“What’s Canadian cuisine, anyway?” is a common question outside of our borders. Canadian cuisine is as diverse as its population. It is also more often ingredient-driven than recipe-driven. Canada is a cornucopia of high-quality ingredients. Depending on the province, that base changes significantly.
New Brunswick is not only the French Fry Capital of the World, as well as one of the largest producers of molasses, but when we zoom in a little further, we also discover the real pearl in the shell. Atlantic provinces are renowned for their seafood, but New Brunswick is home to the only producer of local, sustainable, wild sturgeon in the world, Acadian Sturgeon and Caviar.
Cornel Ceapa, founder and owner of Acadian Sturgeon and Caviar, shares that, “You can’t rush nature. Let nature and time do its thing. We don’t interfere or push.” He continues, “Aquaculture has to respect the fish and their environment. If they are farmed in an environment where they are not traditionally native, that is not a good thing. Not only will they not taste the same as the wild variety, but they may also spread disease. Happy fish yield amazing and healthy products.” For Ceapa, flavour is what matters, because that is the indicator of nutrition and quality, and it is from this that we get the wow factor. “We are producing the most unique, cleanest and best sturgeon caviar in the world,” he enthuses.
Caviar is the king of culinary indulgences, and it is a proud Canadian specialty. This agro-tourism product is also recognized by The Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC) for Culinary Tourism in 2018 for once-in-a-lifetime food tourism that is attracting enthusiasts in droves to Carters Point, New Brunswick.
Unique experiences immerse us into a true taste of the Maritimes. I step on the boat for a Sturgeon Safari to see wild sturgeon in their own habitat, learn what sustainable fishing actually looks like, and work with the sturgeon fishermen on their harvest. The gastronomic thrill of the Acadian Sturgeon and Caviar Master Class is a truly Canadian experience that every gourmet must have on their bucket list.
Each dish in this high-end multi-course sturgeon and caviar dinner focuses on sturgeon or caviar in a variety of global cuisines from Japanese to French. It pairs local, wild and farmed sturgeon, side by side, and includes caviar bumps with champagne and sake. Who knew there were so many ways to enjoy these tiny pearls? We indulge in a Sturgeon Surf and Turf of miso-marinated wild sturgeon, birch syrup-marinated farmed sturgeon, and lemon-seared wagyu beef with aerated yuzu, tamari beurre blanc and caviar. It makes me want to stand up and sing “O Canada!” There are at least seven unique courses served with their own story and education about food production, sustainability, information about how to serve caviar and sturgeon, local drinks pairings and visiting the hatchery. The more we understand, the more we enjoy.
A Two-Day “Cooking for Education” experience includes Acadian Sturgeon’s Executive Chef who, with east coast enthusiasm, shows us how to cook, enjoy and pair sturgeon and caviar. Dishes range from Sturcuterie Boards (three types of sturgeon charcuterie) to Sturgeon Wellington and Sturchetta—sturgeon made porchetta-style. Our dessert is a marvel of white chocolate panna cotta with caviar, or surprisingly lush smoked sturgeon ice cream with caviar. For those under the false impression that they have tasted everything Canadian, you’re in for a culinary awakening. We cannot experience this anywhere else in the world!
There is no more wild-caught sturgeon caviar anywhere in the world, except in Canada. There is none in the Caspian Sea or the Black Sea. None in Iran. None in Russia. None in France. Nowhere. What we find in specialty food shops is farmed; what we find in restaurants often lacks transparency and traceability. Canadian product, native to the icy waters of the Atlantic Ocean and and sustainably fished in St. John River, is one in which stringent controls keep us confidently informed.
There are three types of caviar at New Brunswick’s Acadian Sturgeon and Caviar, and from two different species: one is wild, and two are farmed in protective natural environments. Atlantic Sturgeon is the only wild caviar harvested in the world, and Shortnose Sturgeon is a rare genetic species of sturgeon.
Sustainable practices are integral to maintaining the population of wild Canadian sturgeon. That means not only caring for existing fish and their existing environment, but giving back to it, to nourish and replenish positive growth. Even if we’re purchasing sustainable products internationally, there is a big carbon footprint in their transport.
It’s been twenty years of caviar since Cornel and Dorina Ceapa burst upon the scene to the delight of top end restaurants, food journalists, specialty food shops and connoisseurs across Canada. Together, they established Acadian Sturgeon and Caviar in New Brunswick in 2005. They have revived the caviar industry, and with these beautiful pearls of Caviar, their sustainable product and amazing year-round food experiences have fueled a new form of aqua and agro-tourism in New Brunswick that has caught the attention of the world.
Wild sturgeon must be thirty years old, before it’s fished. Farming takes a minimum of ten years. The water must be clean, cold, well nutriated and oxygenated. The farmed environment must by clean and provide the same life as the wild environment, and has to respect the same temperature cycles and sleep cycles. There are no short cuts in nature or in New Brunswick. It’s about quality over quantity.
For more information about Canadian Caviar or Sturgeon and Caviar tourism in New Brunswick, go to: www.acadian-sturgeon.com/
