To celebrate my forty-eighth, we booked a four-day weekend in Prince Edward County. This time Lindsay did pretty much all the planning.
Friday
After a big-ass breakfast at OK OK Diner we jumped in our car and…crawled slowly up the DVP and across the 401. We were so delayed we didn’t even have time to stop at our AirBnB, instead driving straight through Bloomfield to Flame + Smith for an early dinner. It was a big but busy spot, even at 5pm. We had:
- artisan sourdough w/ whipped whey butter
- a dozen oysters
- a non-alc Bellwoods Jelly King for me, a cocktail for Lindsay
- 30oz bone-in ribeye
- french fries w/ aioli
- salt-roasted heirloom beets w/ whipped chevre, citrus + giner vinaigrette
- bottle of rosewood shoulders of giants cab franc
We took some desserts to go and drove back to find our AirBnB. It was a cute spot, like a combination of modern + farmhouse. It had a big, private, farmyard view, and a pretty decent sunset.
Saturday
We woke up early but lazed about a bit before getting a start on our day, which ended up being a mistake. By the time we left it was pouring; by the time we’d driven to the outskirts of Picton, it was a monsoon. We’d hoped to get breakfast at Bailey’s, but we couldn’t line up outside in that weather. We decided to do a bit of our shopping at the Agrarian Market and pick up breakfast stuff whilst there. We got utterly drenched just getting in and out of the car, even with big umbrellas, but we managed to get home and get dry…just as the rain let up. Of course.
We ate a breakfast of bacon, eggs, sourdough toast, and raspberries before resolving to just chill. We watched some TV. We drank coffee and watched the rain. We napped, hard. A right lovely afternoon.
Eventually re rallied, showered, and walked down the road to Darling’s for dinner. We opted to sit outside, and were the only ones on a huge patio. I don’t know whether it was the relative cool (the rain had broken the heat, and it was about 20 degrees), the threat of bugs (none materialized until the very end of the night) or what, but we didn’t mind having the outside to ourselves. Inside seemed loud and frenetic. Outside it was breeze and soul music. The staff were really sweet too, and the food was excellent:
- Chopped Salad w/ Romaine, Walnut, Dill, Green, Onion, Reggiano
- Stracciatella w/ Arugula
- glass of zibibbo for me, a mint julep for Lindsay
- Sausage pizza
- bottle of Closson Chase Churchside Pinot
I’d never heard of New Haven style pizza before, but I’m into it.
We walked home, questioning our decision every time a car drove by too close to us, but we made it.
Sunday
After finishing off the bacon & eggs, we set to picking up the groceries for the meal Lindsay planned to cook for dinner. That meant a few stops around Bloomfield and Wellington, but we got it all, dropped it back at the AirBnB, and set out for some wineries.
I’d ordered from Morandin before, but never been there. It was a quiet, pastoral little locale, with picnic tables outside a Quonset hut. We tasted everything, leaving with six bottles.
After leaving there we drove around the corner to By Chadsey’s Cairns, a winery I hadn’t visited since my very first trip to PEC 11 years ago. It was actually the very first country winery I ever visited, and I’d been tipped off by county friend Duarte that they were likely closing up shop soon. Sure enough, when we arrived we saw they were down to only Gewurztraminer (fair enough; that’s what I was looking for anyway) so we bought a half dozen to help speed along the retirement plans. It was lovely chatting with Vida in that barn for a good long while. We left that beautiful farm, bundled our purchases into the car, and drove into Wellington.
Lindsay had booked us lunch at the Drake Devonshire, which I’d somehow never visited. We lucked into a frankly incredible table, on a covered patio looking right at the lake. It was a popular spot, rife with poses and selfies, but we managed to enjoy a perfect day and a pretty great meal nonetheless.
- buttermilk fried Prinzen Farms chicken, dill ranch, spiced Nyman Farms syrup, waffles
- lobster roll w/ celery, tarragon, citrus, mayo, toasted potato bun, fries
- cocktails (again, a zero-alc one for me as I metered my intake between driving stints)
- bottle of Laurent-Perrier La Cuvée Brut Champagne (hey, it was my birthday)
We needed dessert and a final dinner ingredient so we drove to Slicker’s for a pint (dinner) and a couple scoops (immediately). We arrived back at our place to enjoy the remaining afternoon sun. Eventually Lindsay cooked us a great meal, though I ruined the lamb.
- tomato + grilled corn + arugula bruschetta
- 2021 Morandin County Chardonnay
- grilled lamb shoulder chops + mint salsa + new potatoes
- 2020 Closson Chase South Clos Pinot Noir
- peach cobbler + Slicker’s apple pie ice cream paired
- I’d brought a 2019 Inniskillin Riesling Icewine to go with this, but reconsidered and we decided to just finish the Morandin chard
By this point we were tired, and the ducking in and out to the grill had let in an armada of bugs, so after a mosquito massacre we trudged upstairs to bed.
Monday
We’d originally planned to do a few more wineries on our way out of the county, but by the time we packed up and cleaned the place we just wanted to head home. I have to say, I quite like having nearly a whole afternoon back at home to recover after a trip, even a short one.
Skirl | Dan Dickinson 