by Andrew Morrison | I’m leaving early for Kelowna and the Canadian Culinary Championships (#CCC) this afternoon. It is Canada’s biggest cooking competition. It includes three bouts between the country’s best chefs over two gruelling days. We’ll of course be publishing during this time (and plenty), but I wanted to invite readers to follow along with the #CCC action on Scout’s social media accounts – Twitter, Instagram, Facebook – which I’ll be feeding quite a bit with photos and updates. For the past five years, wine guru Sid Cross and I have shared the honour of being the Senior Judges representing BC at the annual competition. I’ve also enjoyed being the National Referee (I don’t get a whip or a whistle, but they did give me a gold toothpick once, for real).

All told, we get to see and taste some pretty outstanding plates of superness, not to mention have quite a good time. If you’re really into food porn and fetishize the hell out of competitions, be sure to keep abreast so that you might salivate profusely over all the deliciousness that comes our way in relatively real time.

Here are the competitors. Remember that each of the following defeated 10 other regional heavyweights to get this far…

Winnipeg | Michael Dacquisto – WOW Hospitality
Montreal | Jean-Philippe St-Denis – Kitchen Galerie Poisson
Calgary | Michael Dekker – Rouge
Edmonton | Jan Trittenbach – Packrat Louie
Vancouver | Rob Feenie – Cactus Club
Saskatoon | Anthony McCarthy – Saskatoon Club
Toronto | Jonathan Gushue – Langdon Hall Country House Hotel & Spa
Ottawa | Marc Lepine – Atelier
St. John’s | Mike Barsky – Bacalao

Past champions…

2011
GOLD: Martin Juneau of Newtown in Montreal
SILVER: Jeremy Charles of Raymonds in St. John’s
BRONZE: Robert Clark of C Restaurant in Vancouver

2009
GOLD Mathieu Cloutier – Kitchen Gallerie, Montréal
SILVER David Lee – Nota Bene
BRONZE Matthew Carmichael – Restaurant 18

2008
GOLD Hayato Okamitsu – Catch Restaurant, Calgary
SILVER Frank Pabst – Blue Water Café
BRONZE Deff Haupt – Le Renoir

2007
GOLD Melissa Craig – The Bearfoot Bistro, Whistler
SILVER Anthony Walsh – Canoe
BRONZE Roland Ménard – Manior Hovey

2006
GOLD Makoto Ono – Gluttons Bistro, Winnipeg
SILVER Michael Blackie – Perspectives Restaurant
BRONZE Mark McEwan – Bymark

The #CCC actually starts each autumn, as each major city across the nation puts their top toques through a local meat grinder called Gold Medal Plates. Net proceeds are given to the Canadian Olympic Foundation, which supports athletes and high performance programs such as Own the Podium. To date, over $5 million has been raised.

In Vancouver, beating out Ensemble’s Dale Mackay (again) and Bao Bei’s Joel Watanabe this year was the grand maestro, Rob Feenie of the Cactus Club. This is Feenie’s second time to the national dance, and I reckon he’s mighty keen to take home the elusive gold. For an explainer as to how the whole shebang works, here’s a video diary I shot from a few years back at the competition in Banff, when Vancouver was being represented by Frank Pabst of Yaletown’s Blue Water Cafe. As you can see, winning ain’t easy, and Montreal’s been on a roll…

Months of efforts end on Saturday night. If you haven’t purchased tickets, our Twitter is where you’ll hear which chef won bronze, silver and gold (in that order) first, so keep in touch.

Thai hot licks with Main St. Pilsener kicks | $12 | 219 Union Street | 604-568-3230 | TheUnionBar.ca

MORE AWESOME THINGS WE ATE

Le Viewux Pin is located at 34070-73th Street outside Oliver, BC | 250-498-8388 | levieuxpin.ca

The GOODS from Le Vieux Pin

Vancouver, BC | Le Vieux Pin General Manager Rasoul Salehi recently returned from another very successful trip to Switzerland. The winery has been working with Boucherville ever since the boutique Zurich based importer and retailer of fine wines discovered Le Vieux Pin during the Vancouver Winter Olympic games. “We’re delighted to work with Boucherville – they share our passion for wines and they’re a great partner for us.” says Salehi.

For several years Le Vieux Pin has felt that wineries in BC need to expand their market beyond BC’s borders. “The export market is very important to us since it helps us diversify our sales channels. We’re thankful to Canadians for noticing us and supporting us and at the same time we love sharing our craft with fellow wine lovers around the world.”

This year’s week-long trip kicked off with a tasting at the Plaza Klub in Zurich where Le Vieux Pin was featured along with absolute legendary estates from around the world such as Piedmont’s Voerzio, Germany’s J. J. Prum, France’s Chateau St. Cosme and Champagne Bollinger among many others.

Following the grand tasting, Rasoul toured Zurich with a very memorable lunch at Lindenhofkeller securing another order for the 2008 Equinoxe Merlot the winery will release this spring. Working with Boucherville ensures that Le Vieux Pin will be placed in many of the best restaurants in Switzerland. A few photos from the trip and details about the Okanagan winery after the jump…

Keep an eye out in the next couple months for Le Vieux Pin’s spring releases by joining their newsletter.

DETAILS

34070-73th Street Oliver, BC
Phone: 250-498-8388 | Fax: 250-498-8399
Email: info@levieuxpin.ca
Web: www.levieuxpin.ca

Sign up for our Email Newsletter

Gallery

The People Who Make It Happen

Wine Maker: Severine Pinte

About Le Vieux Pin

The best wines come from the best vineyard sites; this is “terroir.” Fortunately for us (and you!), the Okanagan Valley happens to be one of the best wine regions anywhere with its unique climate and variety of latitudes and soils. There is a perceptible difference in temperature and greenery around the valley, from the lushness of the north to the sage ridden desert in the South. According to WineBC, the area between Oliver and Osoyoos is the northernmost tip of the northernmost desert in the world; the Sonora Desert. The summers are very hot; it is hotter in July and August than Napa Valley, but the evenings are markedly cooler. Osoyoos has 1450 growing degree days and a mere eight inches of average annual rainfall (WineBC.com). Low rainfall, high heat units and a dry environment allow us to farm in a sustainable manner with all the respect the land deserves.

Our vineyard management strategy is based on Old World techniques with a dusting of New World modernism added on top. Our focus is to make wine that is representative of its terroir. Non-interventionist and low-input viticulture is the method we use to get there. Deficit irrigation, on-site composting, high-density plantings and extremely low yields allow the vines to show us who they really are, deep down to their roots.

We have very distinct soil composition between our vineyards: some sites are very high in white silica sand while others are quite gravelly and rocky. Some sites show traces of schist and shale deposited by volcanic activities in the area. Along with our sister winery Lastella we own and cultivate 50 acres of vineyards scattered throughout the South Okanagan. We also source some grapes from a select group of growers who have certified organic vineyards or grow with sustainability in mind.

Passion, friendship, dedication and commitment are the recipe for our success.

Please visit the winery when you visit the Okanagan and join our email newsletter for the latest news from wine country. Visit us online at www.levieuxpin.ca on Facebook at www.facebook.com/levieuxpin and twitter at twitter.com/levieuxpin.

Á votre santé!

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As seen over McLean Park a few days ago when last night’s amazeballs full moon was ripening.

EVERYTHING SEEN IN VANCOUVER

Chambar is located at 562 Beatty St. in Vancouver's Crosstown neighbourhood | 604-879-7119 | www.chambar.com

The GOODS from Chambar

Vancouver, BC | Vodka, what is it good for? Join Belvedere Vodka Ambassador Claire Smith, Chambar chef Nico Schuermans and Tales of the Cocktail frontrunner Jacob Sweetapple for a look into the past and present of this much-maligned spirit. This “do-or-die” dinner discussion will feature five courses and multiple pairings from an exclusive Belvedere library. Decide whether Poland’s most notable export should be labelled the comeback kid or be denoted as done. Details after the jump…

Event info: Monday, February 13th from 7pm – 10pm. 25 seats are available at $110/person (includes taxes and gratuity). Tickets are available via www.chambar.com or by phoning the restaurant directly at: 604-879-7119.

MENU & PAIRINGS
VODKA IS DEAD…LONG LIVE BELVEDERE!

1ST COURSE ?Polish Caviar Service ?paired with? Belvedere Unfiltered

2ND COURSE? Jalapeno drunken spot prawn?paired with?‘The Cosmo’ – 3 Ways:?The Good (FRESH)/The Clever Cosmo? Belvedere Pink Grapefruit Sous Vide Cosmopolitan with fresh cranberries and Moet nectar syrup;?The Bad Boy (CLASSIC)/The Sex & The City? Belvedere Citrus shaken with cranberry juice and triple sec;?The Ugly (MODERN)/The Sherbet Cosmo ?Belvedere Citrus & Belvedere Orange with Cosmopolitan Sherbet

3RD COURSE? Charred venison carpaccio with white soy?paired with?The Bloody Mary: An Evolution:?The Good (FIRST STEP)?Black pepper distillate – the base to Belvedere Bloody Mary, served chilled;?The Bad Boy (FINAL BLEND)?Introducing Belvedere Bloody Mary, chilled with a side serve of Bloody Mary mix; The Ugly (REINTERPRETATION)?The Bloody Maria? Belvedere Bloody Mary shaken with pineapple juice, hot smoked paprika and orange bitters.

4TH COURSE? Chambar Ale braised short ribs?paired with?‘Beer and Shots’?The Good (OLD SKOOL)?Belvedere Pure and Kvass Rye soda, Dankowskie Cracker; The Bad Boy (NEW SKOOL)?Belvedere Black Raspberry chaser with Raspberry Rye beer;?The Ugly (GRADUATION)?‘Cerveza Perparada’?Belvedere Pink Grapefruit, rye beer and a side serve of Campari, ginger beer and lemon.

5TH COURSE? Café Belge?paired with?The White Russian:?The Good (THE DUDE)?Belvedere Vodka, Momofuku Cereal Milk and homemade coffee syrup;?The Bad Boy (THE DUDETTE)?Classic White Russian Shot;?The Ugly (THE LABOWSKI)?White Russian Milk Bottles Petit Fours.

Details

562 Beatty St, Vancouver, BC | V6B 2L3 | MAP
Tel: 604-879-7119 | Fax: 604-879-7118
Web: www.chambar.com
Email: info@chambar.com
Dinner: 7 nights from 5:30PM
Private events upon request

Gallery

Team

Owners: Nico and Karri Schuermans
Executive Chef: Nico Schuermans
General Manager: Justin Tisdall

About Chambar

Chambar offers a unique pairing of Belgian and North African influences. Wherever possible, organic and local ingredients are combined to create fantastic food that reflects the seasons. The menu is a diverse offering of appetizers, moule frites, and main courses of lamb, duck, and venison. A variety of Belgian beers are also available, and can be paired with any item on the menu. At the bar, an award winning cocktail list boasts an extensive array of infused spirits and fresh local fruit. The long paralam bar, which has been inlaid with walnut and tinted resin, is perfect place to enjoy a pre-dinner dinner drink or to catch up with old friends. In the dining room blood red booths are high enough to allow for privacy, and maybe just a hint of debauchery, while Italian designed chairs and an eclectic and rotating art collection complement Chambar’s heritage surroundings beautifully.

Awards

Vancouver Magazine – 2005 Best New Fine Dining
Vancouver Magazine - 2008-2009 Best Other European
Georgia Straight – 2005 Best New Restaurant
Vancouver Courier – 2005 Best New Restaurant

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