Monteregie Culture In A Bottle


Canada is famous for its sweet and smooth ice wine but in Monteregie, I discovered that there is also ice cider. And not the kind that is basically apple juice. Rolling up into La Face Cachee de la Pomme (The hidden side of the apple) cidrerie, I was greeted by apple orchards covered with rosy apples. Some varieties, like Fuji and Gala, stay on the trees until January, so that the cold and wind whip the insides into a concentrated taste. The frozen apples are picked when it's about 15 degrees below zero and the insides have been dehydrated and all that's left is nectar.


Aged ice cider is stored in these barrels, La Face Cachee is a pioneer in ice cider and produces 10 different varieties.


The founding president of La Face Cachee, Francois Pouliot, ditched his film video career where he worked with musicians like Celine Dion, to develop ground-breaking ice ciders. The ciders or apple ice wines as they are sometimes called, range from 8% -18% alcohol levels and must meet strict standards to qualify as ice ciders.


Inside the tasting room, this illustration shows the different flavors such as cheese, pear, apricot and cinnamon, that apple pairs well with


According to Francois, the best pairing for ice cider is firm cheese. We tasted a dizzying range of ice ciders and the sweet notes do offset firm cheese very well, particularly goat cheese and firm cheddar. La Face Cachee ciders have been featured everywhere from El Bulli to presidential receptions, they even makes an appearance in that quirky Quebec green sangria. Neige Premiere is the most popular and award-winning, created from a  sweetly acidic blend of Macintosh and Spartan apples. This was my favorite as well, it tasted like a lighter version of apple brandy.


When I asked him to explain the significance of ice ciders, Francois summed it up with this: "It's the best of our culture in a bottle."

Comments

Indrani said…
That sounds like a great experience.
September 14, 2012 at 7:31 AM
Fly Girl said…
Indrani, it really was. Being from the Midwest, I thought I knew a lot about apples but I learned a lot. Thanks for dropping by.
September 14, 2012 at 10:59 AM
A Cuban In London said…
I quite liked the last line of your post. It's what marketing people dream of. :-)

Great post and very informative, too.

Thanks for your recent comment. It goes to show that you can take the Chicagoan out of Chicago (and put her in Canada, for instance), but you can never take Chicago out of the Chicago woman. :-)

Greetings from London.
September 16, 2012 at 12:33 PM
Fly Girl said…
Cubano, I quite agree, I immediately pegged it for an article title. Yes, I suppose you're right, I'm always a Chicago girl wherever I am.
September 16, 2012 at 6:56 PM
Natasha said…
I've never heard of ice cider before! Would love to try it one day.
September 17, 2012 at 5:06 AM
Fly Girl said…
Natasha, it is a very Canadian thing. I hope you visit and do try it. Thanks for stopping by.
September 17, 2012 at 6:11 AM
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