7 gift ideas for thirsty gourmands

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      In 2001, John Schreiner wrote the first and still definitive guide to icewine, Icewine: The Complete Story, being generous enough not to limit it to the Canadian stuff. Despite being six years old, it remains a most useful product guide. But Donald Ziraldo and his long-time partner and Inniskillin cofounder, Karl Kaiser, have come up with the prettiest one: Icewine: Extreme Winemaking (Key Porter, $50). They even acknowledge the debt to Schreiner by reprinting his précis of the icewine story here, right after Hugh Johnson's "Ice and Canada", as a synonymous introduction.

      The book is both beautiful enough for the coffee table and technical enough for the reference shelf. Divided into three principal sections–Art, Science, and Taste–it concludes with a couple dozen lip-smacking recipes, and not only for desserts, although those predominate. The Vineyard Leg of Lamb with Icewine Fig Compote may be worth the price of admission alone. The book isn't cheap, but that's no surprise. It is icewine, and it sure is pretty. And it's still cheaper than any really good Canadian bottle.

      Speaking of John Schreiner, his lavish and lovely labour of love, British Columbia Wine Country: Revised and Updated, produced with photographer Kevin Miller, is here in its second edition a mere three years since its initial printing. Good thing, too, just to keep pace with the phenomenal growth of the province's wine industry. New wineries are springing up at an amazing rate, and it's tough for a weekly columnist to keep pace. So imagine the work involved in assembling this type of volume.

      Here's where the beauty shots are, alongside Schreiner's impeccable research. Even if you already have the first edition, you will need the second. You can use it for reference, wine-tour planning, or even just eye candy, but use it you surely will. Along with the usefulness comes plenty of pleasure and a little glow of positive chauvinism, as you discover what's been happening in the B.C. wine industry since this sentence began. Like, lots.

      I'm a rosé fan. Like most of us dyed-pink-in-the-wool people, I think it's the world's most underappreciated wine, especially at lunch and dinner. Winemaker and writer Jeff Morgan agrees. He coproduces his own, under California's SoloRosa label (not seen here in B.C.), and champions its cause wherever he can.

      Here is his paean of praise, Rosé: A Guide to the World's Most Versatile Wine (Chronicle Books, $19.95), one in a long list of food and wine books from this publisher. The story first, then the application, ending with luscious-but-easy recipes that support and employ rosé. Morgan's idea for the perfect sandwich to accompany rosé is four pieces of thinly sliced prosciutto, unsalted butter, and a fresh baguette. There are dozens more recipes, and a good tasting guide to many of the world's great rosés.

      Who better to do The Definitive Canadian Wine & Cheese Cookbook (Whitecap Books, $35) than Gurth Pretty and Tony Aspler? The latter generates more words about wine than practically any other Canadian, the former does the same for cheese–this is his second volume devoted to the subject. Here they are together with an attractive and usable collection of basic information and loads of recipes. The guide to storing cheese is particularly handy.

      To whet your appetite, consider Duck Breast in Cognac with "Grizzly Rí¶sti" and B.C. Red Meritage; Port Cheddar Apple Tarte Tatin with Quebec Ice Cider; or Tiger Blue–Topped Serrano H–Wrapped Filet Mignon. Aspler favours Amarone or Chilean Merlot, late-harvest Riesling or Amontillado sherry, pale ale or dry porter. I'm breaking for lunch now.

      Maybe a little less classy, but no less useful, is Cooking With Booze by Ryan Jennings & David Steele (Whitecap Books, $29.95). These guys based in Ontario like to mess around with Grand Marnier when they make their French toast, tequila when they do shrimp, Rémy Martin when making risotto (in my kitchen the Rémy goes into the cook, not the rice), and Jí¤germeister for their roast lamb: a quarter-cup of the herb liqueur with a quarter-cup of fresh rosemary to counteract it. I did that, and it's a cool, quite surprising taste. See if your dinner guests can figure it out.

      There's lots of fun throughout; it's suitably cheeky, and with workable recipes, many of which have a unique twist. The Beer-Crust Pizza makes a nice light base for sauces, and the B-52 Cupcakes are simply silly, but in a good way. You probably know some people who'd get a kick out of this one.

      I said this last summer, and I'm saying it again: Heidi Noble's Menus From an Orchard Table: Celebrating the Food and Wine of the Okanagan (Whitecap Books, $34.95) is one of the best cookbooks to emerge from Canada's wine and food scene in decades. What sets it apart is that Noble is a writer, not just a recipe assembler. Her writing is incisive, thoughtful, and thought provoking, while the recipes are solidly grounded, focusing on freshness and flavour rather than trendiness. Watch it dazzle and shine in next year's Canadian Culinary Book Awards.

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