Tag Archives: PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Festival

Mock Cherry Pie

Mock Cherry Pie
Mock Cherry Pie

I’m not sure of the origins of Mock Cherry Pie but my grandmother made a version of this delight when I was a small child.  Sometimes called cranberry pie, it’s not an altogether common pie (at least in my circles) these days but it is very tasty and colorful with its deep ruby red color. It lends itself well to a lattice top crust but is often made with a standard full top crust.

Mock Cherry Pie
Mock Cherry Pie

Either fresh or frozen cranberries can be used for this filling.  I like to coarsely chop up most of the cranberries for the filling but leave some whole to give texture to the filling. The idea behind chopping the cranberries in half is that it quickly releases the juice from the berries in the cooking process.  But, don’t get crazy and chop them too finely as the pie won’t have texture if the berries are ground up too fine. Adding the raisins to the filling enhances flavour complexity and also makes the filling more substantial.  The sweetness of the raisins counters the tartness of the cranberries.

The cranberries I am using in this filling came from Mikita Farms in Farmington, near Souris in the eastern part of Prince Edward Island. To my knowledge, this is the only cranberry producer that wet harvests the berries on the Island.  To see photos I took in 2014 of the wet harvesting of cranberries, click here.

Corralling the Cranberries
Corralling the Cranberries

Cranberries freeze really well so I keep a large bag of cranberries in my freezer for use year-round. This time of the year, many farm markets will have bags of these tasty berries available so don’t hesitate to pick up a bag and store them in the freezer for later use.

Fresh PEI Cranberries Charlottetown, PEI
Fresh PEI Cranberries

The key to making the filling for this pie is to get it thickened so that it does not run when the pie is cut.  It takes a little patience but is worth the effort.  It’s important to cool down the filling before putting it in the unbaked pie shell as, otherwise, it will break down the fat in the pastry causing it to be a soggy crust.  About 30-40 minutes of cooling time will be just right. Remember to stir the filling as it cools as this will help it to cool faster and also aid in its thickening.

Mock Cherry Pie
Mock Cherry Pie

This is a lovely rich dessert, perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas. A scoop of high quality vanilla ice cream goes particularly well with Mock Cherry Pie.  The wine I have selected to pair with this dessert for my Thanksgiving dinner this year comes from Benjamin Bridge Vineyards in Gaspereau Valley, Nova Scotia.  I discovered this wine through the 2015 PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Festival for which Benjamin Bridge was this year’s wine sponsor.  Benjamin Bridge wines were served at the signature culinary events during the month-long festival in September.  My wine selection is Nova 7. This is the perfect wine to pair with this dessert because it has a hint of sweetness to compliment the tartness of cranberries and a beautiful pale blush color. I think I will seriously have to go on a field trip and pay this winery a visit!

Mock Cherry Pie Paired with Benjamin Bridge's Nova 7 Wine
Mock Cherry Pie Paired with Benjamin Bridge’s Nova 7 Wine
For my pastry recipe, tips, and hints on making pie pastry, click here.

Mock Cherry Pie

Ingredients:

Pastry for 9” double pie crust

2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup sultana raisins
½ cup boiling water

1 cup sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
Pinch salt
1/3 cup cold water

1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp almond flavouring
1 tbsp Cointreau
1 tsp finely grated orange rind
1 tbsp butter

Method:

Chop 1 1/3 cups cranberries in half. Leave remaining 2/3 cup whole.

In medium-sized saucepan, combine the cranberries, raisins, and boiling water. Cook over high heat to the boiling point. Reduce heat to medium and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In small bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch with 1/3 cup cold water. Whisk until smooth. Add 1-2 tbsp of the hot mixture to temper the sugar-cornstarch mixture (don’t worry if a few cranberries get scooped up, too) and pour it into the hot cranberry-raisin mixture. Stir well.

Cook over medium heat, stirring often to prevent scorching, until thickened – about 11-13 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, almond flavouring, Cointreau, grated orange rind, and butter. Stir well. Let cool for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare pastry for bottom crust and roll to desired thickness. Transfer pastry to a greased 9” pie plate. Trim pastry.

Pour cooled filling into crust.

Roll out pastry for top crust. If desired, cut into strips for lattice top.

Dampen edges of bottom pie crust.

Place top crust (or, alternatively, lattice strips) over filling, gently pressing the outside edges to seal to bottom crust.

Using kitchen shears, trim excess pastry.

Crimp pastry edges or press together with the tines of a fork. If using complete top crust, cut vents in pastry to allow steam to escape as the pie cooks (omit this step if using a lattice top since there are obviously already lots of spaces for the steam to escape).

Place pie plate on a rimmed baking sheet and bake in the lower third of the oven for 10 minutes at 400° then reduce heat to 375° and bake for 45-50 minutes longer or until the crust is lightly browned and juices start to bubble from the filling.

Transfer pie to a wire rack and let cool completely before cutting and serving.

Yield: 8 servings

Mock Cherry Pie

Yield: 1 - 9" pie, apx. 8 servings

A rich and flavourful pie that combines cranberries and raisins with a hint of orange flavour.

Ingredients

  • Pastry for 9” double pie crust
  • 2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen
  • 1 cup sultana raisins
  • ½ cup boiling water
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 tbsp cornstarch
  • Pinch salt
  • 1/3 cup cold water
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • ½ tsp almond flavouring
  • 1 tbsp Cointreau
  • 1 tsp finely grated orange rind
  • 1 tbsp butter

Instructions

  1. Chop 1 1/3 cups cranberries in half. Leave remaining 2/3 cup whole.
  2. In medium-sized saucepan, combine the cranberries, raisins, and boiling water. Cook over high heat to the boiling point. Reduce heat to medium and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. In small bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch with 1/3 cup cold water. Whisk until smooth. Add 1-2 tbsp of the hot mixture to temper the sugar-cornstarch mixture and pour it into the hot cranberry-raisin mixture. Stir well. Cook over medium heat, stirring often to prevent scorching, until thickened – about 11-13 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, almond flavouring, Cointreau, grated orange rind, and butter. Stir well. Let cool for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  4. Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare pastry for bottom crust and roll to desired thickness. Transfer pastry to a greased 9” pie plate. Trim pastry. Pour cooled filling into crust.
  5. Roll out pastry for top crust. If desired, cut into strips for lattice top. Dampen edges of bottom pie crust and place top crust (or, alternatively, lattice strips) over filling, gently pressing the outside edges to seal to bottom crust. Trim excess pastry. Crimp pastry edges or press together with the tines of a fork. If using complete top crust, cut vents in pastry to allow steam to escape as the pie cooks (omit this step if using a lattice top since there are obviously already lots of spaces for the steam to escape).
  6. Place pie plate on a rimmed baking sheet and bake in the lower third of the oven for 10 minutes at 400° then reduce heat to 375° and bake for 45-50 minutes longer or until the crust is lightly browned and juices start to bubble from the filling.
  7. Transfer pie to a wire rack and let cool completely before cutting and serving.
  8. [Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen]
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“Chef on Board” – A Divinely Decadent PEI Fall Flavours Signature Event

The evening of Saturday, September 26, 2015, could not have had better weather for a short sunset sail out of Wood Islands, PEI, along the Northumberland Strait. When great PEI food is featured on a sail and dine dinner hosted by celebrity chefs Anna and Michael Olson, you just know it’s going to be an awesome event and this evening delivered on all fronts.

The venue was the mv Confederation which normally operates as a ferry boat between Wood Islands, PEI, and Caribou, Nova Scotia.  However, on this Saturday evening, the ship was transformed into an elegant floating dining hall. Staging a PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Event aboard one of the ferry boats is very appropriate given the significance of the ferries to Island life. Before the Confederation Bridge was built and opened to traffic in 1997, the ferry service (there were two – one in Borden-Carleton and the other in Wood Islands) was the only way on or off Prince Edward Island. While the Borden-Carleton to Tormentine, New Brunswick ferry service no longer operates, the ferry service between Wood Islands, PEI, and Caribou, NS, remains in operation.

MV Confederation
MV Confederation

Greeting guests on the pier as they arrived for dinner were celebrity chef hosts, Anna and Michael Olson.

Chefs Anna and Michael Olsen
Chefs Anna and Michael Olson

One of the things I like most about PEI Fall Flavours events is when the chef(s) interact with guests and this couple was very interactive and visible throughout the entire evening.

Chef Anna Olson giving a few hints of the evening's fare
Chef Anna Olson giving a few hints of the evening’s fare

Upon entering the ship, the lively strains of the musical talents of Mark Haines and Brad Fremlin greeted guests.

Mark Haines (violin) and Brad Fremlin (keyboard)
Mark Haines (violin) and Brad Fremlin (keyboard)

The evening began with wine and hors d’oeuvres  on the passenger deck.

Brendan MacNeill from Benjamin Bridge Winery in Nova Scotia (this year’s Festival wine sponsor) greeted each guest with a glass of wine.

Brendan MacNeill, Benjamin Bridge Winery

Check out these tasty sausage and gouda sliders on spent grains buns!

PEI Oysters on the half shell with raspberry mignonette are always a hit!

PEI Oysters
PEI Oysters

Lovers of PEI mussels were in for a real treat with these “mussel shooters” which were marinated mussels served with crispy potato bits.

"Mussel Shooters"
“Mussel Shooters”

These delicate smoked salmon crepe mini tortes melted in the mouth!

Smoked Salmon Crepe Mini Tortes
Smoked Salmon Crepe Mini Tortes

And, these piping hot mini apple cheddar turnovers with honey mustard sauce added a mix of sweet and savory flavours.

Rounding out the hors d’oeuvres was a cheese table compliments of the Dairy Farmers of Canada.

The lively musicians moved upstairs to entertain guests while they enjoyed hors d’oeuvres.

Mark Haines
Mark Haines
Brad Fremlin
Brad Fremlin

As guests sampled the hors d’oeuvres, the mv Confederation left on a short sail of the Northumberland Strait, past iconic lighthouses.

Wood Islands, PEI Lighthouses
Wood Islands, PEI Lighthouses

The evening light changed quickly.  Yes, our cliffs really are this ruddy red color on PEI!

How stunning was this evening sky! This was the view from the top deck of the mv Confederation (unfiltered and non-retouched).

And, as the shades of the evening sky started to fade away, and the mv Confederation made its way back to port, thoughts turned to the dinner that awaited guests.

Curious to know how a ferry boat could be turned into a stunning dining hall or how food for a large number of guests could be prepared on board?

Enter a mobile kitchen and a team of chefs and professionally-trained wait staff from the Culinary Institute of Canada, part of Holland College in Charlottetown, PEI.  I have been at events this group has catered to before and they are #1, hands down.  I cannot even begin to imagine the level of organization and planning that would have been put in to this dinner which was very capably and efficiently executed.

I took a couple of quick photos from a distance of the mobile kitchen that had been brought on board for the event and the culinary team hard at work behind the scenes.

This food prep center was at one end of the car deck on the mv Confederation where, just mere hours before, autos would have been offloading having crossed the Northumberland Strait.

The main part of the car deck on the boat was transformed into this festive venue.

Note that this is just a small part of the dining area.

Here’s a closer look at the elegantly-set tables, resplendent in their fall rust-colored theme.

Now, for the three-course meal.  Each course was served with wine pairings from Benjamin Bridge Winery.

Fresh rolls and jars of homemade bread and butter pickles and chow were on each table. The appetizer consisted of warm lobster fricassee and butter-poached claw on garlic mashed potatoes cozied up with a whiskey butter sauce and garnished with baby cress.

This was beyond decadent!

The main course consisted of “Sydney St. Premium Stout” beer-braised PEI beef short rib with cheddar crumble accompanied by a fluffy dumpling and roasted root vegetables.

And, then of course, the pièce de résistance – Chef Anna’s warm sticky toffee pudding topped with a pumpkin spice caramel and pumpkin seed praline! Can you say ‘melt in your mouth’?

Throughout the dinner, entertainment was provided by Irish Mythen.

Irish Mythen
Irish Mythen

Anyone for Bingo? Our Bingo callers, Chefs Anna and Michael, engaged everyone in a lively game of PEI Bingo in between the main and dessert courses.

This was a first class event all the way and exhibited the “WOW” factor.  Congratulations to the organizers, chefs, wait staff, and entertainers for yet again another fine PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Festival event.

If you have never been to one of these Festival events, I highly recommend them.  They are very well done and are a great way to sample premier Island foods presented in creative ways.

For more information on the PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Festival and information on tickets and upcoming culinary events, visit their website.

To read stories about other Fall Flavours Culinary Events I have attended, click on these links:

PEI Shellfish Festival (2012):
Farm Day in the City (2012):
Savour Victoria (2012):
Toes, Taps, and Taters (2013)
Lobster Party on the Beach (2013)
Applelicious (2013)

The Great Island Grilled Cheese Challenge (2013)
Feast of the Fathers (2014)
Lamb Luau at Crowbush Cove (2014)

Feast and Frolic Dinner (PEI Int’l Shellfish Festival) (2014)

Beef and Blues (2014)

A Taste of New Glasgow (2015)

Beef ‘n Blues (2015)

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“Taste of New Glasgow”, A PEI Fall Flavours Signature Culinary Event

New to the 2015 roster of the Prince Edward Island Fall Flavours Culinary Festival  was the “Taste of New Glasgow” event. New Glasgow is a small rural community in the central part of the province. Despite its small size, it has a number of fine restaurants, chefs, and food producers and they brought their A-game to ensure festival goers had a fine “Taste of New Glasgow”, despite the challenges that the weather presented.

September 11th dawned with gray skies that, by late afternoon, resulted in a torrential downpour for the 2015 Festival kick-off event.

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Organizers had planned to hold the event outside in the Gardens of Hope at the Prince Edward Island Preserve Company in New Glasgow, PEI. However, Mother Nature had other ideas.

An alternative plan of action was implemented and a huge tent was erected in the parking lot of the Prince Edward Island Preserve Company and, instead of outdoor open firepits as originally planned, chefs improvised and used barbeques and other cooking appliances adjacent to the big tent.

While the rain certainly changed location plans, it did not dampen the enthusiasm of event goers or the participating chefs but umbrellas and rain gear were certainly the order of the day.

This event was classed as a signature festival event meaning it was hosted by a celebrity chef who in this case was PEI’s own Chef Michael Smith.

Chef Michael Smith, Celebrity Chef Host at "Taste of New Glasgow", A PEI Fall Flavours Signature Culinary Event
Chef Michael Smith, Celebrity Chef Host at “Taste of New Glasgow”, A PEI Fall Flavours Signature Culinary Event

“Taste of New Glasgow” was a roaming feast which meant that several participating local restaurants/chefs/food producers each had a station where they served food to patrons who made their way, at their leisure, around the tent to sample the offerings. Participating restaurants/chefs/food producers were Prince Edward Island Preserve Company, Glasgow Glen Farm, New Glasgow Lobster Suppers, The Mill in New Glasgow, The Culinary Institute of Canada, Larkin Brothers, and Carr’s Oyster Bar. In addition, there were four Beverage Stations featuring local beers and wines – Barnone Brewery, Upstreet Craft Brewing, Prince Edward Island Brewing Co., and Matos Winery.

To give you a flavour of the feast, here’s a sampling of what was on the menu:

New Glasgow Lobster Suppers served up lobster salad on their famous homemade rolls alongside steamed PEI mussels and, for dessert, offered lemon meringue tarts reminiscent of their mile high lemon meringue pie.


The Mill in New Glasgow offered Larkin Brothers chicken with rhubarb cranberry chutney and a blueberry mousse for dessert.

Carrs Oyster Bar hosted an oyster station and also offered lots of steamed bar clams, too.

Glasgow Glen Farm had lots of breads and spreads along with a cheese fondue. They also served Florrie’s Pride Goat Cheese Cake with smoked tomato aioli, garden cherry and tomato salad, all in a small mason jar. Their dessert offering was a blackberry and honey tart with bee pollen and chokecherry syrup.

Location host, the Prince Edward Island Preserve Company, served spice-encrusted smoked pork ribs and, for dessert, offered a popular ginger cookie sandwich which was filled with homemade vanilla bean ice cream.


The Culinary Institute of Canada offered a charcoal beef brisket served with roasted onion aioli on a milk bun while Larkin Brothers provided grilled turkey sausage.


Chef Michael Smith and his crew from his new restaurant, “Fireworks”, at the Inn at Bay Fortune served up wood-fired crusted Island halibut from Victoria-by-the-Sea.

Chef Michael had a portable wood-fired oven which he used to cook the halibut near his serving station.

The halibut was accompanied by saffron tomato broth and sea rocket slaw (and, on yes, the miniature PEI flag, of course!).

Ever personable and engaging, Chef Michael had a very long line up all evening at his station as foodie fans arrived with the chef’s cookbooks in hand ready for autographing as they picked up a sample of the halibut.

But, make no mistake about it, the master was still overseeing the preparation and presentation of the halibut.

A good PEI party includes two things:  Good food and entertainment.

The event was also an occasion for a local food producer to create awareness with people about the source of some of the food they enjoyed during the evening.  Florrie Sanderson from Island Hill Farm in Hampshire, PEI, raises a herd of some 60 goats and milks 10 goats.

Florrie Sanderson and “Bae”

Florrie sells her goat milk to Chef Jeff McCourt of Glasgow Glen Farm who uses it to make cheese, some of which was used in a feature dish at the Glasgow Glen Farm station.

Florrie brought along one of her goats, “Bae”, who quickly became a celebrity and photo star throughout the evening. “Bae” drew many smiles and chuckles throughout the evening and she was exceptionally well-behaved!

"Bae"
“Bae”

So, this event featured many PEI flavours – from both the rich PEI soil and the waters that surround our Island. One of the advantages of a roaming feast event is that you get to sample food prepared by different chefs, restaurants, and local food producers all in one venue. Often, it is an occasion to try foods and beverages you may not have tried before so it’s an opportunity to sample something new or, alternatively, perhaps it’s a familiar food but prepared in a new and innovative way.

For more information on the PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Festival and information on tickets and upcoming culinary events, visit their website.

To read stories about other Fall Flavours Culinary Events I have attended, click on these links:

PEI Shellfish Festival (2012):
Farm Day in the City (2012):
Savour Victoria (2012):
Toes, Taps, and Taters (2013)
Lobster Party on the Beach (2013)
Applelicious (2013)

The Great Island Grilled Cheese Challenge (2013)
Feast of the Fathers (2014)
Lamb Luau at Crowbush Cove (2014)

Feast and Frolic Dinner (PEI Int’l Shellfish Festival) (2014)

Beef and Blues (2014)

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A Visit to Matos Winery & Distillery in St. Catherines, Prince Edward Island

Matos Winery & Distillery, St. Catherines, Prince Edward Island

The farmers on PEI are busy with their various harvests these days and taking full advantage of the great weather we have been having.  I stopped by Matos Winery in St. Catherines, PEI, last Wednesday as they were picking the grapes.  I had visited the winery in early September and toured the vineyards but delayed posting the story until harvest time because I wanted to visit the winery when the grapes were being picked and processed.

When I first met Jim and Heather Matos on an early September Saturday afternoon, Jim had just finished the painstaking work of netting all the grapevines in an effort to keep the birds at bay.  Despite Jim’s best efforts and the addition of noise maker squawkers, the birds did pose a problem this fall as they figured out a way to still get at the grapes despite the netting.  This meant a loss of some of the grape crop.

Netting the Grapes To Protect Against the Birds

Matos is a new winery in its second year having opened for business on June 24, 2011.  The Matos’ bought the St. Catherines property near Cornwall and prepared the soil in 2006.  They then did their first vine planting in 2007 followed by three years of labour-intensive work that culminated in their first grape harvest in October, 2010.

I asked Heather what brought them to PEI to open their winery as the Island is not known as a wine-making region (we currently have only three wineries operating on the Island). She tells me they came to PEI on a holiday in 2004 and fell in love with the Island.  When they decided to open a winery, they looked at locations as far away as Europe and the United States but were still drawn back to PEI.  In fact, after hearing about the harsh, cold winters (often with a lot of snow) on the Island, Jim came to PEI for a visit in the dead of winter to see if the conditions would be conducive to grape-growing.  Finding them suitable, the couple settled on a property in St. Catherines that had a certain slope, angle, and close proximity to a waterway – all conditions Jim was looking for in a location for a vineyard.  Jim says grapes require good sandy soil and they do well in hot, dry summer conditions like we had in 2012.

Matos Vineyard, St. Catherines, PEI

The vineyard itself covers 11 acres and is home to 16,000 grapevines imported from France.  The species of grapevines are vitis vinifera which means they are not as hardy as hybrid vines.  Vinifera vines are more susceptible to disease and require more care but Jim maintains they produce a better quality of wine than hybrids.

Two varieties of grapes are grown in the vineyard – Chardonnay and Gamay.

Grapes in the Matos Winery Vineyard

From these grapes, Matos produces five kinds of wine – Chardonnay, Gamay-Noir, Rosé, Wildberry Gamay, and Strawberry Chardonnay.  The Matos tell me they produced approximately 18,000 bottles of wine last year.

Jim is no stranger to winemaking.  He comes from a long history of vintners.  His family had a vineyard and made wine in the Acores, Portugal.  After coming to Canada, the Matos ran a U-brew business importing wine-making supplies in Ontario for 20 years before deciding to start their own winery.

Walk with Jim through the precise, neat, and meticulously cared for rows of grapevines in the vineyard and it is easy to see and hear his passion for winemaking and dedication to high quality.  A perfectionist, he is more concerned about producing quality products versus quantity.  The Matos also have a keen eye for different products so much so that they are also distilling a couple of unique spirits, too.  Using the skins of the grapes left over from winemaking, Matos is producing Bagaço which is a Portuguese version of Italian Grappa, sometimes referred to as moonshine.  They are also producing Anisette, a licorice-flavoured liqueur that is a popular drink in France.

Bagaço and Anisette Distilled at Matos Winery and Distillery

On a beautiful warm October 17th, a small crew was assembled in the vineyard and busy hand-picking the clusters of grapes.

Harvesting the Grapes at Matos Winery, St. Catherines, PEI

Large blue bins of the grapes were seen throughout the vineyard before being gathered up by the tractor and trailer moving carefully amongst the rows of carefully-tended vines.

Grape Harvest at Matos Winery, St. Catherines, PEI

 

Harvesting the Grapes

 

Arriving at the Winery with a Load of Grapes for Processing

After transport to the winery, the grapes were put through the grape crusher destemmer, a machine that uses an auger to remove and discard the stems from the grapes then drops the fruit into the crusher where the grapes are crushed.

Destemming and Crushing the Grapes

Using a peristaltic pump, the crushed fruit is then pumped through a hose into a membrane bladder press which extracts the juice but doesn’t harm the seeds or break the skins of the grapes.

Membrane Bladder Press – Pressing out the Juice from the Grapes

The juice is then transported via hose into the large unoaked stainless steel fermentation tanks and the fermentation process starts with Jim controlling the temperature in the tanks and monitoring the sugar content and status and progress of the fermentation.

Stainless Steel Fermentation Tanks

Jim tells me the white wine will ferment for 14 days and the red for 7 days but the entire processing and filtering of his white wines take 4-5 months before they are ready for bottling and the red wines take about 6-8 months.

Processing the Grapes

Wine-making is a lengthy process that takes a lot of time, patience, labour, and attention to detail and that’s only after all the painstaking pampering and pruning that has gone into the growing and care of the grapevines and grapes.

Processing Grapes to Extract the Grape Juice

 

Bottles of Wine Ready for Shipping

Matos wines are fine quality products.  After only one year in production, Matos’ Gamay-Noir won the prestigious silver medal at the 2011 Canadian Wine Awards, chosen second from among 1117 entries.  Most recently, in October 2012, the Gamay-Noir won bronze at the 2012 Canadian Wine Awards, ranking third out of 1260 entries.  Matos Winery was competing with wineries from all across Canada, including the well-known Canadian wine-producing regions of Niagara, ON, and several in BC.  That’s not only impressive but a validation of the high quality product the winery is producing in its young days.

Matos’ Gamay-Noir Wine Wins Silver Medal at 2011 Canadian Wine Awards

The Matos wines were also recently featured at the “Savour Victoria” event which was part of the PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Festival (see my blog entry of October 4, 2012, on this event).

Matos’ Chardonnay is a very versatile wine that pairs well with chicken, seafood like PEI lobster, pastas with cream sauces, or vegetarian dishes.  The Gamay-Noir goes well with steak and tomato-based dishes, including pizza.  The Rosé is a lovely compliment to either turkey or chicken and the Wildberry pairs particularly well with dark chocolate.

Matos Chardonnay with Dinner

The Matos wines are competitively priced between $14.95 – $16.95 and are sold onsite in the winery’s gift shop, in Island liquor stores, and are served in many PEI restaurants.

Matos Winery Gift Shop and Taste-Testing Bar

Tours and wine-tasting are available at the winery which is located at 3156 West River Road, St. Catherines PE, C0A 1H0.  Cost is $5.00 per person.  In the summer months, the winery gift shop is open seven days a week.  During the fall months, the gift shop is open on Saturdays from 10am-5pm and Sundays 1pm-5pm (Oct – Dec).

For more information on Matos Wines, visit their website at http://matoswinery.com/ or call the winery at 1-902-675-WINE (9463).

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