Steve and I don’t really “do” Valentine’s Day – never have.  He does lots of great things for me throughout each year and I’d like to think I do the same for him.  This year was a little bit different as a couple of events serendipitously came together.

A few months ago I bought tickets, as a Christmas gift, to see Blue Rodeo on Friday, February 15th.  Valentine’s Day wasn’t even a remote thought until I received an email coupon from Stoney Ridge Estate Wineries last week about a special chocolate and wine-tasting event they were hosting in honour of “the day”.

The concert was in Hamilton and, although that’s only a 30-45 minute drive from home, the winery is in Vineland, another 20 minutes the other side of Hamilton in the Niagara region (also, not that far).   So… why not take advantage of this happy coincidence as an excuse for a mini weekend away, complete with a healthy hike – and call it our Valentine’s weekend?

We chose to stay the night at Staybridge Suites (not necessarily “romantic” but comfy-cozy and recommended), a convenient two blocks from Hamilton Place.   That allowed us to indulge in a lovely bottle of Pinot Noir with our dinner at the Tapas Lounge, located right in Hamilton Place.

Blue Rodeo has been around for 25 years and in this 25th anniversary tour they chose the top 25 Canadian cities that have had the most influence on their success.   Toronto would be a no-brainer but a couple of them hail from Hamilton and they got a very warm welcome.   They played all the old favourites, as well as some great new tunes that haven’t hit mainstream yet.   Jim Cuddy has an amazing vocal range – I think you have to see him perform to realize how good he is.   And it’s always more gratifying to watch the band members.   The drummer was very animated and looked like he was having more fun than us; and the keyboardist was so into his music, he looked like a mad scientist hunched over his keys, sliding up and down the board.   They are one talented group of musicians and by the time they left the stage for good, they had entertained us for three hours.   That was great value!

    

Despite Hamilton’s (local) reputation as a (formerly) dirty, industrial city (Stelco and Dofasco are still located by Hamilton harbour – easy access to the Great Lakes shipping channel), its former “Steeltown“ moniker changed to the “City of 100 Waterfalls” when five municipalities amalgamated in 2001 to form the new City of Hamilton.   History aside, it’s the waterfalls that attract many and we were no different.

Following breakfast on Saturday, we chose Balls Falls Conservation Area, in nearby Jordan, for our hike.   As first-time visitors, we were impressed with the Conservation Centre that houses, among other things, an interactive display about the natural and cultural diversity of the region.   And the centre hosts many related events – the next one just two days away for Family Day.

There wasn’t enough snow for the toboggan hill but the hiking trails were close to perfect.   We decided to head to the higher falls, the longer hike, but not before we headed in the other direction for a quick peak at some of the historic buildings.

   

   

Surprisingly, the trail was very quiet for a long weekend.   We only ran into four other couples during the two hours we were hiking.   It was almost like those trails were there just for us.

    

It was a little overcast, but not too cold, as we crunched through the snow, drawn closer and closer to the falls by the increasing intensity of the rushing river.

   

And there they were, around the next corner.   Winter falls can be so beautiful, and then there were these ones.   Maybe it’s because the river isn’t very wide, or maybe it’s because it’s not so deep, or maybe it’s because the drop is wider than it is high – who knows?   But the water, the froth, and the icy bits were dirty!   Oh well, it was still worth the effort.

    

          

   

Following that refreshing communion with nature, we made our way to Stoney Ridge and partook in the Valentine’s Day Mexican chocolate and wine tasting event.   For $25.00 we nibbled on pieces of cinnamon sugar donuts dipped in spicy chocolate and sipped on 2 different wines that definitely brought out the heat in the chocolate.   We also received a bottle of one of their award-winning wines from their Excellence collection, 2009 Meritage, valued at $33.00 – all in all, not bad for a $25.00 investment.

But what were the chances of us leaving without other purchases?   Aside from the experience itself, we bought two bottles of Passion, a fantastic blend of red wines (Cabernet Franc, Baco Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon) fortified with Ice Wine – a perfect accompaniment to cheeses and desserts.   And, speaking of cheese, Stoney Ridge has a small but delicious selection of cheeses – some local, some imported from other parts of Canada or Europe – that are very hard to resist.   A few tastes later, we were on our way with $30.00 worth of four different cheeses – a creamy blue, a hard sheep Manchego, a horseradish cheddar (my favourite), and a cranberry Wensleydale.

With nothing planned for dinner that night, what better way to end our little Valentine’s weekend than with a variety of cheeses and cured meat slices, some fresh bread, fruit, salad, and some of that amazing fortified wine.

Not bad for a couple who don’t “do” Valentine’s Day!