A heady experience is in store for visitors who tour Quebec's cideries. In recent years artisan producers have resurrected the province's reputation for excellent ciders.
BY HUGO PARADIS
Quebecers have been drinking cider for generations. Popular in Brittany and Normandy, the apple-based beverage was first brought to these shores by Jacques Cartier, where the New France colonists promptly developed a taste for it.
In 1920, a bizarre oversight in the Commission des Liqueurs du Québec act of incorporation made it illegal to drink cider in the province. It wasn't legalized again until the 1970s, whereupon Quebecers enthusiastically resumed drinking the sparkling amber beverage – downing 52 million litres of it in 1974 alone.
To meet the huge demand, however, many producers began to sacrifice quality in favour of quantity. Soon they were turning out something that was cider in name only. Even in those rare cases where the taste was palatable, there were often side effects to contend with, including horrible headaches for anyone who strayed into overindulgence. A few years of furious production of such inferior-quality beverages effectively destroyed the Quebec cidermaking industry.
Then in the 1980s, a handful of apple aficionados embarked on a risky venture: to revive artisan cider production in Quebec by returning to the rules of the art of cidermaking. For instance, one of these dedicated souls, Michel Jodoin, learned champagne-fermentation principles on trips to Épernay in France and now applies them to his cidermaking, resulting in a unique technique dubbed "Méthode Jodoin."
For another cidermaker, Robert Demoy, originally from Brittany, Quebec is the promised land of cider in North America. The climate, he says, allows for production of fruitier, juicier and more fragrant apples. Demoy, who is also president of the Association des Cidriculteurs Artisans du Québec, believes that Quebec's exceptionally diverse terroirs, apples and climates add up to fantastic cidermaking potential. Both the range and quality of ciders produced in recent years appear to prove him right.
Bubbling Along
Today Quebec boasts about 30 small cideries, sprinkled throughout the Quebec City, Laurentians, Eastern Townships and Montérégie regions. The latter area is home to roughly half the province's artisan cidermakers.
In just a few scant years, Quebec producers have fashioned a broad variety of delicious ciders, whether sparkling or still, alcoholic or non-alcoholic, that have garnered countless accolades and awards.
A growing number of cideries are also excelling at making the exquisite treat that is ice cider. The production process is similar to that for making icewine, with the fruit picked only after the first autumn frost. Jodoin, meanwhile, turns out a surprising Quebecois calvados, Calijo, along with an apple eau-de-vie, Pom de Vie, that has a 41% alcohol content.
This new generation of artisan ciders is widely available across the province – in grocery stores, at the Société des Alcools du Québec, in many restaurants (particularly crêperies), and even on tap at trendy bars and clubs. Some producers, including Demoy and Jodoin, also export the nectar, chiefly to the United States.
Cider Tour
The best way to experience Quebec's array of cider flavours is to embark on a tour of cidermaking establishments, which follow the example of cideries in France by offering tastings to the public. At some places, the hospitality extends to fascinating tours of the facilities.
To further bolster cider's popularity, the Cider Route (Route des Cidres) was created in 1998. Unfurling through the heart of Montérégie, the region that hugs the south and west of the island of Montreal, this self-drive tour runs through villages like Rougemont, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Saint-Paul-d’Abbotsford, Mont-Saint-Grégoire and Hemmingford, near the American border. A little to the east, enthusiasts can also visit four cideries in the neighbouring Eastern Townships region.
Lined with glorious landscapes, the Route des Cidres can be explored year-round. But it's at its best in spring (especially during apple-blossom season around mid-May), summer and autumn.
Herewith the stops along the route:
Montérégie
Cidrerie du Minot: 376 Chemin Covey-Hill, Hemmingford, (450) 247-3111 or www.duminot.com
La Face Cachée de la Pomme: 617 Route 202, Hemmingford, (450) 247-2899 or www.cidredeglace.com
Verger Henryville: 660 Route 133, Henryville, (450) 299-2733
Cidrerie Verger Léo Boutin: 710 de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Grégoire, 1-888-346-3326/(450) 346-3326 or www.vergerboutin.com
Verger Cidrerie Denis Charbonneau: 575 de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Grégoire, (450) 347-9184 or www.vergersdc.qc.ca
Clos de la Montagne: 330 Rang de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Grégoire, (450) 358-4868
Au Pavillon de la Pomme: 1130 Boulevard Laurier, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, (450) 464-2654 or www.pavillondelapomme.com
Cidrerie du Verger Gaston: 1074 Chemin de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, (450) 464-3455
Les Vergers Petit et Fils: 1020 Chemin de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, (450) 467-9926
Cidrerie D.R. Alix: 169 Rang de la Montagne, Rougemont, (450) 469-3004
Cidrerie Michel Jodoin: 1130 Rang de la Petite-Caroline, Rougemont, 1-888-469-2676/(450) 469-2676 or www.cidrerie-michel-jodoin.qc.ca
La Cidrerie du Village: 509 Rue Principale, Rougemont, (450) 469-3945 or www.lacidrerieduvillage.qc.ca
De Lavoie Poitevin: 100 de la Montagne, Rougemont, (450) 469-3894
Clos Saint-Denis, 1149 Chemin des Patriotes, Saint-Denis-sur-Richelieu, (450) 787-3766 or www.pommedeglace.com
Cidrerie Coteau Saint-Jacques: 995 Grand-Rang Saint-Charles, Saint-Paul-d’Abbotsford, (450) 379-9732
Verger Cidrerie Larivière, 1188 Rang 8, Saint-Théodore-d’Acton, (450) 546-3411 or www.clementlariviere.com
Eastern Townships
Domaine Pinnacle: 150 Chemin Richford, Frelighsburg, (450) 298-1222 or www.icecider.com
Cidrerie Fleurs de Pommiers: 1047 Route 202, Dunham, (450) 295-2223
Les Petits Fruits Léger, 331 Chemin Brome, Lac Brome, 1-877-360-2036/(450) 534-2753 or www.petits-fruits-leger.com
Vignoble Les Blancs Côteaux, 1046 Chemin Bruce, Route 202, Dunham, (450) 295-3503 or www.vignerons-du-quebec.com
source: Canadian Tourism Commision
This reproduction is not represented as an official version of the materials reproduced, nor has it been made in affiliation with or with the endorsement of the Canadian Tourism Commission.
Click here for more information on Quebec
BY HUGO PARADIS
Quebecers have been drinking cider for generations. Popular in Brittany and Normandy, the apple-based beverage was first brought to these shores by Jacques Cartier, where the New France colonists promptly developed a taste for it.
In 1920, a bizarre oversight in the Commission des Liqueurs du Québec act of incorporation made it illegal to drink cider in the province. It wasn't legalized again until the 1970s, whereupon Quebecers enthusiastically resumed drinking the sparkling amber beverage – downing 52 million litres of it in 1974 alone.
To meet the huge demand, however, many producers began to sacrifice quality in favour of quantity. Soon they were turning out something that was cider in name only. Even in those rare cases where the taste was palatable, there were often side effects to contend with, including horrible headaches for anyone who strayed into overindulgence. A few years of furious production of such inferior-quality beverages effectively destroyed the Quebec cidermaking industry.
Then in the 1980s, a handful of apple aficionados embarked on a risky venture: to revive artisan cider production in Quebec by returning to the rules of the art of cidermaking. For instance, one of these dedicated souls, Michel Jodoin, learned champagne-fermentation principles on trips to Épernay in France and now applies them to his cidermaking, resulting in a unique technique dubbed "Méthode Jodoin."
For another cidermaker, Robert Demoy, originally from Brittany, Quebec is the promised land of cider in North America. The climate, he says, allows for production of fruitier, juicier and more fragrant apples. Demoy, who is also president of the Association des Cidriculteurs Artisans du Québec, believes that Quebec's exceptionally diverse terroirs, apples and climates add up to fantastic cidermaking potential. Both the range and quality of ciders produced in recent years appear to prove him right.
Bubbling Along
Today Quebec boasts about 30 small cideries, sprinkled throughout the Quebec City, Laurentians, Eastern Townships and Montérégie regions. The latter area is home to roughly half the province's artisan cidermakers.
In just a few scant years, Quebec producers have fashioned a broad variety of delicious ciders, whether sparkling or still, alcoholic or non-alcoholic, that have garnered countless accolades and awards.
A growing number of cideries are also excelling at making the exquisite treat that is ice cider. The production process is similar to that for making icewine, with the fruit picked only after the first autumn frost. Jodoin, meanwhile, turns out a surprising Quebecois calvados, Calijo, along with an apple eau-de-vie, Pom de Vie, that has a 41% alcohol content.
This new generation of artisan ciders is widely available across the province – in grocery stores, at the Société des Alcools du Québec, in many restaurants (particularly crêperies), and even on tap at trendy bars and clubs. Some producers, including Demoy and Jodoin, also export the nectar, chiefly to the United States.
Cider Tour
The best way to experience Quebec's array of cider flavours is to embark on a tour of cidermaking establishments, which follow the example of cideries in France by offering tastings to the public. At some places, the hospitality extends to fascinating tours of the facilities.
To further bolster cider's popularity, the Cider Route (Route des Cidres) was created in 1998. Unfurling through the heart of Montérégie, the region that hugs the south and west of the island of Montreal, this self-drive tour runs through villages like Rougemont, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Saint-Paul-d’Abbotsford, Mont-Saint-Grégoire and Hemmingford, near the American border. A little to the east, enthusiasts can also visit four cideries in the neighbouring Eastern Townships region.
Lined with glorious landscapes, the Route des Cidres can be explored year-round. But it's at its best in spring (especially during apple-blossom season around mid-May), summer and autumn.
Herewith the stops along the route:
Montérégie
Cidrerie du Minot: 376 Chemin Covey-Hill, Hemmingford, (450) 247-3111 or www.duminot.com
La Face Cachée de la Pomme: 617 Route 202, Hemmingford, (450) 247-2899 or www.cidredeglace.com
Verger Henryville: 660 Route 133, Henryville, (450) 299-2733
Cidrerie Verger Léo Boutin: 710 de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Grégoire, 1-888-346-3326/(450) 346-3326 or www.vergerboutin.com
Verger Cidrerie Denis Charbonneau: 575 de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Grégoire, (450) 347-9184 or www.vergersdc.qc.ca
Clos de la Montagne: 330 Rang de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Grégoire, (450) 358-4868
Au Pavillon de la Pomme: 1130 Boulevard Laurier, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, (450) 464-2654 or www.pavillondelapomme.com
Cidrerie du Verger Gaston: 1074 Chemin de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, (450) 464-3455
Les Vergers Petit et Fils: 1020 Chemin de la Montagne, Mont-Saint-Hilaire, (450) 467-9926
Cidrerie D.R. Alix: 169 Rang de la Montagne, Rougemont, (450) 469-3004
Cidrerie Michel Jodoin: 1130 Rang de la Petite-Caroline, Rougemont, 1-888-469-2676/(450) 469-2676 or www.cidrerie-michel-jodoin.qc.ca
La Cidrerie du Village: 509 Rue Principale, Rougemont, (450) 469-3945 or www.lacidrerieduvillage.qc.ca
De Lavoie Poitevin: 100 de la Montagne, Rougemont, (450) 469-3894
Clos Saint-Denis, 1149 Chemin des Patriotes, Saint-Denis-sur-Richelieu, (450) 787-3766 or www.pommedeglace.com
Cidrerie Coteau Saint-Jacques: 995 Grand-Rang Saint-Charles, Saint-Paul-d’Abbotsford, (450) 379-9732
Verger Cidrerie Larivière, 1188 Rang 8, Saint-Théodore-d’Acton, (450) 546-3411 or www.clementlariviere.com
Eastern Townships
Domaine Pinnacle: 150 Chemin Richford, Frelighsburg, (450) 298-1222 or www.icecider.com
Cidrerie Fleurs de Pommiers: 1047 Route 202, Dunham, (450) 295-2223
Les Petits Fruits Léger, 331 Chemin Brome, Lac Brome, 1-877-360-2036/(450) 534-2753 or www.petits-fruits-leger.com
Vignoble Les Blancs Côteaux, 1046 Chemin Bruce, Route 202, Dunham, (450) 295-3503 or www.vignerons-du-quebec.com
source: Canadian Tourism Commision
This reproduction is not represented as an official version of the materials reproduced, nor has it been made in affiliation with or with the endorsement of the Canadian Tourism Commission.
Click here for more information on Quebec
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