"In Quebec, the traceability is sh*t," says Chef Jean-Sébastien Giguère of the new h3 restaurant in downtown Montreal. Listen in on our happy hour conversation about how eating local here in Quebec is a marketing tool for Big Agriculture. We also talk sugar shacks, his two years to decide what to do with his chickens and why he's moved back to Montreal after years in his Beloeil restaurant.

The 5à7 Podcast is a series of happy hour conversations with creative people – with a nod to the Quebec happy hour, aka the 5à7. They’re based around food, but guests go beyond chefs and restaurant owners to artists, entrepreneurs and other inspiring people you might have heard of. Take a sneak peak into the homes and lives of these guests, to hear stories that only seem to come out over a drink with a friend…or by

Zoom during COVID-19.

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Video: iTunes | YouTube 
Audio: Stitcher | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Pocket Casts

Here’s everything we mentioned on the podcast (in the approximate order we mentioned it):

Jean-Sebastien’s drink: Gin and tonic with Charlivoix-based gin Menaud

https://menaud.ca/en/liquor/gin/
https://www.saq.com/en/14108709

Amie’s drink: An unexciting Crémant (sparkling wine from the Loire Valley in France that I often find as satisfying as Champagne but much cheaper, but while this bottle was cheaper, it was nothing to write home about) that I topped up with Campari to mask the flavour (of the Crémant).

Where Jean-Sebsatien gets his chicken for homemade fried chicken: La Ferme des Voltigeurs https://www.fermedesvoltigeurs.com/en

Martin Picard = Chef of Au Pied de Cochon, aka the temple of foie gras (no one calls it that, but it is)

Au Pied de Cochon sugar shack: https://aupieddecochon.ca/en/info/sugar-shack

Taverne 1909: https://1909tavernemoderne.com/

Le Coureur des Bois Bistro gourmand, Beloeil, QC https://restaurantcoureurdesbois.com/en/home/

Cabane du Coureur is doing takeout: https://cabaneducoureur.ca/en/

Jo Gros Dard, Jean-Sebastien’s beekeeping guy, who’s associated with Apiculture Sirois, for local queen bees: https://apiculturesirois.com/accueil

Where to buy koji online in Montreal: https://www.mycoboutique.com/en/shop/stay-healthy/1275/koji-firm-granular-rice-koji

Info about the closures of maple sugar shacks in Quebec: https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/a-quarter-of-quebec-s-sugar-shacks-have-closed-permanently-as-the-industry-is-drowning-report-1.5228649

Design of the h3 restaurant was done by Jean-Pierre Viau: http://www.jpvdesign.com/

Restauranth3.ca 

Andrew Whibley is the owner of Cloakroom, a popular speakeasy in Montreal, but more recently he’s become an activist. The co-founder of the Association Pour Spiritueux à Emporter Quebec wants Quebeckers to be able to order their negroni and coffee-infused kombucha cocktails for takeout or delivery. And he’s not alone. We talk batch cocktails, what Ontario and other provinces are doing right and how to sign the petition.

The 5à7 Podcast is a series of happy hour conversations with creative people – with a nod to the Quebec happy hour, aka the 5à7. They’re based around food, but guests go beyond chefs and restaurant owners to artists, entrepreneurs and other inspiring people you might have heard of. Take a sneak peak into the homes and lives of these guests, to hear stories that only seem to come out over a drink with a friend…or by Zoom during COVID-19. 

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube or wherever you get your podcasts.

Here’s everything we mentioned on the podcast (in the approximate order we mentioned it):

Cloakroom Bar Montreal:

https://cloakroombar.co/montreal/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecloakroombar/?hl=en

Jaw Lawson: https://bartenderatlas.com/bartenders/jay-lawson/

Andrew’s drink: Coffee Kombucha with Seedliphttps://www.seedlipdrinks.com/en-us/

Mapaq: https://www.mapaq.gouv.qc.ca/fr/Pages/Accueil.aspx

Amie’s drink:

¾ oz Chartreuse verte,

1 oz sake (I used the Otora Junmai from Bacchus76),

¼ oz lime juice.

Shake with ice. Strain. 

Toby Lyle at Burgundy Lion: https://www.burgundylion.com/ 

The Cold Room: https://www.thecoldroommtl.com/ 

PETITION: The Association Pour Spiritueux à Emporter - Quebec

https://www.change.org/p/r-ac-j-p%C3%A9tition-pour-spiritueux-%C3%A0-emporter-qu%C3%A9bec-3c869efc-7bf6-442d-bb74-2678a1e507fb

BC Beverage Technology Access Centre (BTAC): https://www.facebook.com/BCBTAC1/

Parliament Pub & Parlour: https://www.parliamentmtl.com/

Cocktail collaboration: Cook It https://www.chefcookit.com/en

Romeo’s Gin: https://romeosgin.com/

Atwater Cocktail Club (ACC): https://www.atwatercocktailclub.com/

Beam Suntory: https://www.beamsuntory.com/en

Cirka Gin: https://cirka.ca/

RTDs = Ready-to-drink beverages (e.g. coolers): https://www.saq.com/en/products/origine-quebec-products/ready-to-drink-beverages 

ASEQ Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/401594061098295/media

ASEQ P

The 5à7 Podcast is back for a new season with Vancouver filmmaker Baljit Sangra, whose latest documentary Because We Are Girls aired virtually on the closing night of the South Asian Film Festival of Montreal. It chronicles the path of three sisters who press charges against their cousin, who allegedly raped them while growing up in an immigrant Indian family in BC. The film is available online to stream on the National Film Board of Canada website. In this episode, we talk about producing and distributing films during a time of social distancing, as well as Baljit's recommendations for Vancouver restaurants, because this is the 5à7 Podcast, aka the happy hour podcast, after all. 

The 5à7 Podcast is a series of happy hour conversations with creative people – with a nod to the Quebec happy hour, aka the 5à7. They’re based around food, but guests go beyond chefs and restaurant owners to artists, entrepreneurs and other inspiring people you might have heard of. Take a sneak peak into the homes and lives of these guests, to hear stories that only seem to come out over a drink with a friend…or by Zoom during COVID-19.

Video: iTunes | YouTube 
Audio: Stitcher | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Pocket Casts

Here’s everything we mentioned on the podcast (mostly in the order we mentioned them):

South Asian Film Festival of Montreal: https://www.saffm.centrekabir.com/en/2020-edition-en/films/

Viva Manta Films: http://www.vivamantra.ca/

Baljit Sangra on Twitter: https://twitter.com/baljitsangra604

Where to view Because We Are Girls:

Free: National Film Board of Canada,

Outside of Canada: Amazon Prime

Official trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YU0CkXCnMOU

Film website: http://www.vivamantra.ca/because-we-are-girls

Savio Volpe: http://www.saviovolpe.com/

Les Faux Bourgeois: http://www.lesfauxbourgeois.com/

Fassil Ethiopian restaurant: http://www.fassil.ca/ 

Cioppino’s: https://www.cioppinosyaletown.com/

Vij’s: https://vijs.ca/

Minami: https://minamirestaurant.com/

About the “Jordan” application: http://criminalnotebook.ca/index.php/Right_to_a_Trial_Within_a_Reasonable_Time#:~:text=The%20%22Jordan%22%20framework%20sets%20a,of%20trial%2C%20minus%20defence%20delays 

UK Asian Film Festival: https://jeetipooni.com/documentary/

Hot Docs Toronto: https://boxoffice.hotdocs.ca/

It's a holiday Easter egg! Err...chocolate truffle?

I've got three(ish) more questions for Nicolas Duvernois to make your holiday a bit cheerier. 

Photo by Jordane Mathieu on Unsplash

In this episode, Quebec entrepreneur Nicolas Duvernois of Pur Vodka, Romeo's Gin and now Choco Crème taste tests his latest products with me. A Dragon on "Dans l'Oeil de Dragon," the Quebec version of Dragon's Den, he knows what makes a good company and a good product. But even he was probably stumped when he was supposed to launch Romeo Gin X, a collaboration with artist Miss Me, at the beginning of the pandemic. Fortunately, COVID-19 didn't deter people from drinking. Nicolas' most recent products are a wild blueberry and Quebec yuzu-flavoured vodka for the third edition of Pur Vodka's Autographe series and a creamy, chocolate liqueur called Choco Crème that's a holiday collaboration with Quebec chocolate company Chocolats Favoris. We debate the merits of vodka, gin and rum; talk hand sanitizer and leadership techniques; and I announce the winner of the Choco Crème giveaway! 

The 5à7 Podcast is a series of happy hour conversations with creative people – with a nod to the Quebec happy hour, aka the 5à7. They’re based around food, but guests go beyond chefs and restaurant owners to artists, entrepreneurs and other inspiring people you might have heard of. Take a sneak peak into the homes and lives of these guests, to hear stories that only seem to come out over a drink with a friend…or by Zoom during COVID-19.

Video: iTunes | YouTube 
Audio: Stitcher | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Pocket Casts

Here’s everything we mentioned on the podcast (mostly in the order we mentioned them):

The products we tasted:

Romeo’s Gin X: https://romeosgin.com/romeos-gin-x/

Pur Vodka Série Autographe Édition 3 with wild blueberry and yuzu: https://www.purvodka.com/pur-vodka-serie-autographe-edition-03/

Choco Crème: https://www.saq.com/en/14561909, https://www.duvernois.com/choco-creme/ and https://www.chocolatsfavoris.com/pages/Choco-Creme-SAQ-en

Dans L’Oeil du Dragon: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/tele/dans-l-oeil-du-dragon/site/complements/ficheequipe/2917/nicolas-duvernois-pur-vodka-entrepreneur

Romeo’s Street Art Museum: https://romeosgin.com/romeos-museum/

Romeo’s Gin: https://romeosgin.com/

Nobu-syle sushi: https://www.duvernois.com/choco-creme/

Dominic Brown of Chocolats Favoris and Dans L’oeil du dragon: https://ici.radio-canada.ca/tele/dans-l-oeil-du-dragon/site/complements/ficheequipe/2915/dominique-brown-dragon-chocolat

Some bean-to-bar chocolates made in Montreal and a cool shop that sells them:

Have you ever thought it'd be fun to import some wine? It's pretty easy to do for yourself, but not so easy to start a company. Wine clubs? Mixed cases? And now, virtual webinars? If you're scratcing your head, you're not alone. You're going to want to hear from Asma Ben Tanfous and Jean-Gabriel Vignault of Déserteur, a company known for its event planning and wine tasting events in Montreal. They've been there. Deserteur's focus is on the curation of and education surrounding artisanal wine. Now, they're about to start importing their own sakes and Grower Champagnes, meaning it's going to be even harder to get your hands on their coveted mixed cases as word spreads. Here's what you need to know.

The 5à7 Podcast is a series of happy hour conversations with cool people. They’re based around food, but guests go beyond chefs and restaurant owners to artists, entrepreneurs and other inspiring people you might have heard of. It takes a sneak peak into the homes and lives of interesting people and is based on conversations that revolve around food – with a nod to the Quebec happy hour, aka the 5à7. These are the stories that only seem to come out over a drink with a friend…or by Zoom during COVID-19.

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube or wherever you get your podcasts.

Here’s everything we mentioned on the podcast (mostly in the order we mentioned them):

Deserteur website: https://www.deserteur.vin/

Deserteur Instagram: https://www.deserteur.vin/blog/natural-sake-is-it-a-thing

Jean-Gabriel and Asma’s sake: The Junmai Ginjo made with omachi rice polished to 50%, from the Jikon brand out of Kiyasho Shuzo brewery, imported by Déserteur in Quebec and That’s Life Gourmet in BC, Alberta and Ontario

https://www.thatslifegourmet.com/

Amie’s sake: Dewanosato from Dewazakura Brewery, imported by Metropolitan Premium Wines and Sakes in Quebec and Ontario: https://www.saq.com/en/14286572 

Asma used to work with Bacchus 76: https://bacchus76.com 

Jean-Gabriel’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justedujus/?hl=en

The sake that made Jean-Gabriel fall in love with sake: Tamagawa Daijingo Namazake.

The Yamahai is imported by Bacchus76 in Quebec:

https://bacchus76.com/boutique/vins/tamagawa-yamahai-2017-cuvee-sauvage

Tokkuri: a traditional Japanese carafe for heating and serving sake

Sake Confidential by John Gaultner (I also have this on my bookshelf): https://www.amazon.com/Sake-Confidential-Beyond-Basics-Understanding/dp/1611720141

Where they do wine lists in Montreal: TimeOut Market, Roch Le Coq, La Capital Tacos and Café Pista

https://www.timeoutmarket.com/montreal/en/

http://pouletfritmontreal.com/

https://www.lacapitaltacos.ca/

https://cafepista.com/en

Gluten-free fried chicken from Rubie’s (courtesy of Miel restaurant): https://restaurantmiel.com/fr/test

Bonita’s: http://bonitas.ca/

The stream of the sake webinar with Mariko of That’s Life: Natural

Parés Baltà is a family owned winery in the Penedès Wine Region of Spain whose origins go back to 1790. Joan Cusine and his brother Josep are part of the 3rd generation working in the winery, which uses biodynamic methods and produces some of the most affordable and popular cava available in Quebec. But this year, there'll be a lot fewer pops of his family's sparkling wine at holiday and New Years Eve parties. So Joan and I get candid about how you market bubbles when people aren't celebrating (while we taste a few bottles of his family's recent and vintage collections). 

The 5à7 Podcast is a series of happy hour conversations with cool people. They’re based around food, but guests go beyond chefs and restaurant owners to artists, entrepreneurs and other inspiring people you might have heard of. It takes a sneak peak into the homes and lives of interesting people and is based on conversations that revolve around food – with a nod to the Quebec happy hour, aka the 5à7. These are the stories that only seem to come out over a drink with a friend…or by Zoom during COVID-19.

Here’s everything we mentioned on the podcast (mostly in the order we mentioned them):

Méthode champenoise: https://www.winespectator.com/glossary/index/id/GL_m%C3%A9thode_champenoise

The Laurentians, Quebec: https://www.laurentides.com/en

Parés Baltà’s most popular cava in Quebec: Cava Brut https://www.saq.com/en/10896365

What we tasted:

Parés Baltà Blanc de Pacs Penedès 2019:

https://www.saq.com/en/14195275

Still white wine. Grape varieties: Parellada 47 %, Macabeo 31 %, Xarel-lo 22 %

Sugar content: 4.7 g/L

Made with the same grapes as the Cava Brut, but they’re harvest two weeks later, meaning the sugar content is higher because that sugar isn’t used in the second fermentation (because there is no second fermentation) and the grapes are sweeter from the later harvest.

$16.45 at the SAQ in Quebec 

Parés Baltà Blanca Cusiné Penedès 2012: https://www.saq.com/en/12591021

Spanish Cava sparkling white wine. Grape varieties: Xarel-lo 78 %, Pinot noir 12 %, Chardonnay 10 %

Available to restaurants only at the moment at the SAQ Restaurateur

Sugar content: <1.2 g/L

$36.25 at the SAQ

Soil types: Parés Baltà also has a 100% limestone soil and 100% Xarel-lo still white wine called the Calcari: https://www.saq.com/en/11377225

And there’s a red wine I haven’t tried yet called the Mas Elena: https://www.saq.com/en/10985763

About phylloxera in European wine making: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-54122-0

About when sugar is added in Champagne: Zero dosage or non-dosé means there's no sugar added after disgorgement, which is after the second fermentation. But there has to be sugar of some kind added for the second fermentation to occur, because that's part of the Méthode champegnoise. Legally, the wine has to contain no sugar after the first fermentation, which means you need sugar to kick start that second fermentation. There isn’t a great natural wine work-=around, which is why you’ll see natural sparkling wines more often as pet nats, which use the méthode ancestrale that allows the f

With cookbooks flying off shelves (or out of warehouses) these days, it’s crazy to think that food photographers lost work during the pandemic, too. But as magazines stalled as advertising stopped, freelance photographers got nervous. But thankfully for food photographer Ariel Tarr, everyone has to eat. We talked cameras, lenses, styling, some of her most delicious shoots and an upcoming exhibit that peeks insides the homes of strangers, something she shot before COVID, but has an added attraction during these quieter days.

The 5à7 Podcast is a series of happy hour conversations with cool people. They’re based around food, but guests go beyond chefs and restaurant owners to artists, entrepreneurs and other inspiring people you might have heard of. It takes a sneak peak into the homes and lives of interesting people and is based on conversations that revolve around food – with a nod to the Quebec happy hour, aka the 5à7. These are the stories that only seem to come out over a drink with a friend…or by Zoom during COVID-19.

Here’s everything we mentioned on the podcast (mostly in the order we mentioned them):

Ariel’s website: http://www.arieltarr.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arieltarr/

Sage Mentorship program in Quebec: https://sagementorat.com/

Marie-Fleur St-Pierre’s cookbook that Ariel worked on: https://www.leslibraires.ca/livres/la-cuisine-espagnole-de-marie-fleur-marie-fleur-st-pierre-9782761949149.html

Amie Watson’s Quarantine Cooking e-cookbook: https://www.multiculturiosity.com/quarantine-cooking-e-book/

Cookbook that Ariel was working on that's recently been published: Rôtir by Jean-François Plante http://www.editions-homme.com/rotir/jean-francois-plante/livre/9782761954914

Other cookbooks Ariel has worked on: Le Livre des Piques-Niques by Marie-Joanne Boucher: https://www.renaud-bray.com/Livres_Produit.aspx?id=2189698&def=Livre+des+pique-niques(Le)%2cBOUCHER%2c+MARIE-JOANNE%2c9782924251461

Marie Fleur’s Tapas: http://www.editions-homme.com/tapas-marie-fleur/droits/9782761926706

CHEFMOM: In the Kitchen with Nadia Saputo: https://chefmom.ca/products/in-the-kitchen-with-nadia-cookbook

The cookbook behind Ariel in the video is “Plenty” by Yotam Ottolenghi: https://www.amazon.ca/Plenty-Vibrant-Recipes-Londons-Ottolenghi/dp/1452101248

Pizza Motta: where Ariel buys her pizza dough when she doesn’t make it herself: https://www.pizzamotta.com/

Ariel’s two cameras for shooting:

Canon 5D Mark IV https://www.canon.ca/en/product?name=EOS_5D_Mark_IV&category=/en/products/Cameras/DSLR-Cameras/Professional

And Canon EOS 5 mirrorless: https://www.canon.ca/en/product?name=EOS_R&category=/en/products/Cameras/Mirrorless-Cameras Lenses: 50mm, 100mm, 85mm, 35mm, 40mm

For close-up beauty s