Premier Ford Trades Barbs with Trump

Ford hit back at Trump, telling him to "kiss my ass"

About 24 hours after news of Canada walking away from the trade talks with the United States, President Donald Trump weighed in on social media (of course).

"Canada wants the benefits of being a State, without being one!!!" he wrote on Truth Social.

"They have also charged our great farmers, for many years, massive amounts of tariffs." No more!!!"

It wasn't the fiery rhetoric that he blasts off -- quite muted in fact, given such a long time lag from when the trade talks collapsed. It's not like there was a time difference either!

But today he began trading barbs with Ontario Premier Doug Ford, after he said the president could "kiss his ass."

While he was in Hamilton, Ontario to announce tariff relief packages, Trump posted a message on his social media account, comparing Ford to his brother, the late Rob Ford.

Trump wrote that Doug Ford was "better known as the less charismatic, intelligent, and overall unimpressive brother of the late great Rob Ford."

The president went on to say that "America has been carrying Canada for decades, but no longer! The U.S.A. will always be far bigger, richer, and stronger than Canada."

It's such a strange comparison, as Rob Ford was an alcoholic and drug addict, and his time as Mayor was erratic to say the least.

Nevertheless, Doug Ford commented on Trump's accusation, saying, "I don't respond to a dictator like President Trump, a bully like President Trump."

Ford continued, "I'm not going to take any advice from the king of bankruptcies, and he's actually tariffing his own people, taxing his own people."

The premier seems to revel in his verbal jousts with the president that gain media attention. 

But trading insults isn't a productive way to get both sides back to the negotiating table... 

PM Carney Sheds Light on Unfair Trade Deal

Carney explains why Canada walked away from the trade deal

Tonight in Vancouver there are flashes of light and then the ominous loud crack of thunder can be heard outside as the rain is pouring down tonight. 

It's been a long day that started this morning with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney addressing the nation about why the country walked away from negotiating a trade deal with the United States, and that it's time to buckle up for a trade war.

"We cannot accept what they've offered, and we will not give what they've asked," he said, adding the US 'asked too much and offered too little.'

Carney also revealed the US had issues with Canada's subsidies for French culture, the prevalence of French-language media online and even the federal requirement to have bilingual labels on products sold in Canada.

"It was unacceptable right from the start, but the Americans kept trying and trying and we said no," the prime minister said. "Ultimately it's simple. That was never on the table for Canada and it would not have been acceptable to Canadians."

For the auto industry, the Americans demanded to treat Canadian-made parts unfairly and to exempt some cars and pick-up trucks from US tariffs, but not others without any explanation.

The US also expected to determine Canada's trade deals with other nations.

"The US introduced, in the last hours, efforts to restrict our ability to have other trade deals," Carney said. "Because we believe in free trade, we're the partner of choice, in many respects, for countries around the world, and Americans wanted to restrict that, they had language to restrict that. Unacceptable."

Perhaps he was referring to Canada striking a trade deal with China worth $3 billion, where 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles will be allowed into the country, along with lower tariffs for canola oil, and seafood like lobsters and crabs into the Middle Kingdom.

But anyway -- why would Canada allow the US -- or rather Donald Trump -- decide who it trades with?

As Toronto Star columnist Justin Ling told CBC Radio today, what the US was doing was basically extortion.

Carney also noted that the US sometimes signs trade deals "in pencil," a hint that it is negotiating in bad faith.

Despite the financial hardships that will come -- layoffs and more money flowing out of wallets -- Canadians seem to be more patriotic than ever. The slogan "Elbows Up" continues to resonate across the country, with all politicians, federally and provincially on board.

As British Columbia Premier David Eby said today, "There is no question that there will be economic pain associated with this, there already is," he said. "But it is necessary to stand up to a bully, and if you don't, they'll just keep coming back for more."

Interestingly, Trump hasn't responded at all to the trade deal collapse. Did he think he had it in the bag?

Canada Walks Away from US Trade Deal

Trade talks between the US and Canada have collapsed

At the last minute, Canada walked away from negotiations with the United States tonight which means 50 percent tariffs will be imposed on specific Canadian goods, from honey to hockey sticks, though Prime Minister Mark Carney warned Canada would retaliate "dollar for dollar".

"I have decided to suspend trade negotiations with the US and have directed Canada's negotiators to return to Ottawa," Carney said in a statement.

"They have worked hard, in good faith, to defend the interests of Canadians throughout these negotiations up until the very last minute. However, last-minute changes in the US proposed terms were unfair, uneconomic, and called into question the reliability of any deal."

Meanwhile US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said it was Canada who walked away from the table just minutes before the deadline.

"Tonight, Canada declined to finalise the trade deal under the terms agreed earlier this week, despite the US offer to Canada to receive the best treatment of any major exporter to our market," Greer told the media in a virtual briefing.

"New demands and walk backs of other commitments by Canada have upended the careful balance reached in the past days," he added.

Quite the surprise to see how the negotiations ended this way, considering Canadian Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc has been going back and forth to Washington DC to hammer out a deal with Greer, which got a reprieve earlier this week.

There was talk that Canada would put American wines and spirits back on the shelves of liquor stores as part of the trade deal, and some provincial leaders had bristled at the directive.

But now it looks like they won't have to do that anytime soon.

When the news broke of the failed trade talks, the chatter on social media among Canadians was that of giving Carney thumbs up.

Many were pleased Canada walked away, saying "no deal is better than a bad deal", and that American President Donald Trump was not trustworthy. 

"It may be painful, but better to bite the bullet now," writes @67 Sound on Bluesky. "There is no deal with the USA that can be trusted. All that a 'deal' does is mark yourself as a sucker that can be extorted for more tomorrow."

Stay tuned.

Blueberry Picking Has Begun

Large bunches of ripe blueberries to pick

This morning we got up early to pick blueberries on a farm in Delta.

Emma Lea Farms announced that today was the start of blueberry season and we decided we'd be one of the first to pick these brilliant berries. The weather was perfect with some clouds and about 15 degrees.

The farm has many rows of blueberry bushes

Traffic was relatively light -- most people staying at home or going to watch World Cup parties to watch Canada play against Morocco in Houston, Texas.

We drove south for about 40 minutes and our journey just before reaching the farm included going across a wooden bridge that only had a single lane; it was manned by two people standing on either side to direct traffic.

The farm was started in 1885 by Joseph Tamboline, an immigrant from Italy. He and his wife Emma started by farming mostly grain and hay, and used heavy work horses instead of tractors.

By 1954, Tamboline's granddaughter and her husband bought the farm and had award-winning dairy cattle, and grew grain, hay, potatoes, peas, sugar beet, beans and corn. In 1994, the farm marked its 100th anniversary with recognition from the provincial government.

Conditions were perfect for picking this morning

In 1975, the fourth generation took over, and added new crops, like strawberries, rutabaga, and cabbage. Today the fifth generation grow strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, tayberries, boysenberries, and blackberries, as well as vegetables like beans, peas, rutabagas, beets and cabbage.

The farm also raises cattle, chicken, and three rescue miniature donkeys.

At the entrance, visitors are asked to choose which container they wish to purchase, from small cardboard boxes, to large buckets to put their berries in. For $48 I got an 8L bucket. It looks daunting to fill it up with blueberries, but in about an hour and a half we were able to fill it and have a large heaping mound on top.

Being the first batch of visitors to pick blueberries, we entered rows of blueberry bushes and there were lots of ripe berries ready to be picked. They were firm and easy to pick. Periodically we would move to another row, but in general most of them had medium to large-sized blueberries. 

Lots of berries to pick (and eat)!

The kids couldn't resist eating the blueberries as they picked them, while I focused on the task at hand! Yes I'm serious about my berries!

By the time we left just after 11am, many people were coming to pick the berries, but the temperatures were starting to rise, and mosquitoes were buzzing around looking for victims.

We left at a good time with a giant bucket filled with blueberries. At home I sifted through the berries, picking out the green stems and some unripe ones, and placed the unwashed blueberries in plastic bags that I later put in the freezer. 

Sadly we later found out at lunch that Morocco was winning 2-0, and then the final score was 3-0. Most fans are just thrilled to see Canada advance to the final 16! What an amazing run!

Canada Day in Ottawa a Washout

Parliament Hill in Ottawa was washed out from thunderstorms

Canada celebrated its 159th birthday today. This morning in Vancouver we enjoyed a pancake breakfast, where we ate pancakes topped with sliced strawberries, maple syrup and whipped cream, and a side of sausages.

It was a beautiful day in Vancouver, but in the nation's capital, Ottawa, the celebrations there were literally a washout.

Extreme weather led to severe thunderstorms that resulted in outdoor concerts, fireworks and even the last performance by the Canadian Forces Snowbirds to be cancelled.

Pancake breakfast for Canada Day

"In the interest of public safety and due to extreme weather and the condition of the site, we unfortunately have made the difficult decision to cancel the National Canada Day Evening Show," Canadian Heritage wrote.

There was so much rain in Ottawa that there was flooding in some areas and power outages. 

Even Prime Minister Mark Carney was prevented from flying to Edmonton to deliver his Canada Day speech because of the thunderstorms in Ottawa.

Earlier in the day he was flipping pancakes in his own riding in an Ottawa suburb and gave a speech encouraging Canadians to remain united.

Carney said Canadians have stood strong in the face of global challenges, "working together, resolutely, to build our future. Because in a crisis, fortune favours the bold."

Alas this crisis drowned out any fortunes for today... All we can say is, hopefully the weather will be better next year for Canada's 160th?

Canada Continues its Historic World Cup Run

The Canadian men's team celebrate Eustaquio's goal

I was too nervous to watch Canada play against South Africa today in the World Cup. But millions of others tuned in with excitement.

The game was even shown at Vancouver International Airport, where screens at the luggage carousel broadcast the game so that passengers were informed of the score (0-0) at the time.

The game on at YVR

And then at the 92nd minute Stephen Eustaquio scored the only goal of the match and Canadians were ecstatic.

Although Canada did not rank at the top of its group, the men's team have certainly made historic strides in this year's World Cup, and Canadians are not taking it for granted.

They are celebrating every win and relishing every moment. Some die-hard fans splashed thousands of dollars to be in Inglewood, California to witness Canada's first time in the knock-out stage.

And now Canada advances further to play against either Morocco or the Netherlands on July 4 in Texas.

Meanwhile coach Jesse Marsch publicly praised his players in a huddle on the pitch after the game.

"Canadian heroes for the future children of this country, who play this sport," he said. "This sport has a big future because of you guys. You should be so proud of who you are. You should be so proud of this game -- you never lost belief. You went after it, point after point, moment after moment. You are Canadian heroes."

Marsch (in grey) praising the team post-game

The American coach was criticised for doing the post-match pep talk out in the open, but Marsch is unapologetic. 

Perhaps it's a tactic, or showing off his leadership skills. Or he wants to show Canadians are too modest and he wanted to openly pat them on the back.

Whatever it is, it's working and the team seems fired up for the next match.

And so are we! O Canada!

Mon Lapin, One of Canada's Top Restaurants

Mon Lapin gives off relaxed, stylish vibes

Our last stop in Montreal was at Mon Lapin, one of the top restaurants in Canada. It's actually a wine bar that happens to serve fantastic food in a laid-back setting in Montreal's Little Italy. Some friends from Vancouver and Hong Kong recommended I go here so this was one of the first places I made a reservation after I booked my plane tickets.

Miramachi striped bass with brown butter sauce

So there was a lot of anticipation coming here and for the most part, it did not disappoint. Walking in, it feels like entering a casual brasserie, with granite tabletops, dark wooden chairs, and a giant antique silver punch bowl decorated with grapes to hold several bottles of chilled wine (in ice).

Our server, who wore shorts, was very surprised to discover we had made a long trek to Mon Lapin and gave us a warm welcome and explained the menu to us (as it was in French). 

We were mightily impressed by the first dish that came out, thinly sliced miramachi striped bass with half moon slices of turnip with a delicious dressing of brown butter sauce.

This was followed up with a refreshing summerly plate of BBQ cucumbers with plump shrimp. We absolutely loved the scallop sandwiches, thin slices of toasted bread and in between was scallop mousse playing on crunchy and smooth textures.

Whole Quebec lobster with salad and potatoes

Three of us just managed to polish off a whole Quebec lobster, the juicy, tender meat cooked perfectly, and was accompanied with buckwheat and rhubarb, along with a small salad and "crackers" made from thinly sliced potato slices that were deep fried.

We sampled two other mains, decadent roast duck with spinach and shiitake, and a hearty pork steak topped with fresh arugula and a sherry sauce. 

Our pre-dessert was to try two local cheeses, and then we ordered what we saw everyone else was having, buckwheat cake with honey and cheese. It was served on a cake platter and we felt like we were celebrating a successful Montreal trip where we got to try some delicious food!

Lovely crispy scallop sandwiches

Mon Lapin

150 Rue Saint-Zotique E

Little Italy, Montreal

514 379 4550

 

A Quick Visit to Quebec City

Chateau Frontenac has over 600 rooms

We woke up early for a 6am start to drive from Montreal to Quebec City. It was pretty smooth getting there in just under three hours and we arrived at the Fairmont Chateau Frontenac, the iconic hotel in old Quebec.

Looking for the washroom in the basement, we looked at some great exhibits showing the history of the place.

Remnants of the original fort

The hotel is located on a hill, and in 1620 is was the former site of Fort Saint-Louis, and over the decades expanded as the number of people settling there increased.

And yes the hotel is named after Louis de Buade de Frontenac, who was a governor of Quebec from 1689 to 1698.

In the 19th century, as people began traveling, tourism to eastern Canada ramped up, as tourists could reach Quebec City by transatlantic ships and then train. As a result, in 1882, the Canadian Pacific Railway Company established Chateau Frontenac, a luxury hotel.

By 1919 the hotel was so successful that the Canadian Pacific Railway Co. doubled Chateau Frontenac's capacity so that it had over 600 rooms. 

The hotel still retains its old school charm

There are also other interesting bits of information, like how in the early 17th century, porcelain china from China was highly prized by royalty and the aristocracy for its translucency, but it was very expensive.

As a result, many aristocrats, including Governor de Frontenac, turned to ceramics from Delft the Netherlands, which was cheaper to purchase, though not as refined as Chinese porcelain. 

Another fascinating story is that in 1939, on the eve of World War II, King George VII and Queen Elizabeth had a royal tour of Canada and hosted a banquet at Chateau Frontenac. For the occasion, the hotel ordered a special porcelain design that was produced in Limoges, France.

The interior of the hotel, like the cascading symmetrical staircase continues to command grandeur, and one can only imagine what it was like back in the 19th century!

Our breakfast which took an infuriating long time

Outside the hotel is a panoramic view overlooking the St. Lawrence River.

Afterwards we looked for a place to have a late breakfast and settled on a cafe that operated at a snail's pace -- it took us 40 minutes from the time we sat down to when we finally got our three breakfast orders on the table -- after we complained.

The best the staff could do was offer us more coffee... we couldn't accept because it was pathetic compensation and also our parking meter was almost up (which was why we were in such a rush). We paid our bill as soon as the food finally came.

After driving the car around and around for another spot, we finally parked it at the bottom of the hill in a parkade and wandered around some more. We stumbled on a massive mural in trompe-l'oeil style that shows the history of Quebec.

A fun mural depicting the history of Quebec

There are some historical figures commemorated in the mural, like Jacques Cartier, Samuel de Champlain, Governor de Frontenac, and they are intermingled with kids playing street hockey with large jerseys, and a woman pushing a stroller with a child holding a teddy bear.

We also saw some public art, some cartoonish statues that had names and back stories in French. One seemed to be giving me the side eye.

However, not long after, it started to rain and not carrying umbrellas or rain gear, we decided to head back to the car park. It's a good thing we did because by the time we got to the car, it was pouring rain and hailing!

This guy gave me the side eye!

We decided to cut short our visit to Quebec City and drive back to Montreal! The first hour or so it continued to rain really hard, but then the precipitation stopped and we drove into sunshine as we approached Montreal and snarling traffic...

What an adventure!

Seeing Niagara Falls from All Angles

A boat taking tourists around the Canadian side of the Falls

The last time I visited Niagara Falls was over 25 years ago so it was very interesting to see how this famous tourist landmark has developed in the intervening years.

This time traveling with my relatives from Australia, they wanted to do the full Niagara experience so we did practically everything there is to do there.

Watching water fall over the edge

We joined a tour at 10am which started at Skylon Tower, an observation tower that is 160 metres tall. On the ground floor we took the usual touristy pictures against a green screen (look scared going over the Falls in a barrel!) and then went up the tower to see Niagara Falls from a bird's eye view.

It's quite the sight seeing the scale of the Falls from above, though the Canadian side which is horse-shoe-shaped is much more dramatic than the American side. The Canadian side is 57m high, the American is 21-30m high, while the Canadian side is obviously much wider at 790m, the American side is 320m wide.

Our tour guide later told us interesting tales about daredevils who have gone over the Falls -- some 5,000 -- but only a few have survived. 

The first person to go over was a woman, Annie Edson Taylor in 1901. She was widowed and poor, and thought that if she went over the Falls, she could become famous. Taylor first tested her wooden barrel by putting her cat in it and it went down and survived, so she figured she would too.

She did survive with just a scratch on her forehead! However, fortune did not follow Taylor's fame and she died poor.

The American side of the falls

Other people thought they would do it for attention, and chose the Canadian side because it was much more dramatic.

However in 1951, after the death of one daredevil, going down the Falls became illegal and now anyone caught doing it will be fined US$25,000 and your children will have to foot the bill if you don't survive.

We then walked towards the casino, where below it we took a funicular a very short distance to get behind the Canadian side of the Falls. We were issued yellow plastic ponchos so that we wouldn't get too wet and went down a tunnel, where we could peek at the Falls from the point where the water goes over the edge.

It's quite a dramatic sight to see, the clear, blue-coloured water, thanks to the glacial water mixed with limestone, dolomite and shale. The Falls are also causing erosion, as tens of thousands of years ago it was further up, but it has since moved over 10 kilometres south. Both governments have mitigated fast erosion by diverting the water at night and in the winter months so it doesn't erode the stone and rock too much.

Getting drenched up close to Niagara Falls

Then we took the poncho off and walked back towards Skylon Tower and past it, and we were issued red plastic ponchos before getting on the boat. Our guide advised us to stand on the bottom right side of the boat as it will turn counter-clockwise to head back and we can have a panoramic view.

However, as we got closer to the Canadian falls, we were starting to get wet very fast! My face and sunglasses were so wet, and my windbreaker was absolutely drenched. I had to periodically check to see if my phone was still working (it was). Meanwhile the roar of the Falls also demonstrated how strong the water falling was -- more than 168,000 m3 of water goes over the cliff every minute!

A fun fact is that around 4.9 million kilowatts of hydroelectricity is generated by Niagara Falls, which powers some 3.8 million households.

There's dramatic lighting at night

On the boat we saw the American side of the Falls, which is also called Bridal Veil Falls. Separating the American and Canadian sides is Goat Island, which at one time was owned by a farmer who kept goats there. Now it is a park.

It was quite the experience being on the boat ride! Luckily the weather was relatively warm so while we were drenched, our clothes and shoes dried off (except for slightly wet socks) quite quickly. 

Our tour was over, so we walked up Clifton Hill, an eclectic mix of dinosaur-themed pitch and putt, go-karts, shops selling ice cream with rainbow sprinkles, fast-food restaurants and the Niagara Skywheel where passengers sit in gondola cabins.

We split a sub sandwich as a snack before heading out for outlet shopping, dinner at Peller Estates before returning to Niagara Falls to watch the fireworks!

Fireworks on the American side

After 9pm multicoloured lights are shone on both the Canadian and American Falls, and then an hour later is a five-minute fireworks show near the American Falls. Lots of people are drawn to the nightly event and it was great to watch, even if it was only a few minutes long. We joked it was the best $5 we spent on entertainment (though it was actually for parking).

So we saw Niagara Falls during the day and night, from above and below, and right on the water. 

It may be a while before I go back there again!

Shoes Reveal the Human Condition

Colourful pairs of car-themed shoes in the museum

Who knew people would be so fascinated by shoes? Sonja Bata did. She married into the Bata shoe family business that has been around for 131 years. Her husband, Thomas J Bata was sent to Toronto after World War II to expand the company in Canada, and wherever they travelled, Sonja would collect shoes.

By the late 1970s she had collected over 1,500 pairs of shoes by the late 1970s, and a friend and anthropologist suggested she house them in a museum.

Silk shoes for Chinese women with bound feet

The Bata family set up the Bata Shoe Foundation in 1979, and then in 1995 opened the Bata Shoe Museum on Bloor Street West, near the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. Today the collection has over 15,000 pairs of shoes!

I had visited over two decades ago and so it was fun to go check it out again. And here's a pro tip: if you have a Toronto Public Library card, you can visit the Bata Shoe Museum free by registering online!

After we went in, we were advised to start from the bottom and work our way up the building. In the basement is the permanent exhibition, showing an array of very old shoes, from depictions of sandals on Egyptian mummy cases, to tiny silk embroidered slippers worn by Chinese women with bound feet, to a French chestnut crushing clog with craggy spikes, and Nike sneakers designed by Pharrell Williams.

Perugia's patented shankless shoe

The next floor up had an exhibition about the Italian-French shoemaker Andre Perugia (1897-1977). He was the son and grandson of shoemakers, and Perugia went on to innovate when it came to fashion-forward designs that showed off women's feet in creative ways.

He made shoes that had a basket-like weave, or detailed button closures with a scalloped edge, and designed mules that had no heel so it looked like the woman was on tip toe.

Another intriguing design is a shankless shoe, where the middle part of the shoe that connects the sole and heel is missing. Perugia's design was first mentioned in 1934 and he patented it in 1940. One wonders if it is even comfortable to wear, but reports of the time claimed it was... if so, why aren't there more shankless shoes?

Perugia worked with fashion houses like Dior and Schiaparelli, and his place in fashion was immortalised in a painting that featured such giants as Christian Dior, Hermes, and Guerlain. 

Cactus-themed boots by Charlie Dunn

Another fun exhibition is called Rough & Ready: A History of the Cowboy Boot. It takes visitors on the history of the cowboy boot since the late 19th century to the present. Some are purely for practical use, others are decorative, like boots decorated with cactus plants complete with flowers designed by Charlie Dunn, who has been called the Michelangelo of cowboy boots, and there's also a beautiful pair featuring turquoise peacocks by Rocketbuster Boots.

And yes, there's even a pair of boots featuring Woody from the Toy Story animated franchise. 

The final exhibition room is about Vindolanda, a Roman auxiliary fort and settlement just south of Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, England. The excavation site there has unearthed many pairs of Roman footwear.

Originally it was believed these military sites only housed men, but there were also women and children there, and they have also found socks, bowls, and cups. They have also unearthed messages like, "Please send me socks and underwear" to the price of beer, to "I'm getting kicked out of the social club house", which gives archeologists an even better picture of the lives of the people in Vindolanda. 

French boots worn to crush chestnuts

Really interesting, and as I said before, who isn't interested in footwear? It's a fantastic way to understand how people lived thousands of years ago.

For that we have Sonja Bata to thank!

Bata Shoe Museum

327 Bloor Street West

Toronto, ON

416 979 7799

Labubu Insanity Continues

Interested in a Labubu mini fridge? A bit too late now...

I thought Labubu was a flash in the pan, but apparently the fuzzy creature with a mischievous look is still a super hot commodity.

Pop Mart, the Chinese company that sells Labubu, recently released two different mini refrigerators with the character plastered all over the appliance for 5,999 yuan (US$878) each, making only 999 of each design.

There are two designs, only 999 of each made

And... they all sold out instantly, with over 47,000 people pre-registered for the chance to buy one. Over 45,000 people missed out.

Naturally many of these fridges were put on sale on second-hand sale platforms, and the prices shot up to as high as 92,300 yuan, or 15 times the price.

Last year Pop Mart made 14.16 billion yuan from The Monsters (Labubu products), accounting for 38 percent of the company's revenue.

Perhaps there will be more Labubu-themed appliances in the future?

In the meantime the creature's next appearance will be at the World Cup in Canada, the United States and Mexico. Keep your eyes peeled!

Celebrating Bars with Alcohol-Free Drinks

Mixing alcohol-free drinks using Noa

At the North America's 50 Best Bar awards I didn't sip cocktails, but mocktails.

I tried drinks mixed with Noa, a Canadian alcohol-free gin using botanicals. The sophisticated flavours reminded me of Seedlip, the first non-alcoholic gin I tried when it was launched in Hong Kong in 2018. 

The founder, Ben Branson explained how he took fresh herbs and vegetables and distilled them in an old fashioned distillery using old recipes he found in a leather-bound book and made them into alcohol-free gin.

It's the perfect solution for me when I find myself in a bar and want something other than sparkling water.

Seedlip is meant to be mixed with soda water and other ingredients to create a mocktail, and in some cases with Noa, depending on the "spirit".

According to its website, Noa started in 2014 in Quebec with founder Patrice Plante making non-alcoholic drinks, but it was really around 2019 that he came up with alcohol-free gin, and a line of other "spirits".

We sampled the Italian Aperitif, and Sweet Vermouth. The Italian Aperitif was mixed with some juice and lots of ice cubes, making it refreshing and extremely easy to drink thanks to the aperitif's mandarin juice, rhubarb and caramelised barley sugar flavour.

On the other hand the Sweet Vermouth was served on the rocks (a lot of rocks), with an orange peel rubbed on the rim of the glass before being placed inside the drink. There are notes of caramel, grapes, black currant, and cinnamon with a touch of bitterness.

While Seedlip leaves it up to the mixologist on how they want to use the product, Noa has a line of different "spirits", such as amaretto, dry gin, Italian bitter and Jamaican spiced rum.

Cheers!

Review: The 7-Eleven Tamago Sando

7-Elevens in Canada now have the tamago sando available

A few months ago there was a lot of excitement that 7-Elevens in Canada would finally be stocked with the famous Japanese-style egg salad sandwiches, the tamago sandos featuring shokupan, or slices of fluffy milk bread with butter, and a creamy egg salad in between.

Last December, the executive chef of 7-Eleven Canada, Benny Cheng, went to Japan for seven days and ate two tamago sandos each day, trying to memorise the taste and texture, and then recreate it back in the convenience store's headquarters in Surrey, British Columbia.

They are a reasonable $5 each

Before that he was already researching the sandwich and told The Vancouver Sun it took a year to source all the right ingredients, including Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise and the milk bread; he found a bakery in Vancouver to make it to his specifications.

Finally the Japanese-style egg salad sandwich was launched on March 6, and while some influencers were too polite to be critical of the Canadian version of the tamago sando, others were not shy in saying it was not the same as the ones from Japan.

Over a month later I finally tried the sandwich myself. I bought it downtown for $5, ($5.25 plus tax) and opened the packaging.

Inside are what looks like it could be fluffy slices of bread, but a bite into them and they're on the dry side. The egg salad filling has a cheery shade of bright yellow, however the dominant taste is butter not egg. 

Examining the ingredients listed at the back, it's not butter, but actually margarine... and there is a long list of non-natural flavours.

The egg salad is a bright yellow

For example, for the shokupan bread there's vegetable monoglycerides, soybean lecithin, and potassium sorbate, beta carotene. In the egg salad there's xanthan gum, mustard, lemon juice concentrate, paprika, tumeric and garlic powder.

It only takes minutes to demolish the sandwich, and then you're left... unsatisfied. Maybe a Japanese fruit sando would do the trick?

Review: Tough Old Broads

The documentary features three trailblazing women

The other day I watched a documentary paying tribute to wise women, called Tough Old Broads. It was screened at VIFF and was it surprising that the entire audience make up was women, most of them seniors?

It's directed by Stacey Tenenbaum, and profiles three trailblazing women, Katherine Switzer, who was the first woman to officially run in the Boston Marathon in 1967, Siila "Sheila" Watt-Cloutier, an Inuk climate change activist, and Sharon Farmer, who was the first woman to run the White House Photography Office.

Switzer has promoted running since 1967

Switzer's story is very compelling and easy to relate to. She recalls when she ran the Boston Marathon, a few miles in, the race director was in a car with the media and caught up with her. He tried to pull off her bib number -- 261 -- and luckily Switzer's boyfriend who was running with her, pushed the race director off to the sidelines and told her to run like hell.

As a result of the media coverage, Switzer inspired other women to take up running, and she got companies like Avon to sponsor women-only marathon races. They were less intimidated and felt they were just running with the girls. 

These days Switzer, 79, gives inspiration speeches to young women and travels the world. In one scene she is in Germany with muslim women and goes running with them. Switzer is gracious in encouraging them, that they can do anything they want if they put their minds to it.

Watt-Cloutier's profile is the most complicated because a lot of her work involves making presentations and talks with diplomats, a lot of technical knowledge to explain how toxins were found in water up in the Canadian north, and how this affected mothers and children. She links this environmental issue with human rights.

Watt-Cloutier is worried about climate change

She says as a child her family was very close and lived on the land, but when she was 10 years old, she was sent to the south, to Nova Scotia and Manitoba to go to residential schools. Watt-Cloutier remembers she was given no warning this would happen to her, and as a result of this western schooling, she didn't learn much about her language and culture.

Today she continues to advocate for the Inuit and how global warming is affecting ice and snow in the Arctic. She was awarded an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2006, and nominated along with Al Gore for the Nobel Peace Prize and 180 other people.

Finally, tough old broad, definitely defines Farmer, and she has funny one-liners, like how gray hair is a badge of honour of what she has survived. At one point Farmer says a photo editor can tell the picture was taken by her without checking the caption which is very cool.

Originally she was into music and wanted to join the marching band, but was told it was for men only because it was tradition. Instead she turned to photography at a young age, and was very focused on capturing the lives of black people in America. One photograph she took was a black and white image of an older black woman swinging her hips with a hula hoop around her waist.

Farmer once worked in the White House

In the 1970s Farmer shot album covers, and in 1993 she was hired to cover US President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton; Farmer later was promoted to become director of White House Photography, the first woman and person of colour to do this job.

The documentary follows her in November 2024 when Donald Trump won his second term; Farmer goes out into the streets hoping to capture reaction from the election, but instead finds nothing, perhaps people were too shocked or depressed to even come out.

For Switzer and Watt-Cloutier, there was some archival footage in their stories, in the case of Farmer, there wasn't much to illustrate her story per se; going to her storage unit to dig out some old photos was the best director Tenenbaum could do.

Nevertheless these are three women we should be cheering about, and hopefully this could be an ongoing series of other accomplished women and what we can learn from them!

Tough Old Broads

Directed by Stacey Tenenbaum

89 minutes

Sake to the Hollywood Stars and Beyond

Dassai Junmai Dai Ginjo 23, 39, 45 and Nigori 45

In the late 1980s sushi and sashimi came to Vancouver, and along with it, sake.

At the time Japanese restaurants served sake warm, presenting them in silver buckets meant for ice, but instead filled with warm water.

Bluefin tuna crudo with blood orange

For a long time that's how many of us thought that was how sake was supposed to be imbibed.

However it turns out warm sake is typically lower-grade sake to mask the harsh flavours, while premium ones are served chilled, much like white wine.

Last night I got a chance to try some sake by the brand Dassai, which I have tried a few times with Japanese food.

At the Governors Ball following the Oscars last Sunday, Hollywood elite were treated to Dassai sake to have with food prepared by celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, along with sushi prepared by sushi chefs. And for those curious, it was Dassai 23.

But the exercise last evening was to sample the sake with Western-style food to show non-Japanese that sake can be paired with anything from cheese to pizza and steak.

Rice polished at different percentages

The Sake Samurai for Canada is Patrick Ellis and he loves talking about sake. He became a Sake Samurai in 2018, where he was inducted in an hours' long ceremony where he had to give a speech in Japanese about what sake means to him.

He explained that sake has umami, the fifth sense, described as savouriness which can be found in food like tomatoes, mushrooms, soy sauce, anchovies, cheese and dashi.

The numbers on the bottles indicate how much the brown rice has been polished. In the case of Dassai 23, that means 77 percent of the rice has been polished, and for Dassai 45, 55 percent of the rice was polished. The more the rice is polished, the cleaner the flavour and brighter the aroma.

We started off with a sparkling sake which was milky in appearance, followed by Junmai Dai Ginjo Dassai 23 Centrifuge paired with bluefin tuna crudo with blood orange segments. The centrifuge helps filter the sake from the lees for a cleaner taste, or so they say. This pairing extended the sweet taste of toro and chutoro.

Foie gras torchon with brioche and apricot

The tasting continued with Junmai Dai Ginjo Dassai 39, which tasted cleaner, and a bolder taste, paired with foie gras torchon on toasted brioche with apricot gelee.

The main course of USDA prime Omaha striploin was rolled with proscuitto and served with stewed San Marzano tomatoes, black truffle and whipped potatoes, and was paired with Junmai Dai Ginjo Dassai 45. This was similar to Dassai 39 with a clean taste that had no trouble holding up to the strong flavours of the beef.

For dessert, Madagascar vanilla panna cotta with poached pear sauce together with Nigori Dassai 45.

After dinner, Ellis also told us that Dassai sake ingredients were sent to the International Space Station last fall to try sake fermentation in space! It returned to Earth recently and will be made into sake soon. He was hinting that if we end up living in space, the easiest alcoholic drink to make there will be sake, not wine.

Striploin rolled with proscuitto in tomato sauce

Representing Dassai were two executives who specifically flown in to Vancouver just for this event and left today: Shohei Yamane, director at Dassai, and Takenari Yamamori, manager of international business.

I asked Yamane about how Dassai managed to get served at the Governors Ball and he explained that one of the Dassai partners is in the movie business. What a great marketing strategy! Apparently director Steven Spielberg pronounced their sake as "exceptional".

When I asked Yamane about the biggest sake market outside of Japan, he said it was China. Before it was Hong Kong, but like seafood and steaks, some of it goes across the mainland and it's hard to know exactly how much.

We also talked about Hong Kong, and he knew of a sake bar called Sake Bar Ginn that he had visited, and I had been too! Too bad it closed during Covid.

Yamane talking to the sake crowd

Dassai is hoping to grow sake consumption in Canada, and it starts with dinners like these to educate diners what sake is and how it complements pretty much everything you eat.