(L’Île-d’Orléans) Do you know the currant, the haskap, the aronia? Vincent Paris grows it on the Île d’Orléans, on his herbal tea and berry microfarm, and he enjoys making deliciously sweet potions… or not.
This is how this artisanal jam maker made a special vintage with haskap and plums, he sells an apple and sea buckthorn jelly, or even cornflower and rosemary, among other original creations, which can be found in his riverside boutique in Saint-Laurent-de-l’Île-d’Orléans: Tigidou.
We met this original, wizard-like character one scorching midday at the beginning of the month, on his pretty farm, about ten minutes from his shop, this time in Saint-Jean-de-l’Île-d’Orléans.
“It’s not rocket science, making jam, but making wizard’s jam is tricky! “, our particular interlocutor will say, among other deadpan responses to make us walk (or not!), to our multiple questions.
It’s not every day that you meet a jam maker (even less one wearing a top hat for his tastings), and let’s just say we had several questions to ask him.
So it’s here, in a magnificent ancestral barn where he has just set up a charming tea room (see tab), that it all began, 10 years ago. It is here, always, that he tests his mixtures of fruits, herbs, sugars and spices (strawberry and black pepper, why not?) in what he lovingly calls his “laboratory”, a kitchen deliciously retro, garnished with large cauldrons, just as retro. All of his recipes, from raspberry jalapeno jelly to flower marmalade to blackberry-haskap jam, were born there. They were tested there. And approved (or not!). “The first few years, I did anything! », he will whisper softly.
It is also here, on his land at the back, that his dozens of varieties of small fruits will grow all summer, ranging from the gadelle (a sort of red currant, which he gorged on as a child) to the raspberry in passing through aronia (blackcurrant variety). Not forgetting a nice variety of strawberries. He also promises to set up a little discovery game, a sort of treasure hunt, to test the knowledge of his gourmet visitors when it comes to berries.
Why jam maker, sorry, “master jam maker”, exactly? A native of the island, Vincent Paris grew up in Saint-Jean. He remembers picking strawberries from a neighbor, and thinking, as a kid, of making a living out of it. And then no. “Finally, I’m going to go to school! » After studying in Montreal and working odd jobs in restaurants to pay his rent, he landed in advertising and worked there for many years. “Coming back to the island, I never thought I could do it, until I met a woman who came from the island too…”
And so in 2013, due to a crisis of a certain decade, he launched himself. He arrived here, in this old barn then abandoned, to develop his skills as a master jam maker. He plows his land, cultivates his berries and finally, his fine and daring mixtures, visibly mastered, win fans. Small local farmers (the François Blouin farm in Sainte-Famille, or Léonce Plante in Saint-Laurent, among others) began to supply him with raw materials (because he himself no longer supplied), and quietly but surely, “tigidou”! “That’s it, Tigidou, it’s the humility of making fine jam, in an environment that reminds us of our grandparents! »
However, Île d’Orléans is classified as a heritage site, and that also comes with its share of legislative headaches. For all kinds of reasons, after a few years, our jam maker has to move his production and take it out of this pretty barn, as bucolic as it is. In the middle of a pandemic, he came across a boat shed, near the river, a stone’s throw from the church of Saint-Laurent. He set up his production, his warehouse and his tasting workshop there, in this vestige of the region’s naval past, and at the same time repaired an adjoining dilapidated garage into a neat little shop. Think: an old recycled piece of furniture as a counter here, an old boat as a decor hanging there. And on the ceiling, a quantity of colored boards, collected in the community.
His bet works. Not half. In season, tourists parade here by the dozens. His secret? “Quality in simplicity,” sums up the businessman. But still ? Fresh products, ideally organic, harvested and cooked in season, without pectin, with the best possible organic cane sugar, and organic, unpasteurized lemon juice. Oh yes, and there’s no need to let the fruit boil for 25 minutes, he adds. How long, then? “I’m not telling you that! », replies our enigmatic jam maker, smirking.
The originality of the first tea house on Île d’Orléans: most of the ingredients are grown on site. On the land of this ancestral barn, located in Saint-Jean-de-l’Île-d’Orléans, converted into a tea temple, sage, ash, lemon balm, chamomile, etc. grow. We are targeting a clientele who are fans of slow tourism, for a timeless experience and an English-style tasting. On the menu: teas, herbal teas or iced infusions, classic or vegan platters (small sandwiches, scones and other treats). Everything is accompanied by a fine jam, from Tigidou’s lab!
There is no shortage of vineyards on Île d’Orléans. The particularity of this one: in addition to its 35,000 vine plants and its nine grape varieties (pinot gris, riesling, chardonnay, etc.) to be tasted on site, you can also have a bite to eat there at lunchtime or in a set menu. 5 to 7. For several years, the Denault family has had an outdoor pizza oven. On the menu: focaccia, pizzas, island asparagus or island scallops. Breathtaking view of the vineyards and Montmorency Falls as a bonus.
We heard great things about this rustic address, located in the village of Saint-Pierre, at the entrance to Île d’Orléans, but it was closed when we visited. Whether in the three-hundred-year-old house or on its panoramic terrace, they serve fine local cuisine with traditional accents: island cheeses, artisanal charcuterie, grandma’s chicken, Ancestors’ stew, candied guinea fowl leg… Starters starting at $15, main courses starting at $30.