A Night of Wine and Whisky

Last week the hubs and I were invited by the iYellow Wine Club to attend a night of discovering (and learning about!) Wine and Whisky. However, given that the hubs and I have recently been escaping for date nights a bit too frequently (and I really couldn’t ask my brother to watch them twice in a week!!), I decided to attend the event with a girlfriend of mine. Unfortunately, on the night of the event, my date had an emergency arise at the very last minute and I was sadly left date-less. Faced with the choice of staying at home with the whine-ey kids or venturing out to an event hosted by some of my co-workers, I decided to get out of my comfort zone and head out for a couple hours.

I had heard fabulous things about the events hosted by iYellow and so I was curious to experience one. iYellow offers a range of events that can go from full on parties to highly educational seminars. For the most part, they’re a good mix of the two and you will leave having enjoyed some fine wines and having learned a thing or four! The Wine and Whisky event was featuring two brands my company, so you know I am a bit biased to these two brands, having previously worked on both during my younger, kid-free days. That said, having switched roles, I wasn’t as familiar with the two products being featured, so it was all new to me.

On arrival I was greeted and whisked away to the bar where I had the choice to sip on The Glenlivet Founder’s Reserve or grab a glass of the newly launched Jacob’s Creek Double Barrel Shiraz. I opted for the latter and then gravitated towards the charcuturie boards that featured delicious cheese, chocolate, fudge and spicy meats. Everything paired so well with the drinks on feature that evening!

iYellow hosts many events at their famous Wine Cave in downtown Toronto, but they also host events at unique spaces and this one was held at the Lodge on Queen – imagine a trendy apartment style, two floor venue. The main floor is where the mingling and hobnobbing happened. Many were spotted chatting away in groups with a glass of Jacob’s Creek Double Barrel Shiraz in hand and some dapper gents and a few ladies were also sipping on the Glenlivet Founder’s Reserve. This event seemed to have drawn a good mix of young and old and I was curious to learn about what brought many to the event. It was a great mix of wine and scotch lovers and definitely an event the hubs would have enjoyed.

Flying solo is never fun but I did find my co-workers who kept me entertained. While I could have spent the entire evening nibbling on fudge and shoving cheese into my mouth, I opted to take in one of the sessions hosted on the 2nd floor. These 20 minute sessions gave attendees a better understanding of the wine and whisky and we learned why the two were being featuring that evening. First up, learning about the world’s FIRST wine to be aged in whisky barrels, under the guidance of the Jacob’s Creek Ambassador. The wine is first aged in American and French Oak wine barrels and then finished off aging in whisky barrels – now you get the double barrel! As a lover of Barrosa Valley Cab Sauv and Shiraz, this wine is one that my pallet enjoyed. It’s smooth, spicy and full of flavour. Definitely one that will be accompanying our steak dinners at home!

Next up, a charming Scotsman, the Glenlivet Ambassador, captured the room by telling us his tales of Scotland and the delicate details of the newly launched The Glenlivet Founder’s Reserve. I found this Scotch Whisky to be the perfect way to introduce non Scotch drinkers to the lovely world of Scottish Whisky. The whisky was fairly sweet on its own so I sipped it on the rocks and discovered fruity notes (mainly dates!!) and hints of chocolate. It’s easy drinking, that’s for sure!

I’ve always loved my Scotch and in fact, post delivery, Chivas 18 year old and Salmon Sashimi is what I was craving after my first delivery. It’s not rare to find me drinking wine and whisky in one night and I was glad to see others doing the same. I, for one, am going to make it my mission to get the hubs out to one of the iYellow Wine Club events on a future date night. If you live in the Toronto area, be sure to sign up to be an iYellow Wine Club member (it’s free) and you’ll be able to hear about future events! There’s some fab Niagara wine tours coming up as well and I’m seriously thinking of introducing a wine and whisky night to our wine club!

What’s your take? Are you camp wine or camp whisky?