Yes, I’m this excited! I have a couple of trips planned, all within Canada, but still, I’m this excited. The wine tour to the Niagara region in Ontario, including a 2-night stay in beautiful Quebec City and the 1000 Islands Boat Tour is going ahead for October 2nd. And this is where we are staying in Niagara Falls.
Lots of exciting news this week. I am getting on a plane Thursday for the first time since Christmas 2019 and heading to Newfoundland for 10 days. And then, October 2nd, we are leaving Halifax for a wonderful 7-night tour that I would love you to come on. Come join us, there’s room, and we are going to have so much fun. If you like videos, Richard and I did a video a while back explaining the full details of the tour, and you can view it here. Richard is the President and Director of Fun for Atlantic Tours, and honest to God, he’s so much fun, you would think he was a Newfoundlander himself. LOL
I’m going to share the readers digest version of the tour.
First we leave Halifax on a brand new comfortable motorcoach bus and head to Quebec City for 2 nights. We will be staying at the Manoir Victoria Hotel in the heart of Old Quebec City. There we will be given a guided tour, we will have some free time to explore and we are going to discover some great food and wine. I have never been to old Quebec City before so I’m super excited about this part of the trip.
And then it’s on to Niagara Falls. We are staying at the beautiful hotel seen above, the Embassy Suites by Hilton. Over the next 3-night stay, we will enjoy a guided tour of Niagara Falls, plus we will be visiting 6 of the top wineries in the Niagara region. Not all in one day of course, but the best part is we will have a designated driver, so we can enjoy these wineries to the fullest. Some of the wineries include
Wayne Gretzky not only has an award winning winery, but he also has a whiskey tasting room on site, in this spectacular 20,000 square foot facility.
We will also be visiting Peller Estates, along with 4 other wineries. You can visit 2 wineries, or you can come to all 6, it’s completely up to you. 13 Meals: 4 Dinners, 2 Lunches, 7 Breakfasts are included in the price, and we are going to have so much fun. Come with us.
We are going to finish it up with the Thousand Island Boat Tour before we head back home. You can join us from anywhere. Check out the details at http://www.atlantictours.com. You’ll probably talk to Peggy and she can help with any questions you might have.
So, last week I told you I had some ribs marinating, and would give you the recipe this week.
Marinades can change, and I never measure amounts. Here’s what I put in my marinade. You can mix and match, or use whatever you like. Brown Sugar, Worchestershire sauce, hot sauce, salt, pepper, garlic powder, liquid smoke, and BBQ sauce. You can use any sauce for the marinade, but when you are finalizing the ribs on the grill, use a good thick one, it will stick to the ribs better. Then set your oven to 275-degrees and slow cook those ribs for 2 1/2 – 3 hours.
Then I put them on the grill, on in-direct heat. What I mean by that, is one side of my BBQ is on, and the other is not. I put the ribs on the off side, to allow them to finish cooking, slowly. That’s when I’m basting with my good BBQ sauce. This is the one I like, Bulls Eye Sweet & Sticky.
I also put the ribs directly on the heat for a minute or two each side. I let the heat carmelize those sugars from both the sauce and the marinade, and put those real nice grill marks on your ribs. Did I take a picture after my ribs were done. No, I was too hungry. Trust me, they turned out great. And this is the wine I had with them.
Normally, I like a big bold Zinfandel with ribs, but this time a big bold Cabernet Sauvignon also did the trick. This is actually a blend, even though the majority of the wine is a Cabernet Sauvignon. That is the main grape of the wine, but there is a small bit of Merlot and Zinfandel in this wine. It was rich and decadent, and I just loved it with the ribs. It felt like a real splurge, even though it was under $20 a bottle. To my Newfoundland friends, you can get it there, it’s $1 more.
I just wanted to let everyone know there will be no wine blogs for the next 2 weeks. Heading to my hometown of Corner Brook, Newfoundland on Thursday and I’m there till Sunday August 2nd. I’ll tell you all about my trip when I get back.
Stay safe, enjoy Summer. Cheers
Wine-It’s Just My Opinion 