As if the start of Quebec’s sugaring season wasn’t exciting enough. On the first weekend of April, Manoir Hovey’s Chef Alexandre Vachon will host Auberge Saint-Antoine’s Chef Alex Bouchard for a Four-Hands sugar shack themed experience.
The Relais & Châteaux chefs of Le Hatley and Chez Muffy restaurants will offer a Taste of the Townships via a bespoke menu that features traditional maple syrup from producers around the province and savory birch syrup produced on-site at Manoir Hovey. The abundance of birch trees situated on Manoir Hovey’s 35-acres makes it ideal for the “tree to table” production of birch syrup and birch vinegar for use in marinades, vinegars, and as a finish on certain fish dishes. Unlike the sweet flavor of maple syrup, birch syrup has a very distinct savory taste, and Le Hatley is possibly the only Canadian restaurant to engage in this practice.
Manoir Hovey’s Clefs d’Or concierge Marc-André Blais suggest the following local sugar shacks around the Eastern Townships for guests to experience sugaring season if they can’t make it for the 4-hands collaboration in April:
Fourth-generation cheesemakers at Fromagerie La Station are one of the best maple syrup producers in the region. Manoir Hovey sources maple syrup from here as well as other producers around the Province.
The Four Hands bespoke dinner and brunch menu celebrates Quebec’s diverse terroir and the local producers and purveyors that accentuate their restaurant’s farm-to-table philosophies. The weekend kicks off at Restaurant Le Hatley with an 8-course dinner on Friday, April 1. The menu features locally sourced products like duck egg from La Canne Blanche and outstanding cuts from Porc Beaurivage. Other highlights include caviar, snow crab, and arctic char cooked with smoky birch. Once you’ve digested, there’s a brunch at Le Tap Room on Saturday, April 2 and Sunday, April 3 that pays homage to the traditional Quebec sugar shack experience, with a unique Relais & Châteaux twist.
This eight-course discovery dinner takes place at Le Hatley on April 1 for $145 CAD per person, with seatings between 5:30 pm and 9:30 pm. The three-course sugar shack themed brunch will be held on April 2 and April 3 in Le Tap Room for $65 CAD per person. To book your stay and sugar shack experience at Manoir Hovey, click here.
