LCBO showcasing local wines

  The smell of seared winery-fed lamb wafts across the demonstration kitchen at the LCBO store, enticing visitors to stop and sniff.

  All the ingredients Peller Estates executive chef Jason Parsons tosses into the pot are locally sourced: peaches, corn, shallots, goat cheese, veal bacon, and the lamb, which spent its life trimming the vines at Featherstone Winery & Vineyard in Vineland.

  The delectable dish was paired with a bottle of Cabernet Merlot.

  This culinary sneak preview is a taste of what’s to come at the Geneva Street store, and 80 other consumer events at LCBO shops across the province in the next few weeks.

  The mantra? Go Local.

  It’s the anthem being pumped during the provincial liquor board’s 15th annual Ontario wine promotion, which runs Sept. 14 to Oct. 12 at all of its 605 stores.

 “There’s no better way of getting people to appreciate the versatility of Ontario wine than getting them into the kitchen,” said LCBO spokesman Chris Layton.

  Buying local adds to the quality of life and adds much to the economy of both Niagara and Ontario, said Paul Bosc Jr., whose family owns Chateau des Charmes in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

  For every litre of 100 per cent Ontario wine sold, $10.05 goes back into the province’s economy, over and above government taxes.

  That’s 15 times the 67 cents that goes into the province’s economy when a litre of imported wine is sold.

 “Buying local is great for a community like Niagara,” said Bosc Jr., speaking on behalf of the Wine Council of Ontario.

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“It’s great for the province of Ontario. We bring a value to the quality of life that I think is very difficult for many other agricultural products to offer — that kind of multiplier effect in terms of economic value.”

  It’s not just Ontario wine that will be at the forefront of the LCBO promotion.

  Local artists, musicians, authors, chefs and others will be showing off their skills to LCBO patrons in the coming weeks.

  In St. Catharines, the highlights include wrestler and Olympic bronze medallist Tonya Verbeek, a Beamsville resident.

  Musicians Oliver Black, a rock and roll band from Welland, and Matt Dell, a budding Niagara artist will be performing.

  Stephen Treadwell of Treadwell Farm to Table Cuisine in Port Dalhousie, Ross Midgley of Zee’s Restaurant in Niagara-on-the-Lake will be among a handful of chefs cooking up local fare.

  Winemakers share a lot in common with artists, Bosc Jr. said.

 “Our raw materials are different. We don’t use oil paint. We use soil and sunshine. What our various crafts have in common is creativity and passion. They come from the same place.”

  More than 150 wines are being featured during the promotion.

  Wineries pay the LCBO to have their wines highlighted.

  About 26 new Ontario wines will be featured in the LCBO’s specialty Vintages section.

  The LCBO’s website  is showing podcasts profiling four Niagara wineries — Jordan’s Cave Spring Cellars and Creekside Estate Winery, Henry of Pelham in St. Catharines and Vineland Estate Winery — and Niagara-on-the-Lake grape grower, Kevin Watson.