Hi Carolyn...  I have a friend who is allergic to corn products.  She tells me all of the wine brewed and cellared in Canada is made with a corn based yeast.  Is there any way of checking this?  Lynn, Ottawa

Hi Lynn,

I talked with head of quality assurance at the LCBO who confirmed my suspician that yeast is an organism. It is not derived from anything.  And therefore there is no such thing as corn-based yeast.  With that in mind, it wouldn’t matter if the wine was labeled “cellared in Canada” or not; wine yeast should not trigger an allergic reaction from corn.   And he could not think of anything that would be added to table wine derived from corn.  

By the way, “cellared in Canada” simply means a large part of the juice used to make the wine was imported.  It was only fermented, blended and bottled in Canada.  And there’s no single strain of commercial yeast used to make all “cellared in Canada” wines.  While there are slight variations in strains of yeast, all commercial yeast used for winemaking is saccharomyces yeast (which is different than say brewer’s yeast and bakers yeast etc.)  And to come full-circle, saccharomyces yeasts like all yeasts are not derived from anything other than themselves as they are organisms that reproduce.

Hope that helps.

I’m having a little cocktail party at my place, and am trying to think of a stylish wine that would satisfy everyone.  Bar snack ideas to match would also be helpful.  Any thoughts?  Anita, Toronto

POP and chips is a classic combination.  And I don’t mean the soda variety.   Champagne Pommery produces an untraditionally-packaged fizz that’s delicious and stylish in equal proportions.  It’s called “POP” and it’s a true-blue bubbly—quite literally.  It comes in blue glass, single-serve bottles ($16 a pop) with matching blue straws.  You get all the traditional aromas and flavours of authentic, non-vintage Champagne—without the pomp.  Think baked apple, soft lemon and butter pastry. 

And a classic match to Champagne—or POP—is of course, potato chips.  Stash bottles of POP in ice buckets, arrange pretty bowls of gourmet sea-salted potato chips, and hit “play”. 

I might add, POP is not always available in Ontario so when you see it, stock up.  Or go to www.wine-searcher.com and check out where else it’s available in Canada, the US, or elsewhere.  This website is great because it not only names stockists worldwide but lists prices in any currency you like, making comparison shopping a breeze. 

Have you a recommendation for a nice, inexpensive Pino Grigio available here in the US?  Lorna, Lake Placid

I actually do have recommendations for some inexpensive Pinot Grigios.   The following great buys are all available in the States for under a tenner US.  They’re also available in Ontario for less than $13 CAN.

Citra Pinot Grigio 2008, Sicily, Italy

Castello di Gabbiano Pinot Grigio delle Venezie 2008, Italy

Mezzacorona Pinot Grigio Vigneti Delle Dolomiti 2008, Italy

Cavit Collection Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie 2008, Italy

This column is distributed privately, appears in Toronto’s Outreach Connection weekly, and is posted at www.wine-tribune.com. Seasoned journalist and qualified sommelier Carolyn Evans Hammond’s has written for such publications as decanter.com, Decanter Magazine, The Times newspaper (UK), and Wine & Spirit International magazine, Maclean’s magazine, and Taste magazine, among others.  Her bestselling book, 1000 Best Wine Secrets, is available at most major bookstores, and her next book comes out in March.  Subscribe to her free newsletter at http://www.wine-tribune.com, join Good, Better, Best Wines: A Wine Club at http://www.facebook.com run by Carolyn, or follow her at http://twitter.com/winetribune.