Roederer Estate Rosé
LCBO No. 479758; $35.95 (91 Points)
This traditional-method bubbly from Anderson Valley in Mendocino County sports a pale salmon colour. Medium bodied, the bouquet is toasty and fruity with notes of wild strawberry, raspberry and brown spices that carry through to the palate. Elegant, textural and crisp, it’s sure to get the evening off to a great start.

Landmark Damaris Reserve Chardonnay 2008
LCBO No. 356519; $45.95 (92 Points)
This Sonoma County selection is from the best lots of the year. This vintage, a blend from the Sangiacomo Vineyards in Carneros and Flocchini Vineyard in the Sonoma Coast appellation, has spent more than a year in French oak. Toasty oaked, full bodied, rich and ripe with tropical fruit, it’s plump with good acid to balance and a nice grip.

Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
LCBO No. 80218; $89.95 (94 Points)
Worth the splurge, this is a terrific vintage of Beaulieu’s Private Reserve, a Napa Valley benchmark cabernet widely collected by connoisseurs. Opulent and textured with well-integrated oak, it has superb balance. Nicely complex, it has layers of flavour — berry, cassis, graphite and spiced oak with notes of herbs and menthol.

Valentine’s Day is less than a week away. If that is news to you then you’d better start thinking of ways to woo and beguile your loved one. Lucky for you, this column is intended to help boost your sex appeal, not that you need it, of course, as you’ve probably been working that treadmill since New Year’s and you’re even starting to see some muscle definition. All that notwithstanding, unless you’re Antonio Banderas or Scarlett Johansen, we could all use some help in this department. From experience, the art of seduction with wine has been quite successful. Regardless of how I look and feel, I can always count on just the right bottle to impress, lure, tempt and entice.

Although wine is a pretty powerful tool on its own, its persuasiveness is all the more extraordinary when paired with just the right flavor, texture or pungency of food. The result of such a match is a powerful aphrodisiac that is able to attract the most rigid of partners. So, before you reach blindly for the oysters and chocolate, think instead of creating an electric match that will prove a hauntingly exquisite memory for years to come.

So, let’s get to work, time to top yourself, the clock is ticking . . .

Henry Of Pelham Reserve Off Dry Riesling 2009, VQA Short Hills Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada, 557165, $15.95

Electric is Riesling’s middle name; truly, this wine can produce a frenzy in the right circumstances. Pairing a vibrant wine such as this with a slightly acidic dish can tame the acid in both the food and wine and produce a dynamic and nervy yet harmonious pairing. Try asparagus with a squeeze of lemon, or one of my personal favourites, a grapefruit and avocado salad.

Gran Lurton Corte Friulano 2010, Uco Valley, Mendoza, Argentina, 66829, $19.95

Forget the flowers, this exotic bouquet is enough to make a girl’s heart flutter. There is great contrast and interplay in this wine with sweet and sour, tropical and citrus notes that playfully intermingle and tug and pull on the palate. Such a flirtatious wine deserves an equally mischievous pairing such as fish ceviche, a whipped foie gras mousse or a dish with bit of heat such as a Thai inspired curry.

André Clouet Brut Grand Réserve Champagne, Ac, France, 228718, $42.95

All you have to say is “Champagne” with the right, inquisitive intonation and you are half way there. This bubbly is not only well-priced but it is a Grower Champagne which means it comes from a typically small house who grows the grapes used to produce the wine. These Champagnes account for a very small percentage of sales and are therefore rare and also more esteemed. Serving such a Champagne will give you instant class and calls for a delicate but extravagant pairing. Traditional and upscale choices such as oysters or caviar work beautifully. However if you would like to tone down the extravagance of this wine, try popcorn with just a hint of truffle oil and you will have yourself a sensual and surprisingly superb match.

Don Nieto Senetiner Don Nicanor Malbec 2008, Mendoza, Argentina, 178657, $17.95

Brooding, intense, sultry and smoky describes this bombshell of a Malbec that will do the seducing for you. Get yourself a pair of castanets for added drama when you serve this voluptuous red. A wine such as this with firm tannins requires some protein: rare, red meat pairs exquisitely. On the safe side, a great cut of beef would undoubtedly be a hit, but venison raises the bar. Don’t be afraid of seasoning here as finishing salt and a good dose of cracked pepper will only enhance and smooth the texture of this full-bodied wine.

Remo Farina Monte Fante Riserva Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 2004, Doc, Veneto, Italy, 63636, $62.95

Instead of chocolate, try this Amarone paired with an array of richly flavoured cheeses. The dried fruit flavours lend almost a sweetness to this wine that makes a delectable, contrasting pairing to salty, fatty foods. Or, if you are feeling particularly proficient in the kitchen, try your hand at a blue cheese cheesecake, which tends to be most successful with creamier blues such as St. Agur from France or full-flavoured versions such as Spanish Cabrales.

A thoughtful wine pairing is sure to impress the one that you covet. It is easy to turn up the heat with a small amount of preparation and good deal of passionate motivation. So now that you have the tools, go, be fruitful, bewitch and mesmerize the heck out of your sweetheart. It’s okay; you can take all the credit.

Grey Goose is helping you out. With the help of mixologist Dimi Lezinska, the vodka company has created five special Oscar-themed drinks inspired by five of this year’s most acclaimed movies. To those who have always wondered what a War Horse tastes like, here’s your chance to whip up a drink inspired by the Spielberg film.

These will be the same cocktails that the celebs will be enjoying at pre- and post-parties so fix yourself a drink  and feel like a movie star!

Silent Martini Cocktail
Inspired by The Artist
Ingredients
2 oz   GREY GOOSE vodka
1 oz   Fino sherry (dry, fruity sherry like Manzanilla or Amontillado)
1⁄2 oz   Freshly squeezed lemon juice
1⁄2 oz  Red Currant Syrup or Grenadine
2 dashes Cherry Bitters
Method
Add all ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled coupette. If you are unable to find Red Currant Syrup or Grenadine at your local grocery or specialty store you can make your own. Wash currants and warm on the stovetop over low heat, stirring until tender. Remove from heat and wring them as dry as possible in a cheese cloth over a bowl or pitcher. Measure the juice and return it to the heat and cook fifteen minutes. Then add a pound of granulated sugar to each litre of juice. Boil gently for fifteen minutes, skimming the top. Bottle and keep in a dark place.

GREY GOOSE French Hawaiian
Inspired by The Descendants
Ingredients
1 1⁄2 oz  GREY GOOSE L’Orange
1⁄2 oz  Freshly squeezed lime juice
1⁄2 oz  Freshly squeezed Blood orange juice
1/3 oz  Orgeat or Almond Syrup
3 dashes  Angostura bitters
Method
Build and serve over crushed ice. Garnish with pineapple leaves and a couple of drops of bitters.

Bohemian Goose
Inspired by Midnight in Paris
Ingredients
1 oz  GREY GOOSE La Poire
1/3 oz  Green Chartreuse
1⁄2 oz  Freshly squeezed lime juice
1⁄2 oz  Maraschino liqueur
Method
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake and strain into a chilled coupette and garnish with a pear fan.

GREY GOOSE Julep
Inspired by The Help
Ingredients
1 1⁄2 oz  GREY GOOSE L’Orange
1⁄2 oz  Peach Liqueur
3 dashes Peach bitters
3 dashes  Peychaud’s Bitters
10 leaves Fresh Mint
Method
Add mint leaves to a julep mug and bruise with the back of a spoon. Build and serve over crushed ice. Garnish with mint and peach or lemon slices

GREY GOOSE Le Fizz
Inspired by War Horse
Ingredients
1 oz  GREY GOOSE vodka
1⁄2 oz  Elderflower Liqueur or cordial
1⁄2 oz  Freshly Squeeze Lime Juice
Soda water
Method
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a champagne flute. Top with soda water.

I started by sucking back some fresh dim sum before hitting the fish counter (note: they could not have been more friendly and helpful). Then I moved over to produce, bought up every manner of greens and chilies (watch this space for long beans!), before hitting the aisles — preserved black beans (a new favourite ingredient — it’s like Hoisin sauce, only twice as salty and minus the goop), peanut oil, Shaoxing rice wine (a.k.a. Chinese cooking wine) and on it went. I left with three big bags of groceries, and a little wiser about Chinese cookery. Inspired, when I returned to my kitchen I reached for my neglected wok and threw together a quick and delicious vegetarian dinner.

To make maple and black bean tofu and greens for four, you will need 2 tsp vegetable or peanut oil, one garlic clove, minced, 1 tsp minced ginger, a pinch of chili flakes, 1 tbsp preserved black beans, 1 tbsp maple syrup, ¼ cup Chinese cooking wine (or dry sherry, or water), one large package gai choy (Chinese mustard greens; you could sub with rapini), one 300g package fried tofu, 1 tsp sesame oil and toasted sesame seeds for garnish (optional but good).

Wash the gai choy and trim the rough bottoms, then cut greens in half or thirds (depending on size.) In a wok heat vegetable oil, give it a swirl, then add garlic, ginger and chili and stirfry for a minute. Add black beans and maple syrup and stir for a minute more, then add cooking wine. Throw in greens and fried tofu and toss everything together, stirring from the bottom up, until greens are vibrant and stalks are tender-crisp, about five minutes. Drizzle with sesame oil (the Chinese version of a finishing fruity olive oil), sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve at once. Twice as nice with rice.

Amy Rosen is the food editor at Canadian House & Home Magazine.

Joel Aubie, 27, Tofino, BC
Trevor Bird, 28, Vancouver, BC
David Crystian, 37, Toronto, ON
Gabriell Cruz, 25, Dundas, ON
Ryan Gallagher, 33, Toronto, ON
Kunal Ghose, 39, Victoria, BC
Carl Heinrich, 26, Toronto, ON
Jonathan Korecki, 27, Ottawa, ON
Xavier Lacaze, 30, Calgary, AB
Curtis Luk, 38, Ottawa, ON
Sergio Mattoscio, 30, Montreal, QC
Elizabeth Rivasplata, 31, Toronto, ON
Trista Sheen, 29, Toronto, ON
Jimmy Stewart, 23, Whistler, BC
William Thompson, 30, Caledonia, ON
Sarah Tsai, 30, Toronto, ON

Replacing host Thea Andrews this season will be actress Lisa Ray, with returning head judge, chef and restaurateur  Mark McEwan and resident judge, restaurateur Shereen Arazm. The list of guest judges range from local stars (Toronto Maple Leafs forward Colby Armstrong) to internationally-renowned chefs (Top Chef Masters winner Chef Marcus Samuelson). Other guests include Canada’s Handyman Challenge’s Mike Holmes, actor Alan Thicke, Spencer “Spenny” Rice of Kenny vs. Spenny and country music star Johnny Reid.