Latest News

Photo courtesy Glowbal Group

Photo via Amazon MGM Studios

Photo courtesy Harbour Publishing

Our City Tonight

By Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins

Published 11:15 PDT, Fri September 27, 2024

Spotlight on the autumn sip, a read, a film

THE AUTUMN SIP – APPLETINI

As the weather changes and cools (with a side order of rain), we turn to Martin Kovalcik, beverage director for Glowbal Restaurant Group, and one of our reliable “cocktail experts”, for a delicious Autumn drink. “The Appletini beautifully combines the crisp flavours of fresh apples cider and warm spices,” Kovalcik tells us as we watch him create our cocktails at his home base, GLOWBAL Restaurant. As we sip this perfect seasonal cocktail, we inquire more about the mix. “It’s vibrant apple flavour,” Kovalcik says, “paired with hint of cinnamon that perfectly complements the cooler autumn weather, making it a cozy choice for gatherings with friends and family.” And as he points out, a cocktail that is easy to make at home. Ingredients include 1.5 oz CÎROC Apple, 0.5 oz peach schnapps, 2 oz apple cider, 0.5 oz honey - cinnamon syrup, 0.75 oz fresh lime juice. Then garnish – any type of apple from local market. The Appletini is available at GLOWBAL Restaurant from Oct. 1 – 31. glowbalgroup.com

THE AUTUMN FILM – Killer Heat

We’ve always loved classic, film noir – especially when the film involves a private eye caught up in a messy case with murder, affairs, and money (think Bogie in The Big Sleep, or Dick Powell in Murder My Sweet, or later, Jack Nicholson in Chinatown). Which leads us to the new, original film from Prime called Killer Heat. Our main character is private eye Nick Bali (the always interesting, Joseph Gordon-Levitt), who is hired to investigate the accidental death of a young (and yes, rich) shipping magnate on the island of Crete. But was it accidental? The sister-in-law (Shailene Woodley) doesn’t think so and she doesn’t believe the police report. Which leaves our P.I. in territory familiar to fans of the film noir genre: who’s lying; what’s at stake for those lying; and is the private eye’s life in danger? Don’t let that Mediterranean setting fool you in this film, there’s plenty of darkness and trouble as Nick Bali searches for answers as to what really happened. The film also stars Richard Madden, who rose to fame in the early seasons of Game of Thrones and in the lead role of British TV’s Bodyguard. amazonmgmstudios.com

THE AUTUMN READ – Never Boring: The Up and Down History of the Vancouver Canucks

For years, one of our go-to writers when it came to sports in this town was Ed Willes and his column in The Province. Though he retired in 2020 after nearly 4 decades of reporting, Willes has kept busy, including writing a wonderful book called Never Boring: The Up and Down History of the Vancouver Canucks, which is available Oct. 5. There is no one better than Willes to tell the story of this 54 year old franchise, which includes so many “what ifs” that are a part of Canucks’ history – starting with that first Amateur draft in 1970, and a future Hall of Famer named Gilbert Perreault. Lousy seasons, bad choices and missed opportunities would follow. There were joyous moments like reaching the 1982 Stanley Cup final, losing to the mighty Islanders. But did it create unrealistic expectations for the rest of the decade? Willes also addresses and analyzes moments we’d forgotten about: that goal Cloutier let in during the 2002 playoffs; that Bertuzzi moment in 2004; the Krutov failure and not being able to keep Larionov; and that 1990 Amateur draft where Jagr and Tkachuk were attainable. Never Boring is an engrossing read, no matter what level of Canucks fan you are. harbourpublishing.com