Sugaring-Off In Quebec: A Quintessentially Canadian Experience
Today, I’m giddy, I’m Canadian, and I’m high on sugar. For many years, I’ve been meaning to attend one of the many maple syrup festivals held in spring but somehow never quite made it for one reason or another. After reading a feature on sugaring-off in our local paper a few days ago, I found myself browsing the website of La Sucrerie de la Montagne. One thing led to another, I ended up with a reservation for a traditional Quebecois feast this Sunday afternoon and hatching up plans for a nice field trip.
Located just 5 hours from Toronto, La Sucrerie sits on top of Mont-Rigaud, reachable by a tree-lined winding road. Today must be one of their busiest day of the year because there were line-ups everywhere from parking to ticket booth to getting seated in the 100 year-old barn for the feast. However, since the weather was so warm and sunny, I didn’t really mind the wait…more time to relax in the sun after a few months of winter! 
Once we were seated at a long pine wooden table completed with wooden benches, I had time to take a look around. The dining hall was bubbling with boisterous spirit buoyed by the energetic live folk music playing on stage. Table after table were filled with diners eager to dig into the plates of food brought on by the busy but friendly waitstaff. There were various Canadiana knick-knacks hanging around the wall and a big fireplace facing opposite the tiny stage anchoring both ends of the room. Midway through a song, a staff was handing out wooden spoons to the diners. One of the musician showed us how to make neat clapping sound by tapping the pair of spoons against your hands or your thighs. Before you knew it, everyone was tapping along to the music. Though a little cheesy (at times I thought I’ve stepped into a CBC television special), the atmosphere was so infectious that I was having a blast.
Menu
- Mountaineer’s Pea Soup
- Country Fresh Bread
- Garlic Mash Potato
- Country Sausages
- Traditional Quebecois Tourtière
- Meatballs
- Maple-glazed Smoked Ham
- Wood-fired Baked Beans
- Soufflé Omelette
- Canadian Salted Back Bacon
- Homemade Fruits Ketchup and Marinades
- Pancakes with Maple Syrup
- Sugar Pie
T and I were very hungry after the long drive and found this hearty food quite satisfying. I particularly liked the baked beans and tourtière. T said that the homemade meatballs were delicious. However, the best part of the meal got to be the maple syrup. You know how when you go out for breakfasts, restaurants are usually very stingy about maple syrup? Well, rest assure, there’s no such stinginess here at La Sucrerie. 
Each table has a large glass bottle filled with the gorgeously amber liquid, glistening in the sunlight. Of course maple syrup is a mandatory topping to pancakes but as far as I (and many other diners) was concerned, it was an universal condiments in this meal. I discovered for the first time that maple syrup pairs very well with eggs, sausages, ham, baked beans, and of course, coffee. After such a big meal, a nice cup of coffee would be the perfect ending. I looked at the packets of sugar and the bottle of maple syrup…the choice was clear. Even without milk or cream, coffee sweetened with maple syrup was simply marvelous. I am now a convert.
Despite all the hustle and bustle of tourist attraction, La Sucrecrie is essentially a working maple grove. The site consists of acres of maple trees, each having at least one bucket dangling off the trunk to collect all the maple sap. The picture on the left shows a drop of sap flowing out of the spout into the bucket. It’s tempting to catching the sap and have a taste. 
However, as you may already know, it takes about 40L of sap to make 1L of syrup. This means the sap really doesn’t have a strong taste. We peeked inside the sugar shack to see a huge boiling cauldron (well, not really, it’s a very modern stainless steel vat) steaming away. As the water evaporated, the sap became more concentrated to eventually turn into syrup. It’s amazing to think of this traditional Canadian delicacy being made hundreds of years ago using essentially the same principal by the pioneers.
Before we concluded our little field trip, we stopped by the general store to purchase some maple syrup and fudge made with maple sugar. We met the owner of La Sucrecrie, Pierre Faucher, sitting on the porch. He had been pretty much everywhere the whole afternoon, chatting with guests, clapping to the music, and making sure everything ran smoothly. His larger-than-life presence at La Sucrerie really made this experience memorable. M. Foucher, thank you for such a wonderful afternoon!
Technorati: Maple Syrup, Quebec, Sucrerie
