If you are interested in general information about wine, an extensive Wine FAQ is available. It holds information on everything from grape varieties to touring wine districts (including Niagara).
The following links point to sites that might be of interest to the wine community in and around Toronto. For a more complete list of sites around the world, we recommend Dean Tudor's Compendium of Wines, Beers and Spirits of the Net.
There are many wine-related mailing lists. For newcomers, these operate through your e-mail service. Typically, you send a message to a list server to "subscribe" to a list. Then, whenever anyone posts a message to the list, a copy is sent to you; anything you send is copied and mailed to all other subscribers. You can unsubscribe from a list at any time. Many lists, both general and with specific interests, can be found on Dean Tudor's list. The following are likely to be of particular interest to the local community:
However, for those interested specifically in wine courses, we have a few suggestions:
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Two well-known writers, David Lawrason and Steve Thurlow, have teamed to offer courses at Global Wine Tour. Click on the link to see the current course offerings. |
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Well-known local wine writer Tony Aspler, offers courses at various levels, at various times through the year. Click on the link to visit the web sites for information about what is currently available. |
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The Independent Wine Education Guild offers regular courses. Many of these are aimed at people interested in careers in the wine industry, looking for diplomas and certification. |
| Community Colleges | Several of the local community colleges over wine courses through their continuing education divisions. Call the college nearest you for information about what is available. |
The following is a list of wine-related publications that are specifically of interest to wine drinkers in the Toronto area. All prices shown are Canadian dollars, unless otherwise indicated.
Inclusion in this list does not consitute an endorsement by Winetasters Society of Toronto.
Anyone with corrections to this information, or information about
other publications that are specifically relevant to the local wine
community, please contact us at
.
We reserve the right to decide whether any publication will be listed,
based on its subject matter and region of interest.
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Billy's Best Bottles, Wineletter, Published bi-monthly, annual subscription is $48 ($86 for twoyears). All wines are purchased and tasted by the author William Munnelly. The address for orders is Billy's Best Bottles, 589 Markham Street, Toronto , Ontario, M6G 2L7. Phone 416 530-1545, fax 416 530-1575. Focuses on reasonably priced wines. Billy has a humourous, enjoyable writing style. Offers a complimentary issue. |
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Nat Decants free Newsletter: Wine picks, articles and humor from Natalie MacLean, recently named the World's Best Drink Writer at the World Food Media Awards in Australia. There are no ads and all e-mail addresses are kept confidential. To sign up, visit www.nataliemaclean.com. |
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Simply Wine - a web site and free newsletter with wine reviews, stories, and insights into the Niagara wine industry. |
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Vines - One of Canada's most popular and widely-read food and wine magazines. |
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Vintage Assessments, by Michael Vaughan - wine columnist for the National Post. A newsletter that covers all wines released by Vintages, the Fine Wine division of the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. Subscriptions are $48, for 12 issues. Order from Gargoyles Ltd., 29 High Park Gardens, Toronto, Canada, M6R 1S8. Phone or fax: 416-762-3579. |
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Wine Access. A monthly guide to new wines available in Ontario. For Canadian wine fans it promises more intensive coverage of Ontario wineries in future issues. Published 10 times per year, at $49 (C$55 for U.S subscription). |
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Wine Express. A personal guide to good-value, great-tasting wines available in Ontario. Mailed to you quarterly for only $13.50, it's written by Frank Baldock, president of the Wine Writers' Circle of Canada, who also writes in Wine Access, Wine Tidings, Canadian Business, etc. |
The following are services offered to the wine community of the Toronto area.
Inclusion in this list does not consitute an endorsement by Winetasters Society of Toronto.
Anyone offering services specifically of interest to the local wine
community is welcomed to send us information.
We reserve the right to decide whether any service will be listed.
We will not publish information about wine stores, or
make-your-own-wine shops - there are too many for us to handle fairly.
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Iron Gate Cellarage is a professional offsite wine storage facility in downtown Toronto. We pride ourselves on providing the utmost in care and white glove service for private fine wine collections. With strict adherence to environmental conditions, we ensure that your wine ages to perfection, is accessible when you choose to withdraw a portion and is maintained under the highest of security conditions. Conceived and built by top restaurant consultants, leading sommeliers and wine enthusiasts alike, Iron Gate Cellarage is the premier facility for the care of fine wine. Free Pickup and Delivery, competitive pricing and a state-of-the-art online wine management system. |
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Rosehill Wine Cellars specializes in selling a wide range of top quality wine storage products. These products include wine racking, wine cellar cooling units, and wine cabinets. Rosehill offers a 10% discount to members of Winetasters. |
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The Fine Wine Reserve Inc. has a 5,500 square foot wine storage facility located on King Street West near Spadina Avenue, designed to meet the unique needs of collectors, enthusiasts and restaurateurs in southern Ontario. |
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The Vin de Garde Club is a unique new service available for the first time in North America. What we discovered was that there is a growing interest in wine but most people don’t have the time or resources to research what they’re buying. We saw this as similar to people who want to build up a great stock portfolio but don’t have the ability or desire to research 1000’s of companies. Therefore they leave these decisions up to industry experts by purchasing through a mutual fund. So we decided to launch what we call the "Mutual Fund of Fine Wine". The Vin de Garde Club’s members contribute a fixed amount of money every month and we have some of the top experts in Canada purchase wine on their behalf. We choose it, purchase it, take delivery of it and even place it straight into a professional cellar located in downtown Toronto. They watch their collection grow on the internet and can withdraw cases as desired or leave with us for long term storage. |
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Urban Cellars provides high-quality, secure wine storage facilities in downtown Toronto. |
| Vine Ideas | Jon Randle, Sommelier, can provide Tutored Tastings, Client Appreciation services, Staff Training and Wine Education. Phone (905) 683-1340 or (905) 626-0584, or . |
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Wine Cellar Creations: Pine wine racking systems. Free standing cellars. Cooling units. Redwood racking. Accessories. Custom wine cellars. Wine Cellar Creations offers a 10% discount to members of Winetasters. |
| Winemaker For Hire | Winemaker For Hire: Sourcing grapes from around the world - including El Dorado Cab, Russian River Zin, Niagara Bench or Rhienhessen Riesling, and many others - and assisting people in the quest for the perfect wine for their individual tastes. Phone Charles Fajgenbaum at (416) 778-9000, or . |
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Wine Online. Order wines on line, or by telephone, and have them delivered to your home or business. , or phone , fax . |
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Wine Studio offers a wide range of wine accessories, from glasses to wine cellars. |
| Wine-Wall | Wine-Wall.com is a group of enthusiastic entrepreneurs who have set out to bring you new and exciting products from wine racks to wine accessories to bar stools. Wine-Wall.com has gathered various talent and skills ranging from the field of engineering to the field of website design, to bring you our line of innovative products through a powerful medium. |
Winetasters receives notices of companies that offer wine-related travel services. The following list identifies some of the companies we know about.
Inclusion in this list does not consitute an endorsement by Winetasters Society of Toronto. We have not investigated these companies in any way, and know nothing about them. Buyer Beware!
Note to Travel Companies: We will post brief, non-hyped notices about companies that offer wine-related travel services. Each message should include contact information, preferably a link to a web site. We will not post messages about specific tours. If you wish to be included in this list, please send the information you wish to post to our site. We reserve the right to select which companies to include, and to edit messages for length or other reasons.
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Arts and Leisure Tours offer tours of Italy, France, Spain and more. Services include exclusive small group trips, private travel arrangements, and country inns and vacation property rentals. |
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BKWine organises wine tours and wine tastings and writes on wine. 15 years experience of wine travel. Check our web site for a free wine and travel newsletter and a photo gallery with 3000 wine pictures. |
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Bordeaux Wine Travel offers an exclusive chauffeur service based in Bordeaux for personalized chauffeur-driven wine tours to famous chateaux in the region of Bordeaux and for all other transportation in the south west of France: airport transfer, business trips, tourist trips etc. English speaking chauffeur. |
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Breakaway Travel Custom tours of Burgundy for 4-30 people, arranged by a company passionate about the wines of Burgundy. |
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Cellar Tours offer scheduled 4-7 day luxury wine tours for individual and groups, customized wine tours for wine schools, clubs and societies, tailored tours for small groups, half day wine tasting classes and cooking classes in Barcelona and Madrid, and culinary routes throughout Spain and Portugal. Routes include La Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Penedes, Port and Sherry, plus emerging regions. Our wine tours are owner led, by a bilingual, WSET qualified, Hispanophile. |
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Exclusive Country Tours is a travel company in Siena specialized in Luxury customized tours in Italy. |
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Crooked Trails - Travel with a purpose. Crooked Trails is a non-profit, community-based travel organization helping people broaden their understanding of the planet and its diverse cultures through education, community development and responsible travel. They include well-designed wine tours of Chile among their itineraries, led by local wine experts. |
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Exclusive Travels - Designers of luxury travel experiences for groups and individuals seeking the ultimate food & drink tours, featuring wine educators and celebrity hosts. Visit us at www.exclusivetravels.com. to whet your appetite! |
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French Wine Explorers offers wine and culinary vacations in France, fully escorted by qualified wine professionals. Choose from a full calendar of scheduled wine tours to Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhône, Champagne and more, with tastings at prestigious estates, fine hotels and gourmet dining. Or let us custom-design a private wine vacation in France for your group of 4 or more guests. French Wine Explorers offers a 5% discount on all tours to members of Winetasters - ask for details. |
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Fufluns. Filippo Magnani, proprietor of the Fufluns travel agency, was born and raised in Suvereto, a small village of the Maremma situated near the Tuscan coast. The agency's policy is the creation of personalised gastronomic and wine appreciation itineraries in this region.. |
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La Dolce Vita Wine Tours offers epicurean and active (biking and walking) tours of wine regions of Italy. For 2003, they offer a 10% discount, or a $400 reduction of the new tour of Sicily, for members of Winetasters. |
| Okanagan Vintage Wine Tours | Fully escorted tours that lead you into the heart of Western Canada's Wine Country by luxury motor coach. We take you to 10 of the very best vineyards and wineries this breathtaking Valley has to offer. Enjoy a catered meal, while at two select wineries, to truly enhance your tasting pleasure. After a day of tasting, relax at one of Penticton's finest hotel's, centrally located to beaches, water sports, shopping, golfing, and a great nightlife! Group discounts available. For more information, e-mail , phone toll-free , or fax . |
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Shoreline Tours & Travel offers guided coach tours of the vineyars of Niagara. From quaint cottages producing exclusive niche wines to internationally awarded vineyards, you will have a chance to experience the charm and sensational tastes that this region has to offer! Leave the details to us, or customize any package to suit your needs, from private corporate functions at one of the luxurious vineyards, to helicopter rides over Niagara Falls. Contact at , Fax . |
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Touringhouse Inc. New Page 1 specializes in group travel. We offer custom wine tasting and gourmet tours to Italy, France and other destinations. For more details, please refer to our website, phone or . |
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Vinequest Holidays - Take a break in the beautiful Okanagan! Escape to the beautiful wine country in B.C. and enjoy a mini-holiday. Experience the award-winning wines of renowned B.C. winemakers during the exclusive Proprietor's tastings. Marvel at the spectacular wineries built at the new destination vineyards. Taste the finest in international and local cuisine served up at a number of noted restaurants. Soak up the warmth and take in amazing settlings in the sunny Okanogan, and leave the prairie climate miles behind you! E-mail or phone . |
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Vinophoria offers guided tours of the wine regions of Spain. Select from a variety of pre-planned tours, or design your own. |
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Vintage Spain - Luxury Wine Tasting Tours of Spain. We have always thought that travel is much more enjoyable when you have friends in the places you visit. We also love when our friends visit our country, so we can show them around and share our love for Spain and its wines with them. . |
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Wine Around specializes in organizing wine and gourmet tours through the vineyards of Spain and the south of France, as well as private wine tasting in Barcelona. . |
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Wine Roots. Here you will find the best luxury wine routes over Spain. Enjoy the best Spanish culinary tradition, the incomparable cultural resources and, of course, the taste of the best wineries and wines of Spain. . |
If anyone would like to have information added to this page, please e-mail
it to the address below.
Note to other webmasters:
We do not "exchange links."
Feel free to include a link to our site if you feel it would be
of value to your audience.
We only include links that are directly relevant to the Toronto
wine community, and will add those with no reciprocal obligation.
There are many other excellent wine link sites, such as
Dean Tudor's list mentioned above.
We do not see a need, and do not have the resources, to duplicate this work.