Lucie Arseneau, her husband Jeremy, and Paul Jomphe make and sell three delicious cheeses at Fromagerie du Pied-de-Vent (address: 149 Chemin de la Pointe-Basse, Havre-aux-Maisons). The cheese factory and store are open year-round.
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| Lucie Arseneau holds Pied-de-Vent cheese wheel. |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
Pied-de-Vent is a soft brie-like raw milk cheese. The surface-ripened cheese has an addictive nutty flavor.
The milk comes from a herd of Canadian cows, a heritage breed, raised by Lucie and Jeremy's son, Dominic. La Ferme Arseneau (address: 326 Chemin de la Pointe-Basse) raises calves from these milk cows.
The Arseneau family feeds them barley and spent grains from the A l'abri de la Tempete microbrewery, and sells Le Veau des Nathael to Magdalen Islands stores and restaurants.
Tomme des Desmoiselles cheese
Pied-de-Vent cheese factory also makes Tomme des Desmoiselles, a firm raw milk cheese with a washed rind. Both cheeses are available only in Les Iles de la Madeleine and select locations in Quebec.
Le Meuleron, a pasteurized cheddar cheese, is only available in the Magdalen Islands. A refrigerated display case also contains bottles of thick fresh cream (creme fraiche des Iles) and Caesar salad dressing, made with Pied-de-Vent cheese and honey.
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| Shopping for cheese at the factory |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
Visitors can watch cheese-making in the factory, behind windows. After tasting free samples, our culinary tour group bought several wheels and wedges of Pied-de-Vent cheeses.
Cheese wrappers display the Pied-de-Vent logo, which depicts rays of sun coming from the sky and black Canadian cows grazing on pesticide-free grass below.
Cooking with Pied-de-Vent cheeses
We enjoyed Pied-de-Vent cheeses prepared many ways. Evangeline Gaudet, from the Domaine du Vieux Couvent restaurant, served us tasty melted Pied-de-Vent toasts with a Miel en Mer island honey garnish. Chef Evangeline made a delicious Tomme des Desmoiselles sauce for chicken.
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| Carpaccio of island veal with organic sprouts and Tomme des Demoiselles cheese made by Johanne Vigneault |
| Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll |
La Table des Roy restaurant chef, Johanne Vigneault, made a scrumptious local veal carpaccio, topped with Tomme des Demoiselles and organic sprouts.
The shop at the Pied-de-Vent cheese factory also sells other Iles de la Madeleine gourmet foods, including Miel en Mer honey, rosehip butter and syrup, Pied-de-Vent gateaux (cakes) and maple caramel.
TRAVEL INFORMATION
Iles de la Madeleine Tourist Office: www.tourismeilesdelamadeleine.com
Le Quebec Maritime Tourist Office: www.quebecmaritime.ca
Tourism Quebec: www.bonjourquebec.com
