I live in Winnipeg and we have combinations of snow, ice, freezing rain, etc for about 4 months of the year. The car is more than capable of handling this kind of weather, its just that our tires suck BALLS in any conditions.

I personally think that winter tires are a great investment (i spent $500 cdn on a set of Michelin Arctic Alpins and they'll probably last at least 5 seasons) especially if you do a lot of driving in snow, ice, etc. Plus with a set of dedicated winters, you don't have to worry about your choice of summer tires and it won't cramp on your fun.

As for grip up hills and stuff, i highly recommend the Arctic Alpins. They seem to be the best winter tire that Tirerack carries (according to their surveys). After the first snowfall here, I took the car out to a parking lot to see what they could do. No matter what I did (within reason), I couldn't lose control. They break loose when accelerating aggressively out of turns, but as soon as you let go, the car snaps back into place and goes the way you originally intended. I swerved, slammed on the brakes, you name it. Unless you drive like a complete and utter moron, you couldn't get yourself into trouble with these tires. Defintely an great investment.