Arrived at Lifford’s Ladies’ Night promptly at 7:00, but decided to duck into Fresh and Wild to check out their selection of organic chocolate. I ended up going with my failsafe; Green & Blacks 70% Dark; what ladies night out is complete without chocolate?

Upon entering the Fermenting Cellar I perused the programme to point me in the right direction for my first glass. I was automatically drawn to the Ironstone table where they were pouring Obsession; a light, floral wine that is made from the Symphony grape. Pairing this wine with The Perfect Steak Company’s Garlic Tiger Shrimp was a no-brainer. They were also serving “the perfect steak” alongside the shrimp; something I waited to indulge in once I had my fill of white’s. I ventured toward the freshly shucked oysters that Big Daddy’s was serving up and quickly grabbed a glass of Francis Ford Coppola’s Pinot Grigio; nice wine, well balanced, but, really, not much to it; as the label says, it’s a good table wine. I decided to make my way to France and request a taste of Louis Jodot’s Borgogne Chardonnay; for $2.00 more/bottle, I’m choosing Louis Jadot over Coppola for this one.

The Dairy Farmers of Canada were serving up 3 cheeses; a 5 year old raw milk organic cheddar from Quebec, a pasteurized brie from Quebec and, finally, a raspberry cheese fudge from Ontario. Automatically switching gears to red, I tasted the 2007 Canale Merlot that paired perfectly with the fudge. The raspberry in the fudge was further enhanced with every sip of the merlot and the wine’s silken finish was extended with a syrupy mouthfeel of chocolate.

Braised short ribs from Bloom Restaurant was up next; braised in Kozlik’s mustard and molasses, this was wonderful ( I am going to try to get the recipe). With my plate of shortribs I meandered through the crowd to grab one of the Chilean wines in the far corner; definitely a great pairing; it was Vina la Rosa’s Cabernet; I even sampled a bit of my chocolate with this wine and both the wine and the chocolate became velvety smooth.

I finally had my chance to try the “Perfect Steak”, and it certainly was close. The meat was cooked perfectly, and I sipped the last remininsce of my Chilean Cabernet…

Tags: Collin and Justin, Coppola, Distillery District, Fermenting Cellar, Ironstone, Ladies' Night, Lifford, lupus, Toronto Western Hospital, Wine