Cheese festival, Dairy Farmers of Canada, Great Canadian Cheese Festival, Prince Edward County

Calling all cheese lovers to Prince Edward County!

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That's the slogan of Dairy Farmers of Canada, Diamond Sponsor of The Great Canadian Cheese Festival.

Historic Crystal Palace and the Picton Fairgrounds all around it will make for quite a mouth-watering scene on June 4-5.

That’s when the first-ever Great Canadian Cheese Festival takes place, bringing together the country’s leading cheesemakers from coast-to-coast so cheese lovers can meet to learn, talk, taste and buy the best in artisan, farmstead and specialty cheese—and sample fine wine, craft beer, cider and artisanal foods.

The two-day Festival features:

On Saturday, June 4, a keynote presentation to kick off proceedings, a full day of cheese-tasting seminars, pairing cheese with wine, beer and cider, a buffet lunch and, in the evening, outstanding chefs using cheese to create tasting dishes for the Cooks & Curds Cheese Gala.

Think cheesemaker Ruth Klahsen, cheese educator Julia Rogers and sommelier Andrew Laliberté among the tasting presenters. Think Jamie Kennedy, Michael Blackie and Anthony Rose among the renowned chefs.

On Sunday, June 5, a Cheese Fair & Artisan Food Market featuring more than 30 Canadian cheesemakers, more than 100 artisan and farmstead cheeses to sample and purchase, winemakers and craft brewers offering tastings, too, plus a host of artisan food producers, with a tutored tasting of Canadian Cheese Grand Prix winners, a cheesemaking demonstration and whey more.

Think Fromagerie du Presbytère from Québec, Glengarry Fine Cheese from Ontario and Cows Creamery from P.E.I. among the represented cheesemakers from across Canada. Think Harwood Estate Vineyards and Wineries among the wineries, Mill Street Brewery among the craft brewers, and Major Craig’s Chutney among the artisan food producers.

Plus: A six-hour, guided tour of local cheese plants and dairy farms on Friday or Saturday.

Bonus: On Friday, the Festival eve, cheese-themed dinners at County restaurants such as Angéline’s Restaurant & Inn featuring acclaimed chef Michael Potters.

The bad news is the Festival is still almost three months away. The good news is earlybird ticket sales have started—which means money saved on admission can be spent on cheese!

For cheese lovers, culinary tourists and foodies, come the first weekend in June, all roads will lead to Picton in the heart of Prince Edward County, Ontario’s fastest growing culinary destination.

Crystal Palace was built in 1890 on the Picton Fairgrounds in Picton, in the heart of Ontario's Prince Edward County.

Awards, Dairy Farmers of Canada

Canadian Cheese Grand Prix finalists announced

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It's a tough job but someone has to do it: Judges at work tasting the 203 cheeses entered in the 2011 Canadian Cheese Grand Prix. Photos courtesy of Dairy Farmers of Canada.

The names of finalists in the seventh Canadian Cheese Grand Prix were released today by Dairy Farmers of Canada. A record-breaking total of 203 cheeses from six provinces were submitted for judging in the competition.

A panel of Canada’s top cheese experts spent two days in Montréal last weekend tasting and evaluating 203 of the best cow-milk cheeses this country has to offer as they narrowed the field down to 51 cheeses in 17 categories.

The Grand Champion and Champions in the 17 categories will be announced by Dairy Farmers of Canada during an invitation-only Gala of Champions on April 20 at Palais Royale in Toronto. The first opportunity for the public to taste all winners in one place will be at The Great Canadian Cheese Festival on June 4-5 in Picton, Ontario.

The Canadian Cheese Grand Prix is a competition sponsored and hosted by Dairy Farmers of Canada, celebrating the high quality and proud tradition of Canadian cheese made from 100% Canadian cow’s milk.

Here are the 51 finalists for the 2011 Canadian Cheese Grand Prix. In the photos, the cheeses, left to right, are in the order of the listing for each category. Click on any image for a larger view.

Fresh cheese:

Soft cheese with bloomy rind:

Semi-soft cheese:

Washed-rind soft and semi-soft cheese:

Firm cheese:

Swiss-type cheese:

Mozzarella:

Blue cheese:

Flavoured cheese with added non-particulate flavouring:

Flavoured cheese with added particulate solids and flavouring:

Mild cheddar:

Medium cheddar:

Old and extra old cheddar:

Aged Cheddar (1-3 years):

Aged Cheddar (4 years +):

Farmhouse cheese:

Organic cheese:

Jury members:

Phil Bélanger, Jury Chairman for the seventh edition of the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix. Phil is Senior Consultant for Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour for the province of New Brunswick, chairman of La Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs for the New Brunswick chapter and an independent consultant in hospitality and tourism.

Gurth M. Pretty, chef and author of two books on cheese, president and founder of CheeseofCanada.ca, past president of the Canadian Cheese Society, and member of La Société des fromages du Québec and the American Cheese Society.

Allison Spurrell, owner of the cheese boutique Les Amis du Fromage and the cheese-inspired restaurant Au Petit Chavignol in Vancouver. Allison holds a certificate in cheese making technology from the University of Guelph and was inducted in the Confrérie des Chevaliers des Fromages de France.

Antoine Sicotte, artist, television host, photographer, musician and self-taught cook extraordinaire. Antoine is the author of the best-seller Le Cuisinier rebelle, a cookbook as unique as its author. The book was honoured in the Best First Cookbook category at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in 2009, and won silver in the French cookbook category at the 2010 Canadian Culinary Book Awards. He is currently working on two new cookbooks, as well as several additional television projects.

Ian Picard, vice-president of La Fromagerie Hamel in Montreal. Ian studied everything there is to learn about cheese at the École Nationale d’Industrie Laitière et des Biotechnologies de Poligny in France.

Rita Demontis, award-winning writer with the Toronto Sun for 34 years, Lifestyle and Food Editor, as well as National Food Editor for the Sun Media chain. Rita was recently awarded the Ontario Produce Marketing Association’s Person of the Year award in Ontario.

Michael Howell, chef, cookbook author, leader of Slow Food Nova Scotia, president of The Restaurant Association of Nova Scotia and sits on the board of Taste of Nova Scotia. Michael is also the owner of Tempest Restaurant in Wolfville, Nova Scotia.

Judging of the entries took place on February 19 and 20 at the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec (ITHQ) in Montreal. For two days, jury members carefully observed, touched, smelled, and tasted each cheese and evaluated them according to precise criteria, including colour and general appearance, texture and body, flavour and salt content. To be eligible for the Grand Prix, cheeses must be produced in Canada exclusively from 100% Canadian cow’s milk and be available to consumers at point of sale at the time they are judged.

Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) strives to create favourable conditions for the Canadian dairy industry, today and in the future. DFC works to maintain policies that foster the viability of Canadian dairy producers and to promote quality Canadian dairy products made from 100% Canadian cow’s milk as part of a healthy balanced diet.

Dairy Farmers of Canada, Fromagerie Fritz Kaiser, Glengarry Fine Cheese, Poplar Grove Cheese

Chowing down on dairy with food bloggers

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Canadian food bloggers at a roundtable hosted by Dairy Farmers of Canada at St. Lawrence Market Kitchen in Toronto.

What a wonderful way to while away an evening: Tasting cheese and cheese dishes, listening to the brightest and best in Canadian food bloggers gathered in a roundtable by Dairy Farmers of Canada.

I love cheese and I blog about it for fun, but these people are really good at what they do. In fact, I’ve just whiled away the entire morning poking around the 11 blogs and sites represented at the gathering at St. Lawrence Market Kitchen in Toronto. Here they are:

Also at the roundtable was Lois Abraham, food editor at Canadian Press, and a bevvy of communications and marketing types from the Montreal office of Dairy Farmers of Canada. DFC used the occasion to obtain input and feedback from the bloggers on how better to inform Canadians about “100% Canadian Milk” in all its many uses.

A mouth-watering concoction of chocolate, cheese and strawberries in a mousse.

Chef Emily Richards, a recipe developer at DFC, created four dishes, all employing cheese made with that 100% Canadian milk:

  • Roasted Pepper and Parsnip Soup
  • Ricotta Meatball on Polenta
  • Roasted Fennel with Prosciutto Breadcrumbs
  • Chocolate Cheese and Strawberry Mousse Duet.

Figaro, Raclette, a fig bar, Tiger Blue and—for those who don't like cheese naked—artisan bread

Anne-Marie Shubin, a culinary instructor at Centre for Hospitality & Culinary Arts, George Brown College, and an instructor at Cheese Education Guild, selected the B.C. wines for the meal and three outstanding Canadian cheeses:

As I said, a most pleasant way to spend a January evening—with the bonus being a gift bag containing more Figaro, more Raclette and more Tiger Blue to take home.

—Georgs Kolesnikovs

Georgs Kolesnikovs is Cheesehead-In-Chief at CheeseLover.ca and organizer of The Great Canadian Cheese Festival. Dairy Farmers of Canada is Diamond Sponsor of the Festival which is how he garnered an invite to the blogger roundtable.

Dairy Farmers of Canada, Grilled cheese

Nova Scotia chef wins Canadian grilled-cheese throw-down

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Chefs who fried and fought: Lucas Castle of Holt's Cafe (left), Melissa Craig of The Bearfoot Bistro, Paul Rogalski of Rouge Restaurant and winner Michael Howell of Tempest Restaurant.

Canada’s favourite comfort food received the gourmet treatment at the Dairy Farmer’s of Canada’s first-ever Grate Canadian Grilled Cheese Cook-off today.

Four acclaimed Canadian chefs fried and fought for the title of grilled-cheese champion. They were Melissa Craig, head chef at The Bearfoot Bistro in Whistler, British Columbia; Paul Rogalski of Rouge Restaurant in Calgary; Corbin Tomaszeski of Holt’s Cafe in Toronto (represented by his sous Lucas Castle); and Michael Howell from Tempest Restaurant in Wolfville, Nova Scotia.

Each competitor cooked two original grilled-cheese creations in 20 minutes, in front of a foodie crowd at the Canadian National Exhibition. The dishes, all showcasing Canadian cheese, were then presented to a panel of expert judges, comprised of Lucy Waverman, Rita DeMontis and Corey Mintz, all food writers. Gurth Pretty, cheese author and chair of Ontario Cheese Society, was the engaging master of ceremonies.

Chef Michael Howell: Grilled-cheese champion.

Chef Michael Howell was hailed the champion for his recipe dubbed the “Panini Toscano,” an Italian-inspired creation that featured Nova Scotia Fox Hill Cheese House Havarti accompanied by prosciutto, figs, arugula, lemon aioli and balsamic vinaigrette.

Howell, who has run Tempest Restaurant for the past eight years following stints in Toronto and the United States, is committed to local, sustainable cooking. He believes the competition will inspire Canadians to experiment with locally produced cheese:

“This wonderful cook-off and my fellow chefs have all shown us that making a winning grilled cheese sandwich is simple: all you need is bread, your favourite Canadian cheese, and some imagination.”

Judge Rita DeMontis described the winning creation as being “a burst of flavour. A mouthful of joy!” Waverman praised the calibre of the food prepared by all four chefs, while Mintz declared that the judging might have been “the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do in my life.”

The task assigned to the attendees was much easier: after watching the chefs battle it out, we were able to sample their tasty inventions. While they were all scrumptious, I was partial to Chef Craig’s decadent French Toast Grilled Cheese, which featured Canadian camembert, figs, and walnut cranberry bread.

All the chefs’ recipes are available online. I plan to recreate them all.

—Phoebe Powell

Phoebe Powell, a roving reporter for CheeseLover.ca, is crazy about grilled cheese. Her fave is aged cheddar on multigrain bread.

Cook-off judges: Rita DeMontis (left), Corey Mintz and Lucy Waverman.

Cheese rolling, Dairy Farmers of Canada, Events, Natural Pastures Cheese

Canadian Cheese Rolling Festival: Talk about craziness!

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rjlp1J7PQsc]

It’s got to be the wackiest way to promote cheese but the Canadian Cheese Rolling Festival has proven to be highly effective—right out of the gate. About 5,000 people watched the inaugural event at Whistler, British Columbia, two years ago. Who knows how many will show up for the 2010 race this Saturday?

What’s really surprising is that the crazy afternoon of cheese rolling and other activities for the whole family is sponsored and promoted by Dairy Farmers of Canada, an organization generally seen as staid.

Cheese rolling is exactly that. A large wheel of cheese is rolled down a hill and daring men and women chase after it. The first contestant to make it down the hill wins. Vancouver Island cheesemaker Natural Pastures produced special 11-pound wheels of Cracked Pepper Verdelait cheese for the Festival. The winners get to take home the wheel of 100-percent Canadian cheese and a Whistler season ski pass.

“Last year, the attendance at the Canadian Cheese Rolling Festival was above our expectations and many people from across the country and abroad have asked us to bring it back,” says Solange Heiss, a spokeperson for Dairy Farmers of Canada. “It’s a great activity for the entire family and a fantastic way to showcase the amazing 100-percent Canadian cheeses this country has to offer.”

The race course will be set up in Whistler’s Upper Village on Blackcomb Mountain. Free round trip transportation to Blackcomb Mountain Base 2 parking lot via Excalibur Gondola in Whistler village is available for everyone. Anyone over 19 years of age can participate and contestants can register on site on August 14. The downhill event will consist of six men’s and three women’s races. The winner from each round will compete in the finals. For the kids, there will be six uphill races that will be a little easier.

In addition to the races, spectators, families and contestants can take in a host of other fun activities including cheese bowling and cheese twister. Everyone will be able to sample delicious Canadian cheese, wander through a Farmers Market and participate in cheese seminars. Canadian comic and award-winning host, Jebb Fink, will be hosting the festivities.

For more information about the Canadian Cheese Rolling Festival, click here.

CheeseLover.ca has been unable to confirm that a cheese-rolling festival will take place this fall in Toronto’s High Park.