Tony Aspler

I also gave half-stars which basically meant I was scoring out of ten points. So pervasive was Robert Parker’s 100-point scoring system that consumers began to expect that all wine writers would be marking wines out of 100. So, reluctantly, I acquiesced and began scoring out of 100. And I had my judging panels at the Ontario Wine Awards use this same numeric system. A wine that scored 90+ at the competition got a gold medal; 87 – 89, silver and 85 – 86 bronze.

Rosé has gone from punchline to powerhouse, and Tony Aspler explains why the world keeps drinking pink And we would rather be seen wearing an apron at the kitchen sink than be caught holding a glass of rosé. Pink wines were for girls. For men, these pretty wines were neither fish, nor fowl, nor good red herring. For the 2023-24/2025 period, rosé wine sales in Canada dropped by 3% in value and 7% in volume, following a peak in the 2021-22 period. But globally they're exploding.

“I never cook with anything I wouldn’t drink,” says Art. A pause for reflection and then he adds, “But then I drink anything.” Art and I are in a boat on Waterbury Lake in Northern Saskatchewan, about 200 kilometres from the Northwest Territories border. Our guide Rob is looking disgusted because we’re talking wine and food. He’s used to conversations about tackle, lures, outboard motors and pike as big as one-man submarines.