♪ Gee, gee... Flour that we're gonna put on the table like that.

♪ I'm a journalist, and I'm traveling across my home country, Canada.

On this journey I'll be visiting the western provinces of British Columbia and Alberta.

My next adventure begins on Vancouver Island in British Columbia.

♪ ♪ (music changes) I've come to French Beach Provincial Park, just outside the city of Sooke on Vancouver Island, and I'm with Amanda Swinimer, she owns Dakini Tidal Wilds.

She's going to teach me all about seaweed.

Amanda, what's seaweed?

It seems like a simple enough question, but it's actually quite complicated.

So seaweed belongs to a larger group of organisms called "algae".

And algae can be single celled photosynthesizing bacteria-like organisms, or they can be what we think of as seaweeds, which we call macro algae.

So macro algae are seaweeds, they're further divided into three main groups, the reds, the browns, and the greens.

Now this group of organisms we call algae are amazing for not just human health, but the health of the planet.

So they produce an estimated fifty percent, with some estimates, as high as eighty percent of the global oxygen, absorb about a third of atmospheric carbon dioxide.

And they're the primary producers for the largest ecosystem on Earth, the ocean.

This is so interesting, I had no idea.

I read a little bit about the health benefits, but I didn't know what it was doing for the for the world and its health.

So that is so interesting.

Why did you want us to come to French Beach Provincial Park?

I wanted to meet you here.

This is my home, I live just up the hill.

And this is also where I have been licensed to harvest bull kelp since 2003.

Now I don't do any harvesting at all in the park.

But I swim offshore several hundred meters offshore to the bull kelp forests.

And that's where I harvest my bull kelp.

So I thought this would be a great place to do it.

And you have a career based on seaweed.

You've written a book.

Why are you so interested in it?

[Amanda] It kind of happened organically.

I have a degree in marine biology and the ocean has been my absolute passion since I was a little girl.

And when I moved out to Vancouver Island, I got really into wildcrafting and I started selling things that I was wildcrafting in the temperate rainforest to restaurants, and one of my books had seaweed that you could wildcraft, so when I sort of brought together these two passions, the ocean and wildcrafting I just kept doing it and that was twenty years ago.

Wow.

Okay, so let's jump right in here.

I'd love to taste some of the seaweeds that you have.

What's here?

Alright, so this one, we can start with this one.

So this is winged kelp, and it's closely related to the Japanese Wakame, which is the ... the soup that's used to make the miso soup broth.

It's got a very chewy texture, and quite a mild flavour to it.

For many years, this was the only one I could interest the chefs in, they absolutely love this, this seaweed.

[Brandy] You know, I could eat these like potato chips.

[Amanda] Oh, yeah.

[Brandy] It has that saltiness.

[Amanda] Yeah.

[Brandy] And that chewiness, mmm, probably be a little bit better for me too, right?

Yeah, I actually, when I eat potato chips, I mix half seaweed in and so I'm getting my good minerals and things like that.

And I still get And I still get [Brandy ]That is so smart!

my salty kick.

Alright, next we have bull kelp, and this is what I harvest right here off the shores of French Beach.

So this one is a lighter texture, but it's in my opinion, the saltiest and most umami flavoured seaweed that I've ever tried.

It's like an explosion of flavour on the tongue.

It is.

And what is umami?

Umami is this elusive fifth taste.

And it's essentially a flavour enhancer.

It's described as "savory".

And MSG is a synthetic form of basically pure umami and seaweeds are rich in glutamic acid.

And that is a natural umami.

So for me, it's a tingling on the outer sides of the back of the tongue.

Wow, amazing.

Just love it.

[Amanda] All right, so we've tried some dried seaweed, but - I'm guessing you're here today, because you want to try something that you can't try anywhere.

Of course.

All right.

So do you want to pass me that bowl over there?

All right, Brandy.

So here I have some fresh seaweeds that I harvested in the very early mornings the last couple of mornings at low tide.

And I'm going to let you have a taste of these seaweeds fresh from tide to tongue.

[Brandy] Tide to tongue.

I love it.

[Amanda] So this is the winged kelp that you tried earlier.

Oh, it's totally different.

It's like an olive when you taste it fresh, that sort of briny... goodness.

I like it better like this.

How about you?

Me?

Yeah, I like it.

I like it both ways but if you want to taste it like this, you can literally just soak it in in some cold water.

And it'll fluff right up as if the tide had just come back in and it comes back to life with all its vitality.

It feels like I'm eating a salad.

Okay.... All right.

So now remember how strong you found the bull kelp?

It was really an explosion in the mouth.

I remember.

So now you're gonna try the fresh bull kelp, which has a much more mild flavour to it.

That one is so nice.

Very chewy.

It's a little thicker for me.

I love the texture.

So good.

[Amanda] So there you go.

You just need to soak the dried bull kelp in water, and now you like it.

Exactly.

I don't like it as much as the other way.

Hilarious.

I kind of prefer things like this.

They're pretty good, but... they're not as salty.

Not everyone has access to eating fresh seaweeds.

Yes of course.

They have to have connections with Amanda!

This looks like a boa I'd wear to a party.

That's the common name.

I'll let you have a taste and then I'll show you what a mermaid would wear to an underwater costume party.

(laughing) And what is this called?

You guessed it!

It's called feather boa.

You gotta be joking.

Yep.

I was totally joking.

Egregia menziesii but the common name is feather boa.

I took a culinary group out one time.

You see these... floats.

They're called pneumatocysts.

And this group of chefs harvested these and pickled them and used them as an olive in a "seatini" instead of a martini, a seatini.

I love it.

Seatini, that's amazing.

So maybe we can maybe get some seaweed gin and pickle some of these, make a seatini.

I love it.

And head off to a mermaid costume party.

This is so much fun, Amanda.

I love it!

♪ drums While I'm here in Sooke, I really wanted to try something called Seaside gin.

They make it at Sheringham Distillery.

And I'm with Jason MacIsaac.

He came up with this amazing idea.

He is the master distiller and co- owner of the distillery here.

Where did this idea come from to take seaweed as an ingredient to help make gin?

The idea was conceptualized at French Beach.

My wife Alayne and I were walking along French Beach.

The sea breeze was blowing in, the Nootka roses were blossoming along the side of the path.

The trees were whispering and there was just this aroma and feel in the air and we thought how can we get this into a gin?

So we used kelp as one of the ingredients.

We landed on Alaria, which we got from Amanda Swinimer and it gives it a real sense of terroir.

A little bit of brininess and it gives it a full body feel.

[Brandy] Wow.

And I understand that your gin has also won some awards.

Can you tell me about that?

[Jason] Yes, it has, one notably was in 2019, at the World Gin Awards in London it won Best Contemporary Gin in the World, which was very exciting then, it's still very exciting now.

[Brandy] But it's a lot of work.

It is definitely a lot of work.

I imagine and I know you're gonna put me to work.

So what's the first thing So what's the first thing [Jason] That's right.

we're going to do here?

So we made the gin when it comes off the still it's 75% ABV.

So what we need to do before we bottle it is to dilute it.

[Brandy] Okay.

[Jason] So we'll put it in this can here, the gin and then we'll dilute it with distilled water.

And then we'll measure it to make sure that it's 43% because that's what we bottle it at.

[Brandy] After a crash course in gin making with Jason, I'm eager to taste this award winning gin myself.

Welcome to the tasting room, Brandy.

We have our our Seaside Gin here that we just cut so I bet you're anxious to get a taste of that.

And I also have two other gins that are quite popular here we have our Kazuki gin and Rhubarb Gin Liqueur.

[Brandy] Wow, these sound really exciting and I like the names and the colours and the bottles and everything.

Thank you.

Wow, okay, let's, let's try the Seaside Gin.

Pour some Seaside Gin into your cup here.

Get a little taste of that.

Give that a little smell.

get a swirl around.

Another smell.

It smells really good.

So you can smell the juniper upfront.

Yep.

You can smell floral notes from the lavender and rose petals.

Cardamom gives it a bit of spice and then... kelp.

Gives it kind of a brininess or a sensation of ocean.

Whoa, it smells amazing.

Give it a try.

So the first thing that you'll, it's pretty robust gin, the first thing you'll taste is the juniper.

And then it rolls into lavender rose petals and a bit of citrus on the top of the palate, and then flowing into more juniper, and a bit of brininess like a taste of ocean on the palate.

[Brandy] But it's very spicy.

Very spicy, cardamom, along with everything else.

I try to make it so it's well balanced.

[Brandy] Thank you so much, Jason, for having me here and telling me all about your gin.

And it just seems like you've got these really cool recipes and you're full of ideas.

And I think it's wonderful.

Congratulations on your awards!

And thanks for inviting me here.

Brandy, it's been a pleasure to have you here.

Thanks a lot for coming by to visit the distillery saying "hi" and seeing what we do here.

Tasting what we do here.

Well, I love gin.

So trust me, the pleasure is mine.

(chuckles) To go on my next adventure, I travel northeast around 1129 kilometers, or 702 miles to the province of Alberta.

♪ Rex.

Okay, step up.

♪ I love horses and I'm so excited to be here in the town of Turner Valley.

It is south of the city of Calgary about an hour's drive.

And I'm with David Farran.

He owns Eau Claire Distillery.

And...

I have a question.

I mean, we have these beautiful, large horses here.

What did they have to do with making whisky?

Well, this is really a farm to glass story.

So they actually are farming here.

And we're planting barley that we use in the production of the distillery.

But you don't have to use horses, right?

No, there is more modern machinery now.

But I think it's important that we maintain that heritage.

We teach successive generations how horses were used, and with equipment and so on.

So a lot of the old timers are not around anymore.

So we feel that's an obligation for Eau Claire.

And where did the idea come from for the company?

Well, we were producing this barley, but we had nothing to do with it.

It was too small to send to the wheat pool.

So we decided that we should, we should distill it.

And that was how Eau Claire was born.

[Brandy] Wow.

Well, can we learn how to drive the horses?

Yeah, of course we can.

[Brandy] Wonderful.

Let's do that.

All right.

Brandy, are you ready to drive, are you ready to learn?

Absolutely I want to learn this.

[David] Okay.

So this is Rex and Roy.

And they're draft horses.

And draft means the, the way that they're pulling, so the chains that go off the back of their harness, from the point on the top to the actual point of the plow is the draft.

And if it goes too high, it means that they're going to, they won't be able to pick up any dirt just go too low.

It's too hard for them.

So.

So we try and just get that right.

So what we do is, we get on here, we have voice commands, they go by voice, and we say "haw" to go left "gee" to go right.

And we just kind of kiss them up and say, "Yacum."

Yacum?

Okay.

All right, well, I better be careful not say it too early.

So and then once they get going, you have to push on this pedal.

And this pedal, you'll you'll have one foot down here and you kind of push it and that will engage the plow, and then they sort of lean in so and you're going to be holding those those lines we call that in not reins they're called "lines" in draft horses.

And that's just going to keep them straight as they go down the furrow.

So.

[Brandy] Wow, this is a lot of information.

You're trusting me with this?

I'm going to trust you with this but it's really, is Rex and Roy going to trust you?

Are they gonna take off on me?

Well, we will find out.

[David] Come on!

[Brandy] Yacum!

You got this!

Yacum, good.

(laughing) [David] Okay, now start to turn a bit.

So just say “gee.

” Gee... Gee, which means "right."

Now?

[David] Yep.

Perfect!

[Brandy] This is so much fun.

I am loving this.

(laughs) [David] Okay, come on Rex!

Good boys.

Oh, you're doing great.

[Brandy] This is great.

And I'm plowing!

I'm doing your hard work, David.

I'm plowing.

[David] You're doin' it.

They're doing everything you're asking them.

[Brandy] Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Pull!

Pull up.

Whoa...

There.

This is so much fun, David.

I know why you keep these horses.

They are so much a pleasure to work with, aren't they?

Yah!

And it's like stepping back in time.

It is.

Right here.

It's so rewarding and satisfying.

Not only was it fun, but I also plowed your field.

Yeah, exactly.

We put you to work.

I can't wait to try that whisky.

I can't wait to try that whisky.

We'll get you back for harvest.

Yeah!

Let's go have some whisky.

Sounds good.

Okay.

♪ [Brandy] I'm here inside the Eau Claire Distillery.

I'm with head distiller Caitlin Quinn.

Caitlin, tell me what happens behind the scenes?

(Scottish accent) Well, here at Eau Claire, and we pride ourselves in doin' everythin' from farm to glass.

So we go right from the grain that you were with David's farmin' earlier.

And then we take that, we mill it, mash it and the mash tun is what we were emptying earlier.

And then we ferment for about three days, distill it over, and then it becomes whisky.

[Brandy] Wow.

And are you famous for your whisky?

Is that what you're well known for?

We are, yes, we originally had started out with white spirits like our parlour gin but then we moved on to our whisky program, which we now do batch releases once a year, which are really popular.

sell out and like five days and then our Rupert's whisky, which is our year round that will be on the shelf.

[Brandy] Sounds exciting.

Tell me how it feels to be doing all this in Alberta?

It's excitin' because it's so different than other whisky industries.

Like we grow the barley here.

We can get everythin' right on our back doorstep literally as in the back field that we grow the barley and then we can bring it in and control every part of the process.

[Brandy] This is so fun.

Okay, can I taste this?

Of course, you can let's go to Speakeasy and we can try some!

Speakeasy?

Yeah!

Alright!

(laughing) (traffic noise) ♪ (ragtime) [Caitlin] Welcome to our Speakeasy.

So in case you don't know, a Speakeasy is just a hidden bar behind some sort of secret room, usually an office in our case or a library or somethin' like that.

And it was just an illicit bar and from the prohibition era.

[Brandy] Wow, a hidden bar, this sounds like fun.

[Caitlin] Yeah, that is.

So we have on the table, we have our white spirits.

And so we've got our gin and our vodkas but we're going to focus on the whiskies today.

So we've got the Ruperts whisky and our single malt, Batch One.

What do you mean by batches?

Batches just mean that it's an expression of the barrels that were available to us that year.

So essentially, when we make that batch, we bottle it and then once it's gone, it's gone.

Okay, well, let's jump in.

I'd love to try Batch One.

Perfect.

I'll pour you some.

Is every batch different?

Every batch is slightly different.

Just based on the types of barrels that we have available each year.

We use three different types of barrels.

So we use ex-bourbon, new European and ex-sherry casks.

So this one leans heavier towards the sherry casks.

It's very much that what we call terroir in wine, it's reflective of the year, whether it's been a lot of rain or dry, it all comes out as flavour in the whisky.

Wow, okay.

So, let's try.

I guess what's in the ground.

You taste.

Exactly.

It smells wonderful.

Yeah.

So on the nose, you'll smell a lot of caramel, a lot of those malty flavours from the malty barley.

And then when you try it... You get more of that kind of oakiness, vanilla, caramel again.

It is delicious.

And you know what, I think I can taste your labour there in the field.

Yeah, that's right.

So can I.

(laughing) I love Batch One.

This is wonderful.

Yep.

Thank you.

Fantastic, okay.

And then I'll grab some glasses, and pour some Rupert's.

So as I said, the Rupert's is our year round, so it will be on the shelf year round.

Whereas the batch will sell out and then we don't have any until the next year.

[Brandy] Tell me about Rupert here.

[Caitlin] So Rupert is the moose that you see on the bottle, also above the bar here and the Speakeasy.

He's our social animal for this product.

[Brandy] And Rupert also is iconic for Canada, right?

It is.

Yeah.

Rupert's land was the beginning of the Hudson's Bay Company.

Wow.

I love that history.

All in one.

Yeah.

Right here.

Let's taste it.

Smells wonderful.

So this one's a bit lighter.

This one's sittin' at about 40%.

It's a bit sweet'r.

And you'll get more of those kind of burnt caramel notes.

What do you think, David?

I love Rupert's.

I think it's great for both having tasting just by itself, but also with mix and in drinks and so on.

It's a perfect whisky for that.

Well, I've had so much fun here.

I love of course tasting your whisky, but being out there in the field with the horses.

Yeah.

That was so unique.

And I want to thank you very much for inviting me here to your distillery in Turner Valley.

Thank you for comin'.

We've enjoyed it.

Cheers!

Cheers!

It's been delightful.

(glasses clink) ♪ I love learning about the history of the places and people I'm visiting.

So my next stop focuses on that.

I have come to the city of Calgary and I love dressing up in costume.

So I decided to come to Heritage Park Historical Village, and I am with Janis Laboucane.

She works here as an interpreter, and plays the role of Jane Livingston.

That's correct.

Who's Jane Livingston?

[Janis] Jane Livingston was one of the first settlers here in Calgary, her and her husband, Sam.

And this is their homestead.

[Brandy] And how old would this house be?

[Janis] This house is built in 1883.

[Brnady] And it's the actual house?

[Janis] Yes, it is.

[Brandy] Wow.

So, Jane was Métis.

Are you Métis?

Yes, I am.

So what does that mean when you say you're Métis?

When you're Métis you have Aboriginal ancestry and European ancestry.

[Brandy] So what's your story?

Well, my great, great grandfather was Scottish.

And then he came in on the fur trade.

And he married into the First Nations, which is an Indian lady.

And then with that, that's where the Métis came from.

And it came down from generations and generations.

Wonderful.

Yeah.

And the food that you have in front of us... Tell me a little bit about why you chose to make this with me?

I am making a Métis stew because long, long, long time ago, they didn't have the ingredients that we have today.

So I'm going to make this one, this here would have been maybe a moose stew.

But today we're going to use ground beef.

And we're going to do is we're going to burn, kind of burn and really roast up that pot where you really want that, that, that burnt flavour, because that's where that flavour's going to come from.

And then we're going to add some water.

And then we're going to add some potatoes and we're going to add some carrots and onions and salt and pepper.

And then we're going to make some Bannock biscuits to go with our stew.

[Brandy] Can't wait.

Okay, let's jump right in.

What's the first step?

Okay, the first step is, is that I'm going to hand you this.

And this is water?

This is about three cups of water, and you're going to pour it into the pot.

And then we're going to add a handful of carrots.

[Brandy] Handful of carrots that somebody would have grown in their garden.

That's correct.

The Livingstones were famous for gardening.

Okay.

Yep.

Another handful.

Okay, and then you're going to add your potatoes.

How many potatoes?

You're going to pour the whole thing in.

The whole thing?

The whole thing.

Yep.

Okay, and now you're going to add your onions.

And how many onions?

A cup?

[Janis] Half an onion.

We're going to put a half an onion in there.

[Brandy] Okay, just, white onion?

[Janis] Yep.

Just white onion.

Okay, so now what you want to do is you want to add your salt and pepper.

So those are going to be your seasonings, you're gonna pour the whole thing in.

The whole thing?

[Janis] The whole thing.

Yes, because they weren't introduced to spices until later on.

Okay, Brandy.

Now what we're going to do is we're going to put it on the stove, the wood stove, and we're going to simmer it for about an hour, and then we're going to make our Bannock.

[Brandy] Yummy.

[Janis] So I am going to put this on the stove.

Okay, Brandy.

Now what we're going to do is we're going to make our bannock, we're going to use our ingredients.

And what you're going to do is you're going to put about two cups of flour in this bowl.

Okay, so what you also want to do is put your salt in.

How much salt?

That's probably about a tablespoon of salt, one tablespoon of salt.

Pour that all in.

Okay.

Okay, and then you're gonna put your baking powder in.

Good, good.

Dump it in?

Yep.

Okay.

Okay, so now you're going to take your spoon, and you're going to mix that all up all those ingredients.

Some people use sifters, but we didn't have sifters.

Okay, Okay.

So what you're going to do now, is you're going to stop, and you're going to make like a little area.

And this is where your water's going to go and your oil.

So here's your lard.

How much would this be?

And you're going to pour it that's about two tablespoons, maybe three.

Okay.

Yep.

Pour it in.

Now you're going to add your water.

How much water?

That's about a cup of water.

In my puddle here.

In your puddle right there.

You're going to mix it all up.

This is so fun.

Yeah.

Okay, now what you're going to do is you're going to start gathering it.

Yep.

[Brandy] And where did bannock come from?

[Janis] It came from Scotland, used to be called bannock biscuit.

And Bannock is a Scottish word.

[Brandy] But a lot of Indigenous people eat Bannock?

Yes, they do.

They didn't, they adopted the bread.

And the less that you work your Bannock the more fluffier it's going to be.

[Brandy] So I see that you have already done some here from before.

[Janis] Yes.

[Brandy] This looks very fluffy.

[Janis] Yes, it is.

Can we roll this?

Yes, we sure can.

Alright.

[Janis] You might have to pull it out.

[Brandy] Yeah, I guess so.

It's very sticky.

[Janis] Yep.

It's very sticky.

[Brandy] Wow.

Okay, now you're gonna take your rolling pill and you're gonna roll it out.

Okay, so what you want to do is you want to pat it down.

Okay.

Like that.

[Janis] Okay, and then you want to take that bowl right there?

Yes.

Okay.

And you want to put it upside down and that's how you're gonna make your biscuits.

Like this?

Yes.

Yeah.

[Brandy] Just with the bowl?

[Janis] Yeah, just for the bowl.

It's the perfect size.

[Brandy] Like this?

[Janis] Yep.

Yep, that's good.

And then right here.

You just want to kind of press down and make sure that it's not too...

There you go!

Fabulous.

And then we're gonna put on a cookie sheet and then we're gonna have our Bannock.

So you already did these ones.

I already did these ones so right now I have our soup and bannock ready for us to taste.

[Brandy] Ooohhh!

This is the best part.

[Janis] Yes it is.

[Brandy] This looks amazing.

[Janis] Yes.

There you go.

Shall we taste it?

Yes.

Okay, let's do it.

Mmm.

This is wonderful, Janis.

Really good, pretty simple meal.

So food was really, really good back then.

This is delicious.

Simple but perfect.

It's a cast iron pot.

And when you bite into your bannock and then you dip it into your soup.

[Brandy] So good!

When people come here, to this living history museum, what can they do?

Well, we have the encampment where we they can watch, they can help put up the teepee.

We got the fur trade, the Hudson's Bay, you can do the Voyageurs recruitment.

We have our boat.

We have our horse and wagon.

We have the train that goes around the whole park.

[Brandy] So fun.

And there's the antique midway and the blacksmith.

[Janis] Yes.

[Brandy] Well, thank you so much for inviting me here to taste this delicious meal with you.

You've taught me something new and I'm going to take this home and try to do it at home.

Yeah, you're welcome.

Thank you!

♪ ♪ ♪