TORONTO — Marc Pronovost, from Barhaven, Ont., was recently deemed the 2010 Stella Artois Canadian Draught Master, beating out second place winner, Steve Busby from Montreal and third-place finalist Sachin Seth from Halifax.

Pronovost competed against 16 finalists in the “Nine-Step Pouring Ritual” at the Stella Artois’ 14th annual draught contest, which was held last week in Toronto.  

"Tonight has been truly an unbelievable and surreal experience," said Pronovost. "Throughout the competition my hands were steady and my head was clear. I kept my cool, and I think that's what set me ahead of the rest."

TORONTO — The Distinguished Restaurants of North America’s (DiRoNa) 20th Anniversary reunion conference, held last week, from Sept. 19 to 22, at Toronto’s Fairmont Royal York, featured moment after moment of culinary and beverage achievement.

The gourmet samplings of Canadian cuisine at the CN Tower’s 360 Restaurant set the stage for a number of events and special meals. Highlights included a visit to Niagara Falls; a lunch and Holt Renfrew fashion show at Ruth’s Chris; a gala dinner prepared by Pino Posteraro of Vancouver’s Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill & Enoteca, which incorporated 10 kilos of Italian truffles (valued at $70,000); a Japanese lunch created on the philosophy of Oh-Kyaku-San (guest and customer are one), and a Kaiseki Dinner prepared by Iron Chef Japan Kimo Nonaga, Hihonbaschi-Yukari, Ryo Ozawa and his staff from EDO restaurant in Toronto. Japanese celebrity chef Hidekazu Tojo, past chef to the Emperor and Empress of Japan and chef/owner of Tojo’s Rastaurant, Vancouver, was unable to participate in the aforementioned dinner due to a sudden illness.

NIAGARA, Ont. — Niagara, Ont.’s 2010 grape harvest is continuing to spark conversation about the region's upcoming wine season, which is primed to be the best in years.

The grape harvest, “has winemakers very excited about the quality of the wines, especially the reds, which have developed exceptionally well due to the high number of degree days of heat that have accumulated throughout the summer,” Donald Ziraldo, chairman, Vineland Research and Innovation Centre and proprietor of Ziraldo Estate Winery told Foodservice and Hospitality magazine. “The whites are showing strong aromatics while the reds have a full ripeness.”

TORONTO — Maple Leaf Foods Inc.’s Corporate West offices and ThinkFOOD! Centre in Mississauga, Ont., has been given the green seal of approval with news that it’s been awarded the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Core and Shell (CS) Gold certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.

"We have a strong commitment to environmental responsibility across all our operations and activities, and this project reinforces that commitment," says Anne Tennier, vice-president, Environmental Affairs, Maple Leaf Foods, of the certification for the rating system awarded to companies with buildings that tout sustainable design.