchen.
Onto the actual paint event, we settle into the art room where we all swear an oath about our work not sucking and some such thing (wish it were true!). The Paint Nite instructor takes you through the process step-by-step where even the most artless person can come up with a passable (some passionate I guess) piece of work.
Okay, so mine's barely passable and trust me, I won't quite my day job. The point is, I had a great time here. Put together excellent wine, great food and a good time and you can't help but enjoy success. I look forward to my next Paint Nite.
Paint Night
https://www.paintnite.com/
Food Studio Inc.
http://www.foodstudio.net/
3200 Roblin Blvd
204-888-FOOD (3663)
fdstudio@mts.net
Poplar Grove Winery
Manitoba Rep: Honoure Black
431-999-3234
honoure@poplargrove.ca
http://www.poplargrove.ca/
February, 2017
As a club member of the Poplar Grove Winery based out of Penticton BC (producing some of the best Canadian wines around), I am entitled to a number of events throughout the year. Today's event is a Paint Nite held at the Food Studio.
I have many talents--but art isn't one of them. I probably would never had attended a Paint Nite under my own volition but admittedly, I walked by a number of events and thought it to be fun. Thanks to Poplar Grove, this opportunity knocked on my door and I couldn't resists.
The event starts with a wine glass as you enter the door and a choice of red or white. Today's pours include the Pinot Gris and the Merlot.
I've never been a huge fan of pinot gris / pinot grigio. The finicky wine world trends much like the fashion world. For a while, everyone raved about chardonnay and then came the ABC movement (anything but chardonnay). Pinot gris now dominates the white world as the chic, go-to wine.
As an avid wine fan, I always found pinot gris to be too light, too acidic and frankly, too flavourless (Alsatian notwithstanding). Perhaps these make up the very reason they're popular among wine novices today. Firstly, the pendulum usually swings hard, so it's natural for tastes to morph from the powerful and full-bodied chardonnay, to the light and approachable pinot gris. Secondly, the light taste and lower alcohol levels means that even wine wannabees can down it without making much of a face.
Generally, new world wines have more fruit power and flavour than old world wines, which is one of the reasons why I enjoy the Poplar Grove pinto gris so much. Today's pour appears gold in colour with a bright nose of peaches and apples. Retaining a balance of acidity, this wine marries the sweetness of the fruit with the tartness of the acids wonderfully.
The red today features the venerable Merlot, which should be a joy for all red fans. The herbaceous bouquet juggles a hint of oakiness with light berries. The oak carries through in the taste, highlighted by vanilla with a cigar-like edge. Cherry carries the dominant flag, augmented by a dash of anise and dill.
Both of today's wine pair beautifully with the food today, created by Food Studio Principal Chef Maria Abiusi. The Food Studio offers a wide variety of cooking and food classes, promotes local products and learning, and supports all things food-related.
Dinner starts with a simple but delicious vinaigrette salad. The head lettuce tastes fresh crisp and bright. There's nothing fancy about the light dressing but there's nice depth and body here.
The highlight comes with the main course, featuring two kinds of pizzas. I'm normally not a huge fan of meat lovers' pizzas. I believe that pizza (most dishes actually) need vegetables to add texture, moisture, flavour and depth to make it complete. Without vegetables, I find foods taste one dimensional and often bland. Not so with the meat lovers' version here. They use enough of a variety of meats to give variety and dimension to the dish and there isn't too much meat to dominate. I couldn't stop eating it and unfortunately, I ran out before I could snap a pic (sorry).
The vegetarian option is even more delicious.
Witness the beautiful colours here! Often, pizzas (especially non-tomato sauce pizzas) taste empty when there isn't enough sauce to support the ingredients. There's plenty of pesto here to augment all the ingredients on the plate. The ingredients themselves taste wonderful; from the rich tomato and pepper, to the crunchy mushroom, every component tastes spring fresh.
Let's be honest here--how many people like eating the crust on pizza? I mean honestly going out of your way to seek the edge pieces? I bet there aren't many. Happily, there are no crusts to be found today. Chef Maria delicately and carefully places each ingredient on the slab to ensure there's a beautiful melange of flavours in each bite. She then trims off the crust so there's nothing but ooey-gooey goodness on every slice.
For dessert, we have a delicate and moist chocolate cake with a light sauce and a wonderful custard-whipping cream combo. I immerse each bite into this fluffy topping and it's very difficult to stop as the food continues to flow from the kitchen.
Onto the actual paint event, we settle into the art room where we all swear an oath about our work not sucking and some such thing (wish it were true!). The Paint Nite instructor takes you through the process step-by-step where even the most artless person can come up with a passable (some passionate I guess) piece of work.
Okay, so mine's barely passable and trust me, I won't quite my day job. The point is, I had a great time here. Put together excellent wine, great food and a good time and you can't help but enjoy success. I look forward to my next Paint Nite.
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