Black River Cheese, Fifth Town Artisan Cheese, Prince Edward County

Time for a maple-syrup celebration in Prince Edward County

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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNSf-6GRyrs?rel=0&w=480&h=300]Making maple syrup at Honey Wagon Farms in Prince Edward County.

Days get longer, ice and snow begin to melt, maple syrup starts to run. It must be spring in Canada!

This weekend, you can enjoy one of the oldest agricultural traditions in Canada at the 10th annual Maple in the County Festival in Prince Edward County, Ontario’s newest wine region and fastest-growing culinary destination. Cheese is part of the celebration.

At Black River Cheese, you’ll be able to sample Black River Maple Cheddar and maple ice cream. At Fifth Town Artisan Cheese, the new County Quark—flavoured with maple and natural—and delicious Maple Chevre Tarts will tempt you.

Presented by The Waring House and the Prince Edward County Maple Syrup Producers, Maple in the County was named a Top 100 Festival by Festivals & Events Ontario. Featuring 40 local businesses and organizations, it is a program jam-packed with activities for young and old with trips to sugar bushes, farms, wineries, restaurants and shops across the area on Saturday, March 26, and Sunday, March 27.

Every year, more than 8,000 visitors and locals enjoy a trip to one of our sugar bushes to experience everything from lip-smacking pancake breakfasts, sugar shack demonstrations, sugar bush tours, taffy on snow, maple kettle corn, wagon rides, lumberjack shows, baby animals or an antique tractor display. When your belly is full, head out to the wineries and breweries to try some maple-inspired wine, or Barley Days Brewery’s new Sugar Shack Ale, using Fosterholm Farms maple syrup.

Kick up your heels and bring your sweetie to the Sugar Shack Soirée for a beavertail in Waring Hall on Saturday night and enjoy the sounds of The Reasons. Join indie song writing duo The Family Creative Workshop on Friday night and hear storytelling and song writing at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church. Take the whole family to a special performance and workshop for children on “music building” at the Bloomfield United Church with David and Kimberly Maracle from the Tyendinaga Reserve.

The 10th anniversary Maple in the County Family Event will be taking place on Saturday at the Wellington Arena hall from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Join old-time performers Sheesham and Lotus in an interactive performance and workshop, hear live music from Andy Forgie and Jeannette Arsenault, and be amazed at the papier mache building, stilt walking and puppet show from Small Pond Arts. Make maple-themed crafts with Spark Box studio, and enjoy a celebratory free 10th anniversary cupcake from Just Sweets Retro Bakery.

A full list of activities, events and locations can be found at the Maple in the County website, www.mapleinthecounty.ca, by calling 613-393-2796 or in the brochure and map available at any one of the Maple in the County participating locations.

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.

Cheese business, Cow cheese, Fifth Town Artisan Cheese, Local Food Plus, Petra Cooper, Prince Edward County, Quinte Crest Tomme, Rose Haus

Fifth Town expands into cow’s-milk cheese

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Petra Cooper (left) and Jean McCormack among the Holsteins at Quinte Crest Farm.

Only 20 months after Fifth Town Artisan Cheese first began producing cheese, Petra Cooper, founder and president, isn’t resting on the laurels of critical acclaim that greeted her goat and sheep cheeses. Since late December, cow’s milk is also being turned into cheese at the Prince Edward County creamery—with the first offerings going on sale in May.

Sampling will be possible this weekend in Toronto at the Ontario Cheese Society’s booth at Green Living Show and Monday evening at Canadian Artisan Cheese Marketplace & Prince Edward County Wine Tasting.

Quinte Crest Tomme is the new cheese crafted by Stephanie Diamant, Fifth Town’s master cheesemaker. It will be somewhat similar to Lighthall Tomme, Fifth Town’s award-winning goat cheese. (Click here to learn what makes a tomme a tomme.)

Quinte Crest Tomme takes its name from Quinte Crest Farm—just a few minutes northwest of Fifth Town—where grass is turned into milk by a herd of 30 happy Holsteins under the care of Jean McCormack, one of Ontario’s few female dairy farmers. Jean and Petra are near neighbours as the farm is just a few minutes northwest of the creamery.

Quinte Crest is a single-herd cheese that is aged for three to six months in the underground cave at Fifth Town under the care of affineur Phil Collman (who happens to be married to the cheesemaker).

Not content with just one cow’s-milk cheese, Petra has her team at Fifth Town developing a second. It will be called Rose Haus. Ten percent of net sales will be donated to Rose House Museum which chronicles life in North Marysburgh (originally known as Fifth Town) from the 19th century to the present.

Rose Haus, once approved by government agencies, and Quinte Crest Tomme will initially be sold from Fifth Town’s store at the creamery 15 minutes beyond Picton in Prince Edward County.

Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company bills itself as a “contemporary, environmentally and socially responsible enterprise positioned as a niche producer of fine handmade goat and sheep milk cheese.”

All of Fifth Town’s goat cheeses are made with Prince Edward County milk that is Local Food Plus certified. The cheeses are aged by time honoured artisanal methods in Ontario’s only subterranean aging facility. Fifth Town is a Platinum LEED certified dairy and won the Premier’s Award for Agri-Food Innovation in May 2009. Fifth Town opened in June 2008 as a federally licensed dairy. Currently, it employs 14 people and buys milk from three local, family-owned goat farms and three local, family-owned sheep farms. More than 80 percent of the milk processed by Fifth Town is goat milk.