David Hulley
On Wine

Successful vacations travel on stomachs

The term “stay-cation” has been with us for well over a year and many lament the general loss of exotic travel in our lives. However, we in Southern Ontario have no reason to bemoan the idea of staying close to home for our outings and vacations. Our “neighbourhood” is rich.

What constitutes a great getaway? First and foremost what you eat and drink must be excellent. Recently, dear friends of ours, who by the way are expecting their first baby, visited to tell us of their recent travels.  Lovingly embracing the fact that their lives will soon be changing forever they chose a couple of exotic destinations. What I found most interesting was that the initial comment on both places was about the food. Morocco was described enthusiastically as a land of wonder, contrast and adventure but the food was lackluster and lousy. Even avoiding the tourist traps and dining with the natives, as our friends are known to do, the food was still miserable at best. On their following trip to the Caribbean they worked manically to focus on “fresh” and “local” to be sure to avoid another culinary disappointment.  This focus on food made me reflect back on my experiences and I can say without any hesitation that great food is essential to a great vacation.

I have a food and restaurant culture in Ontario that is second to none. In addition we have a thriving wine industry to support our culinary heroes. It can be argued that regardless of the wonderful climate and topography that parts of Ontario provide for the production of excellent wine grapes, a healthy and growing wine industry would not exist if we could not boast our diverse number of outstanding restaurants. One follows the other. We are very fortunate to live in a land rich in potential food and wine experiences.

In evidence of my claim think of the fine dining establishments that you enjoy. I would venture that every noteworthy establishment that appears on your list is very mindful of local products. Fresh is best and knowing the original source of our food is important. To take that idea to its ultimate expression you may even dine at an Ontario winery and get the best of both worlds.

We are at the start of a new growing season and our local farmers will dazzle us once again with incredible fruits and vegetables. Regional cheese makers, domestic butchers, and specialty food producers passionately work year round to improve their quality by blending innovation, technology and time-honoured traditions. Restaurateurs and chefs bring it all together. Again, how may we “wash down” all of this hard work? We can respectfully savour these fine foods with a glass of world class Ontario wine. As you can clearly see, this year’s stay-cation is a guaranteed success. We’ve already got the food and wine right!