When it comes to understanding wines, Chrissie Bettencourt, Tourism Director for Hacienda del Plata, in Mendoza, Argentina knows all there is to know. Originally from Kingston Ottawa area,  Chrissie now lives in Argentina and has become an expert in wines as well as chocolates.

Continue reading to find out how Chrissie believes we should approach selecting wine that will compliment your dishes, not overtake them or get lost in the meal.

During all of the hustle and bustle of wedding coordination, one of the most forgotten items on the list is the wine. Who cares which wine we serve, as long as it tastes okay, right? Although it may not be an important detail to many people, it can actually make a very big difference between a ho-hum dinner experience or an absolutely fantastic sensory food experience for your guests. Why? Because the wine can actually change the flavor of the food and vice versa. That fabulous Italian Chianti that you love so much can fall completely flat and paild in the arms of flavourful steak. Or those heavenly oyster canapés that you ate umpteen of at Aunt Lois’s tea party last month will taste like you just ate spoonful of mud of the banks of the Ottawa River once you take a sip of that white Gewurztraminer that you got such a great deal on.

For this reason, picking the right wine can make or break someone’s dining experience. Wine selection is always going to depend on the food you are serving. Generally each plate that is placed in front of your guests should make a good pairing with the wine that is being served. How many wines you decide to provide to your guests is your choice, the important thing is that it pairs well with the food.

So you ask, how does one exactly go about choosing a wine that will make your guests gush for the next 5 years about the fantastic lobster paté they had that day and haven’t had since? Here are some basic on how to pick a good wine as well as make some memorable experiences for you to remember years later:

Step 1: Consult a professional
Visit your local wine merchant or sommelier, menu in hand, and ask them what they would recommend to serve with the dishes that you have chosen. Don’t be afraid to ask as many questions as you want, as they are also there to help you learn about both food and wine.

Step 2: Internet Research
Research on the internet what wines would pair well with your selected dishes. There are many great websites out there that provide you with fantastic information as well as detailed pairings. Some of my personal favourites are:

www.wine-food-matcher.com
http://www.wineintro.com/food/
www.thespicedepot.com/Food-and-Wine-Pairings/Ethnic-Spices/
www.tasting-wine.com/articles/wine-and-food-pairing/index.php

Now you have your list of selections. What happens next? You may have noticed that so far there has been no wine tasting in any of these steps. Which is why now the fun begins!

Step 3: Conduct a wine tasting afternoon or evening

In my experience the best way to really determine a good pairing is to just sit down and taste, taste, taste. Plain and simple. Therefore I highly recommend getting a group together and trying out your wine selections together with the food you will be serving. Learn for yourself what flavour combinations match well and that you enjoy. Guidelines are always there just for that, to guide. But the memorable and sensory experience will always come through tasting.

Select a group of people that you feel will be able to provide you with good feedback, and even invite one of the wine professionals you sought out in the beginning to join. They can be very helpful in both providing good feedback and helping you coordinate the tasting itself. Ensure that each person has one glass per wine that you have selected in front of them along with a pen and paper to take notes. Then you just start tasting. Here are some tips to help you with your tasting:

• Smell and taste the wine first by itself. Do you like the aromas? What happens in your mouth? Is it bitter? Acidic? Dry? Smooth? Heavy or light? Intense or light in flavour?
• Taste the food by itself. What flavours are prominent in the dish?
• Now take a bite of the food and a sip of the wine together in our mouth. What happens? How does the wine change the flavour of the food? And how does the food change the flavour of the wine?
• Take notes on what combinations you like the most and that bring out the best in both the food and the wine.

You don’t have to be a professional to be able to taste. The bottom line is that you find a combination that you really like and have some fun! You will be fascinated at what you can learn about your own taste preferences as well as about food and wine. Look at each wine just like you would a person, you are learning about its distinct personality and how it “acts” around the food it is being paired with.

Your wedding day is a very exciting time and one of the most memorable days of your life. However the planning process should also be memorable. We often put ourselves through so much stress trying to ensure everything is perfect that we forget to have some fun. Sitting down and doing a wine tasting as part of your planning not only will allow you to provide an unforgettable meal for your guests, but even more importantly create some special and lasting memories for yourself and those closest to you. So crack open those bottles and start tasting!

Ottawa pianist, arranger and performer David Monch brings sweet memories to cherish for the rest of your lives. He provides a wide range of musical talent, including original compositions for your soloists and music styles to suit you exclusively.

David Monch has been playing piano since age seven.  By the time he was eight, he was getting high marks for his performances at Kinsmen Music Festivals.  He continued with first-class honours until he completed years of Royal Conservatory piano and theory studies. He has a proven reputation not only for his music but for the fine way he treats his customers.

David will capture the moment, captivate your guests and create the magic for your celebration. You won’t forget his music, ever.

For more information visit David Monch’s website at www.davidmonch.com, or call him at 613-986-1283.

To create a one-of-kind salon experience, consider Peggy’s Mobile Hair Care to add that special touch. This Ottawa area company has been in operation since 1994.   Peggy’s Mobile Hair Care is a unique service that offers bridal hair and make-up care in the Ottawa and surrounding areas.

Peggy’s Mobile Hair Care was established 14 years ago when Peggy began working for a hair salon specializing in bridal hair in the downtown Ottawa area.   She knew there was a way to offer brides more service.  Knowing the difficulty some brides experience on their wedding day, with time and wedding day jitters, Peggy thought it was a great idea to bring a business that brought the hair salon and make-up artist services to the bride.  It was then that her one-of-a-kind business was created.  Since then she has been creating beautiful hair for all brides in and around the Ottawa area.

You will not find any other hairstyle and make-up business that will come to your location and offer you top of the line service, making your wedding day as relaxing as can be.  Peggy knows all about the bridal hairstyle and make-up trends of the year.  Her staff is knowledgeable in all popular celebrity hair styles and techniques.  Peggy’s professional make-up artist knows all there is to know in make-up.  Relax and enjoy your day knowing that you are being taken care of by the best in bridal hair and make-up care.  Peggy’s Mobile Hair Care bridal package includes trials in hairstyles and make-up, so you will have the opportunity to try different hair do’s and have all your questions answered.

Peggy, owner and hairstylist, has been doing bridal hair since 1994.  She has won numerous awards in hairstyling and color, among them Hairpolooza in Ottawa 2007 for Color and Cut,  Top Winner in Evening Style Toronto in 1994.  Her deepest passion is bridal up do’s, and this can be seen each year by brides at the Ottawa Wedding Show, as she is the Official Hairstylist for the ever popular Ottawa bridal event.  So if you are looking for a hairstylist and make-up artist that knows all the trends and can offer great service, check out Peggy’s Mobile Hair Care today at (613) 882-5099!  At Peggy’s Mobile Hair Care, hair care and great service go hand in hand!

You can have a buffet style or sit down reception meal.

Foods served at this type of reception would be; toast, rolls, eggs, omelette,

fresh fruit, croissants, quiches, cheese and cold cuts.

Coffee, tea and juice perhaps even champagne or champagne punch.

Wedding cake

2.  Luncheon: Late morning ceremony followed by a luncheon type reception.

For a buffet style reception:  Foods could include salads, fruit, chicken, pasta,

vegetables with dip, salmon or shrimp, sandwiches, cold cuts, cheese.

Wedding cakes served with coffee or tea.

Champagne can be served if you wish.

For a sit-down meal: Soup, salad, chicken, beef with rice or vegetables.

Wedding cake served with coffee or tea.

Champagne can served if you wish.

3.  Tea or Cocktail:  Tea receptions are normally held around 2:00 – 5:00pm.  This is the least expensive type of reception.

Foods that can be served : tea sandwiches, finger foods, wedding cake,

Coffee, tea, champagne and wine.

Cocktail Reception:  Normally held at 5:00 – 7:00 pm.  Cocktail reception are normally for adults, little or no children are invited to this type of wedding reception.

Foods served would be: hot and cold hors d’oeuvres.

Cocktails, champagne, wine and punch.

Coffee, tea and wedding cake or other desserts.

4. Dinner Reception: Ceremony takes place in the afternoon.  This type of reception is normally held at 6:00 – 9:00pm or later.  This is the most traditional type of wedding reception.

Depending on budget it can include cocktail hour, sit-down dinner and a midnight buffet.

Almost any types of food can be served at a dinner reception.  Roast beef, chicken, fish, vegetables, salads, pastas to name a few.

Wedding cake and other desserts, served with coffee or tea.

Bar on location for other drinks.

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A Chinese bride dressed in a 2,162-meter-long wedding gown handmade by her groom’s family on her wedding day Thursday August 6th, 2009 in northeast China’s Jilin Province.

More than 200 wedding guests took more than three hours to completely unroll the wedding train, and pin 9,999 red roses made of silk on the wedding train Thursday morning, before the bride put on the dress.

The groom Zhao Peng, a 28-year-old railway worker, wanted to challenge the current Guinness World Record of a wedding dress of 1,579 meters long.

After the wedding he cut the dress to 1,984.1,022 meters, representing the number of his bride’s birthday.  What a romantic idea!  The groom had 608 crystals stitched on the dress train in memory of their 608 dating days, starting from the first time he met with her.

Wondering how much this cost?  He bought the materials and asked his relatives for help in making the wedding dress by hand, which has taken three months to finish, and cost him some 40,000 yuan (5,856 U.S. dollars).

His aunt, a dressmaker, agreed to make the design. Other family members helped search for wedding information, select dress patterns, buy the materials, do lacework, make the silk roses and stitch crystals on the dress.

The Ball Gown:  This style fits a highly formal wedding.  The gowns have fitted corset-style bodice and a very dramatic skirt.  This style of gown suits most body types.

“A” Line Gown:  Fitted top, the panels of the wedding dress extend in an A formation.  This style of dress has no defined waist.  Very fitting for brides with board shoulders or wide hip area.

Sheath:  Very sexy and slimming style of wedding gown.  Most bridal designers will use light fabrics on this type of wedding gown.  Brides that are very petite and well portioned will love this type of wedding dress.

Mermaid:  This dress is like the Sheath gown but is a more fitted one.  It shows all the curves of your body.  The skirt flares from the knee down.  A very romantic gown.

Empire:  This type of dress creates an illusion of a larger bust.  It’s best worn by a petite bride, or brides that are pear shape in figure as it hides the bottom part of the body elegantly.

The Ottawa Gatineau area has both trendy and traditional bridal dress shops, so there’s something for all of you!  Start shopping for your perfect wedding dress using our online wedding directory today!

Remember to check out the Maggie Sottero Collection Trunk Show at Dominque Levesque Bridal September 24-27, 2009!

The current season’s bridal designs from Maggie Sottero’s will be featured at Dominque Levesque Bridal Salon September 24 -27, 2009.  Dominque Levesque Bridal is located at 1300 Carling Avenue.  Call 613 321-1136 to book your appointment early, to view these gorgeous designs and avoid disappointment.

This trunk show is an excellent way to see what the current fashions are and to speak to Maggie Sottero retailer experts about the line and answer any questions you may have directly.

These personalized wedding photo cookies look just like framed photos—and they are! But unlike other framed wedding photos, these are 100% edible.

Biscotti are available in your choice of flavors: traditional almond or chocolate almond. Add the couple’s names, wedding date or a special message up to 25 characters per line in the font style of your choice. You can even include a photo to the left of your message.

These cookies can be placed at each table setting or on a tray as a centre piece for each table.  Regardless of which way you choose to give these wedding favors to your guests, they will absolutely enjoy them!

Check out Beau-coup today!

2. Guest Book Platter or Signature Vase:  Purchase a platter or vase that can be used for years to come and have your guests sign these items with a permanent marker designed for porcelain finishes.

3. Time Capsule: Have your guests sign the back of pictures of you and your fiance with best wishes and inspiring words of wisdom.  After the wedding, place them in a time capsule.  On your first anniversary, while enjoying the top layer of your wedding cake, you can open the time capsule and read all the loving messages written by those who attending your wedding.

Do you have any other unique ideas?  Let us know!