Ben Sigurdson

Winnipeg

Literary Editor and Wine Columnist at Winnipeg Free Press

Literary editor, drinks writer, Winnipeg Free Press; cringey dad; aspiring F1 team principal; party ruiner. He/him. Same handle at the other (better) sites

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Articles

Opinion: Manitoba producers win drinks awards — plus six brews, many fruit-infused, to enjoy in the heat

6 days ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

Manitoba producers picked up some hardware at global drinks competitions in the past weeks. On May 1, the World Beer Cup doled out awards in a range of categories at a ceremony in Indianapolis, Ind. Winnipeg’s Nonsuch Brewing Co. was one of nine Canadian breweries (and the only Manitoba producer) to nab an award — a bronze medal for its Baltic porter.
Percival Everett’s novel James adds Pulitzer Prize to trophy case

6 days ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

Paper Chase By: Ben Sigurdson Posted: 2:00 AM CDT Saturday, May.
Award-winning writer brings experimental novel to Winnipeg

1 week ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

Fans of Madeleine Thien’s writing could be excused for feeling impatient about the author’s followup to her bestselling novel Do Not Say We Have Nothing. The novel, published in 2016, won the Montreal author the Giller Prize, the Governor General’s Literary Award for fiction and landed on the short list for the Booker Prize. The nine-year gap was worth the wait.
Opinion: Warmer weather, cooler wines

1 week ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

With the mercury climbing in earnest this weekend, it’s as good a time as ever to shift gears from heartier, more robust wines to warm-weather sippers — which doesn’t necessarily mean ditching red wines altogether. Recent trends have seen a growing number of wineries producing lighter, fruit-driven and lower-tannin reds that are often best served at least slightly chilled.
New novel by former first lady of Iceland

1 week ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

Former first lady of Iceland launches new mystery novel By: Ben Sigurdson Posted: 2:00 AM CDT Saturday, May.
Lubrin lands Carol Shields fiction prize

1 week ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

Paper Chase By: Ben Sigurdson Posted: 2:00 AM CDT Saturday, May. 3, 2025 Whitby, Ont.-based author Canisia Lubrin has won the 2025 Carol Shields Prize for Fiction, worth US$150,000 (around $207,000), for her short-story collection Code Noir.
Author tidies Molly Gray’s backstory in Maid series

2 weeks ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

For the better part of 20 years, Nita Prose was part of the publishing industry, working her way up to vice-president and editorial director of Simon & Schuster Canada. Then Molly Gray entered her life. Prose introduced Molly, maid at the Regency Grand Hotel, to the world in her 2022 mystery novel The Maid, which became a runaway international bestseller. Molly returned in 2023’s The Mystery Guest and then in Prose’s holiday-themed novella The Mistletoe Mystery in December 2024.
Opinion: Educational events for wine, beer and spirit lovers

2 weeks ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

The Manitoba chapter of the Canadian Association of Professional Sommeliers (CAPS Manitoba) is bringing local libation lovers a whole host of drinks-related events during MB Somm Week from May 5 to 12 at venues throughout the city. CAPS Manitoba launched the initiative in 2023 as a way to get drinks lovers engaged through all manner of tastings — from casual walkabout events to sit-down masterclasses with sommeliers, winemakers and mixologists.
Arkells frontman pulls back the curtain on the creative process in new book

3 weeks ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

Every day before getting to work, Max Kerman sits down with a cup of coffee and a physical newspaper, goes for a morning “thinking walk” and then dives into the tasks at hand. Kerman’s job doesn’t involve a cubicle, punching a time card or working on a factory floor, but it’s work all the same: managing the business and creative components of a multi-platinum rock band.
Writes of Spring to pack Free Press pages with poems

3 weeks ago | winnipegfreepress.com | Ben Sigurdson

National Poetry Month will once again go out with a bang, as 13 poets will see their work published in the April 26 Free Press and launch their work on Sunday, April 27 at 2 p.m. at McNally Robinson Booksellers’ Grant Park location as part of the Writes of Spring project co-presented by Plume Winnipeg.