Audio

EP 218 | Tom Wilson and Colin Linden-Blackie And The Rodeo Kings

August 13, 2022 Mulligan Stew Podcast

hello

Blackie and the Rodeo Kings.

The name alone gets your attention. I mean, they all wear black suits. So, you may ask, which one is Blackie.

They are all Blackie.

Stephen Fearing, has a fine solo career with a seriously growing fan base, outstanding critical reviews and he’s a Blackie.

Tom Wilson is a multi-talented singer, songwriter, artist, and author. A bear of a human, a Mohawk soul, and a good man.

Colin Linden is a music lifer. He’s doing what his head and heart told him to do. Starting when he was perhaps 8.

Colin left Canada fully formed and famous,  for Nashville and set up his studio. He’s been making music ever since. Solo career, writing, creating, and producing Blackie music.  Produced Keb’ Mo’s Grammy album. Produced the last 8 Bruce Cockburn Albums.

Toured as part of Bob Dylan’s band.

So Blackie is Stephen, Tom and Colin. Together, in spirit, in spirituality, and bound by 12 notes and the truth.

New album is O Glory: Lost those blues again

(Stephen spent a great deal of time teaching in the Maritimes this Summer. Was not available for our Zoom interview)

The zoom video can be seen and heard on our terrydavidmulligan YouTube Channel

www.blackieandtherodeokings.com

colinlinden.com

stephenfearing.com

tomwilsononline.com

August 13th, 2022- Cowichan Wine Month Kick Off…

August 13, 2022 Tasting Room Radio 00:47:26

hello

The Summer of 2022 has been one big wine festival in the Cowichan Valley.

June was wine passport month.

Now comes the August 4th  Wine Festival Launch Party. BECAUSE  August is Wine Month in the Cowichan Valley!!

The kick-off took place on the superb beachfront lawn at Brentwood College, Mill Bay.

With the help and support of Corey Wood and Jill Nessel, I was able to taste with  and talk to:

Dan Wright – Unsworth Vineyards  https://www.unsworthvineyards.com/

 

(Dan Wright- Unsworth)

 

Lorin Inglis – Enrico Winery  https://www.enricowinery.com/

Lorne Inglis

(Lorin Inglis – Enrico)

Bailey Williamson – Blue Grouse Winery  https://bluegrouse.ca/

Bailey Richardson

(Bailey Williamson – Blue Grouse)

Xavier Bonilla – Cherry Point Estate https://www.cherrypointestatewines.com/

(Xavier Bonilla – Cherry Point)

Garrett Deol – Deol Winery  https://www.deolestatewinery.com/

Zac Brown – Alderlea Vineyards https://www.alderlea.ca/

Mike Nierychlo – Emandare Vineyard https://www.emandarevineyard.com/

Christiaan DeBeer – Zanatta Winery https://zanatta.ca/

CowichanWineries.com

Tourismcowichan.com

photos by: Corey Wood &  Stephanie Cragg

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON:

 Township 7

Haltwhistle Cheese and Unsworth – a pairing

Fort Berens

Bartier Brothers

 

 

EP 217 | Tami Neilson. New ‘Album KingMaker’

August 6, 2022 Mulligan Stew Podcast

hello

“Could the King of Country Music be the daughter, not the son”

The 5th Tami Neilson Album is called Kingmaker.

The song Kingmaker “addresses the gatekeepers and kingmakers who hold tightly to the keys of equity and minorities in the music industry and, more largely, society as a whole.”

It’s an amazing breakthrough album for this Canadian/New Zealand singer and songwriter.

The song Beyond the Stars is about loss and grief.  Tami lost her Father.  As Tami wrote the song, she kept hearing a duet with her father’s voice. She thought the best voice on the planet should sing her Father Ron’s lyric – Willie Nelson.  Willie was fully in,  as he had just lost his sister.

Tami moves through, blues, country, rock, and roots, with an ease that comes from years of street busking.

As we talked via Zoom I was thrilled to tell her that she had the number 1 album on the CKUA Top 30.

 

 

 

August 6th, 2022- Anthony Gismondi & The National Wine Awards of Canada – 2022

August 5, 2022 Tasting Room Radio 00:39:36

hello

The National Wine Awards of Canada – 2022

With Co-Founder Anthony Gismondi.

 

THE SHOW:

 

 Our guest is the highly respected wine writer, reviewer, and industry leader Anthony Gismondi.

Anthony Gismondi

Anthony Gismondi is a Canadian wine journalist and one of North America’s most influential wine voices. His twice-weekly column in The Vancouver Sun, which he has written since 1989, is read across Canada through Postmedia Network, reaching close to 10 million readers.

His comprehensive wine review website www.gismondionwine.com, one of the first such sites on the internet, features over 30,000 tasting notes, added daily. It is an important resource for trade and consumers in Canada and 114 other countries.

Anthony hosts BC Food & Wine Radio Show the longest-running, weekly wine and food show on Canadian radio for 25 years. The one-hour show is broadcast on 20 radio stations across British Columbia and is available everywhere as a podcast on Apple, Google, Spotify, and more.

Gismondi is the co-founder of the annual National Wine Awards of Canada, the largest and broadest competition for Canadian Wine since its inception 21 years ago. Anthony continues to run the annual event as co-chair. He is also the editor of the Canada wine section in the world’s best-selling wine book Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book. In addition, Anthony is a much sought-after moderator and consultant.

He will occasionally post as ‘The Spitter”

NWAC2022_icon

The 21st running of the National Wine Awards of Canada wrapped up on June 23 in Niagara.  After much deliberation and number checking,  the results rolled out on July 15th, starting with Sparkling Wines. 

The rest of the category results were rolled out throughout the rest of July, with the final Platinum, Best Performing Small Winery, and Winery of the Year announcements coming at the end of the month.  (We’ve included links to all the results below)

Co-Head Judges Anthony Gismondi and David Lawrason

The 2022 National Wine Awards of Canada were founded by David Lawrason and Anthony Gismondi, ‘The Nationals’ are the largest and most respected Canadian wine competition.

In 2022, 24 judges tasted 1,890 entries from more than 250 wineries. Canadian wine is indeed gathering acclaim internationally, but ‘The Nationals’ is the most important peer competition local wineries can enter. With nearly every producer of note in the country competing, making it to the top ten of any category list is special. Getting on the annual list of the Top 25 Wineries in Canada is one of the most sought accolades in the business.

nwac22_judgesadmin

Judges and Admin Staff of the National Wine Awards of Canada

The entries came from eight provinces. British Columbia had the highest representation with 137 wineries entered, Ontario came second with 87, followed by wineries from Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Alberta, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan.

The wines were all served blind (producer, origin, and price were not revealed) but identified and organized into flights by grape variety or style. The top medalists were tasted in multiple rounds by many different judges.

The judges only tasted a limited quantity of wines each day so their palates could stay fresh and focused, and the wines were served in high-quality glasses at just the right temperature. All this was to ensure that each wine was treated with the respect it deserves.

Finally, after an exhilarating series of announcements on July 29 WineAlign were thrilled to conclude their results with Canada’s Winery of the Year, the Top 25 Wineries in Canada, the Top 10 B.C. Wineries and the Top 10 Ontario Wineries.

 

Congratulations to all the winners of the 2022 National Wine Awards of Canada!

 

FINAL RESULTS:


https://www.winealign.com/awards/2022/07/29/2022-nwac-results/

 

Medal Winners by Category:

Cabernet Franc
Cabernet Sauvignon
Chardonnay
Cider
Gamay
Icewine & Late Harvest
Mead, Fruit Wine & Fortified
Merlot
Orange Wines (extended skin contact)
Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio
Pinot Noir
Red Blends
Red Single Varieties – Others
Riesling
Rosé
Sauvignon Blanc
Sparkling
Syrah
White Single Varieties – Others
White Blends

www.gismondionwine.com

https:/ww.winealign.com/awards

https://twitter.com/bcfwradio?lang=en

 

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON:

Hester Creek – includes new sparkling

Bartier Brothers

Fort Berens

HaltWhistle Cheese pairing with Unsworth – Cowichan

Cowichan Wine Month – kick off at Brentwood

 

 

 

EP 216 | A conversation with Cheech and Chong

July 29, 2022 Mulligan Stew Podcast

hello

“Comedy is the ultimate truth. Jazz is hitting the notes that no one else would hit, and comedy is saying words that no one else would say.” ~ Tommy Chong

“Marijuana was a new phenomenon when we started. Now it’s for everyone – doctors, lawyers, presidents.” ~ Cheech Marin

I was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. Again.

While I was doing rock radio in Vancouver, Richard Marin and Tommy Chong were creating comedy stand-up in a strip club. Between the strippers’ sets,  they would take the stage and riff for 10 minutes.  Tommys’ family owned the club so they could work the stage as much as they liked.

Things got funny.

One night I was walking through Bacedas..a swanky 5 room club downtown and there in the comedy room were Cheech and Tommy gathering up camera gear from around the stage.

Me – “whaddya doing guys?”

Cheech  – “we’re recording all the bits we do  and whatever gets the most  laughs, we’re turning it  into a pitch for a stoner movie”

Years later “Up in Smoke”  was a blockbuster, made for chump change and they were off and running.

As Tommy says in the interview – we got so successful we broke up.

Cheech headed into films and tv work – Tommy did one-nighters and scratched out a living.   Tommy then famously got busted for manufacturing glass bongs.  He turned his 9 months in jail into a book and a documentary.

 It wasn’t until they sat down and talked things through that Cheech and Chong returned to tours and work and fame.

I found this interview hiding in an old file. If I happen to get my hands on the rest of the interviews, I’ll let you know.

This was in Vancouver at the Opus Hotel during their reunion tour. First time back on stage in Vancouver in many years.

Survivors. Going bigger and better than “the man” ever thought they would.

Enjoy –

JULY 30 2022-SUMMER SPIRITS with Davin De Kergommeaux

July 28, 2022 Tasting Room Radio 01:03:53

hello

SUMMER SPIRITS with Davin De Kergommeaux

Proudly Sponsored by Harbour Air

THE SHOW

 My spirits education began and ended with the same bottle of  Lemon Gin.

My brother and I were the youngest members of the Kamloops Rube Band.

All the other band members were college-age or dads.

 

Denis and I tried to keep up with “the boys” when we did parades or road trips.

As much as we liked the first taste of lemon gin, we HATED ourselves the morning after.

For me, it only took one bottle and I never went back to spirits. That is until I met Davin de Kergommeaux at the Canadian Whisky Championships in Victoria.

Davin has been an author and whisky reviewer/judge for over two decades.

Davin De Kergommeaux

His books Canadian Whisky The Portable Expert, The New Portable Expert, and The Definitive Guide to Canadian Distilleries are invaluable to those of you seeking support and deep information on whisky and spirits.

www.canadianwhisky.org

So.  When I decided to do a Summer Spirits special – Davin was a natural co-host.

I asked two things of him:

Please recommend spirit makers who are also storytellers

and…   stop me when I get stupid.

He was great on the first ask and on the second request,  Davin almost gave up on me.

 

Davin’s recommendations were:

Caitlin Quinn – Head Distiller at Eau Claire Distillery, Turner Valley, Alberta.

Negroni. Old Fashion. Rupert’s Whisky Sassafras.

www.eauclairedistillery.ca

Caitlin Quinn – Eau Claire

 

Jake Clark –  Consumer Engagement Manager  Strait and Narrow – Custom Handcrafted Gins/Pacific Coast Cocktails

Grapefruit Rosemary/Pear Rhubarb/Peach Elderflower/Lemon Lavender  (Makers of 1908 Gin)

www.straitandnarrow.com

 

Bob Baxter – President & Co-founder Yukon Brewing Company

Spiked Seltzers –  Cherry and Lime/Pineapple Ginger/Raspberry/Basil/Mango Hibiscus and a great Lemon Lavender Radler (German Shandy)

www.yukonbeer.com

Bryce Parsons – Master Distiller  Last Best Brewing. Calgary.

The man who created 52 different gins in one year.

Last Best Afterglow Gin & Soda – Savage Love  Tom Collins – Fortunella Citrus Iced Tea

 

www.lastbestbrewing.com

 

Colin McDougall – Corby’s Spirits Portfolio Consultant.

JP Wiser’s 18-year-old Whisky and Lot 40 Dark Oak 100% Rye Whisky

The man is a storyteller. Enjoy the tales.

www.corby.ca

 

Thank you Davin De Kergommeaux, Letittia King, Rob Roycroft and Heather Gillespie at Yukon Brewing.

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON:

 

Fort Berens – Releases and Awards

Aug 4 Cowichan pour at Brentwood School

Wine Align – National Wine Awards

Township 7 New Wines

HaltWhistle Cowichan Cheese and Unsworth Pairing Session

Hester Creek – Foating down The Creek

 

 

EP 215 | Courtney Barnett Documentary- Anonymous Club

July 22, 2022 Mulligan Stew Podcast

hello

Our guest Danny Cohen is a Melbourne-based director who has filmed and photographed some of the most interesting and influential figures in contemporary music.

Shot on vivid 16mm film over a three-year period, ANONYMOUS CLUB chronicles notoriously shy, Melbourne-based musician Courtney Barnett’s ups and downs on the world tour for her album Tell Me How You Really Feel. Featuring Barnett’s unguarded narration from her audio diary, recorded on a dictaphone provided by filmmaker Danny Cohen, the film delivers frank and unprecedented insight into Barnett’s creative process, the sacrifices and inner conflicts set in motion by fame, and the sometimes dark backdrop to her whimsical, relatable poetic compositions.

Based for much of her adult life in Melbourne, Courtney Barnett first found critical acclaim with 2013’s The Double EP: A Sea of Split Peas, and broke into the mainstream in 2015 with her debut album, Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit. Garnering a coveted Best New Artist Grammy nomination and numerous other accolades, the album stands as a generational classic.

Barnett is also a powerhouse live act, playing slots at festivals including Coachella, Bonnaroo, Governor’s Ball, Primavera, and Lollapalooza. In 2021, she released Things Take Time, Take Time, a remarkable artistic step forward.

Anonymous Club opens across Canada over the next several weeks.

July 23rd, 2022- The Wonderful Wines of OZ

July 22, 2022 Tasting Room Radio 00:41:38

hello

The Wonderful Wines of OZ

 We start with Tim Dolan, the Senior Winemaker at  Peter Lehmann Wines in the Barossa Valley.

 

Tim Dolan

Tim Dolan is the third generation of his family to make wine in the Barossa, following his father Nigel and grandfather Bryan – two of the most influential winemakers of their respective eras.

Tim worked for pocket money after school in just about every part of the winery, from crushing to cleaning. With a degree in Oenology from The University of Adelaide, in the five years that followed Tim set out to amass as much international experience as possible working vintages in eight different regions across the USA, Italy, Canada, and  Australia. He spent several chilling vintages in Niagara but was impressed with Canadian wines.

In 2011 Tim joined the Peter Lehmann team under the stewardship of then Chief Winemaker, Andrew Wigan. Since that time he has proven himself to be a talented and highly competent winemaker brimming with passion and ideas. Tim is now the Sr Winemaker at Peter Lehmann.

Peter Lehmann

It didn’t go unnoticed that one of his winemaking team at Peter Lehmann is Brooke Blair,  who spent many years winemaking in Canada. Most of it with Jackson – Triggs in the South Okanagan.  She was often a guest in the first years of Tasting Room Radio, I hope to follow that info up and reconnect with Brooke.

Tim Dolan brings two solid wines to the show.

The Barossan Shiraz and The Barossan Chardonnay.  Both will go great with your Summer BBQ.

The Barossan Shiraz:  Best with an Angus beef burger – extra cheese, dill pickle, and a side of crunchy chips.

the barossan 2019 Shiraz

The Barossan Chardonnay:  Perfectly paired with BBQed chicken or Salmon, or pair it with a coconut and turmeric fish curry. This Chardonnay was made specifically for Canadian Wine Fans.

These wines are well made, balanced, and best of all – affordable!! Both under $20

the barossan 2021 chardonnay

www.peterlehmannwines.com

 

Back to Australia

We’re staying with Australian wines and winemakers for the last segment of this week’s TRR.

An interview from the archives from a  busy Top Drop gathering several years ago.

Behind  the Australian pouring, table were Wines of Australia ambassador Mark Davidson, Brendan Keys (BK Wines/Handmade Wines), and  Matt Fowles (Ladies who shoot their Lunch & Are you Game?)

Mark Davidson

www.wineaustralia.com

 

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON

The Cheese and Wine special

Fort Berens

Township 7

Aug 4 pour in Mill Bay

 

EP 214 | Interview with directors of Documentary Hallelujah – Leonard Cohen. A Journey – A song

July 16, 2022 Mulligan Stew Podcast

hello

It’s not just a story of the life of Leonard Cohen.  It follows the life of his song Hallelujah.

Leonard wrote 130-150 verses for the song. Took him years and years.

Then when he released it on the album  Various Positions, his label in the USA,  Columbia Records, refused to release it.  It never got played and was almost forgotten…until John Cale recorded it for the tribute album I’m Your Fan and it began a life of its own. The songs passed from Dylan to Cale, to Jeff Buckley, Rufus Wainwright, kdlang to the Shrek Soundtrack. Now, it’s legendary. However, with Fame comes The Lame. Various singers have crushed the life out of Hallelujah in TV Talent shows.Some crediting the song to Buckley without knowing that Cohen lived it and wrote it.

Hallelujah started as a spiritual journey and ended, with various Leonard rewrites,  to become a secular and sexy anthem.

Post Shrek, Hallelujah took Leonard Cohen to audiences all over the World. It’s a heartfelt film that captures the brilliance of Leonard Cohen and the song.

The film was released Friday in the USA and in Toronto/Montreal  and I’ve heard it opens across Canada very shortly.

This is smashing filmmaking and epic storytelling.

The directors are Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine and they were my guests on Saturday’s Stew

https://www.sonyclassics.com/film/hallelujah/

 

EP 213 | Music Festival Season 2022 pt2

July 10, 2022 Mulligan Stew Podcast

hello

Welcome to the 2022 Summer Music Festivals. Part Two
We’ve kept Edmonton, Calgary, and the next event the Vancouver Folk Festival in the mix.
Added this week is HUFF  the Halifax Urban Folk Festival. Its artistic director is a classic Canadian troublemaker, Mike Campbell.
The same Mike who co-hosted Mike and Mike for
MuchMusic.

Mike Campbell

Then curated the rise of a great music room  The Carleton in Halifax. It just won the best small live room in Canada.

Like its leader,  the HUFF is wonderfully different.
Enjoy!!
Here we go…
When the pandemic hit at the beginning of 2019 anything that qualified as a gathering took the brunt of the hit.
Restaurants, concerts, sports, schools, music tours, group travel, etc!
Festivals of all descriptions were immediately shut down and artists went home and stayed home.
So, here we are two years later and this summer the music festivals have been fully booked by artists who can’t wait to get on the road and on stage. To be met by audiences and music fans who truly missed the live music experience.
We’ll touch on four music festivals but they do represent all festivals, big and small.  Please find one near you and support the festival and the artists.
Each web link below has info on the performers, their schedules, and ticket sales.
Our guests are
Terry Wickham – Producer,  Edmonton Folk Music Festival Aug 4-7
www.edmontonfolkfest.org
Kerry Clarke — Artistic Director Calgary Folk Fest  Prince’s Island Park July 21-24
www.calgaryfolkfest.com
Debbie Salmonsen – Artistic Director Vancouver Folk Fest – Jericho Beach July 15-17
www.vancouverfolkfest.com
www.thefestival.bc.ca
Mike Campbell. Artistic Director HUFF.  Halifax
End of August and early September.
The Carleton.ca
Amazing lineups and special events.  The info is here in the Podcast and on the website – Enjoy!

Mike Campbell