Chocolate Cheese, Kefir Drinks and Other SIAL 2015 Highlights

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend SIAL 2015 this year. I went for the first time in 2013, the last time they were in Toronto, an event which switches back and forth between our city and Montreal. Each year, a country is featured (this year was Indonesia), while other countries also present their items to media and prospective vendors. Of course, most offered tastings.

Kefir and Lassi from M-C Dairy (they don’t have a website, so it’s next-to-impossible to get additional info)

Chocolate Cheese

Nut milks

Highlights of the event included the delicious cheese section, which I thought was better than last time. One of the best had to be the fudge cheese from PineRiver Cheese (above, second image), made by mixing Havarti and dark cocoa among other ingredients. It is absolutely DELICIOUS! I also had the chance to taste various types of kefir from M-C Dairy (they also have a mango lassi, as you can see from the first image) and some nut milks (pistachio and walnut) from a yet-to-be-launched US brand.

Sweet infused maple syrup (and not just for sweet breakfast treats!)

Savoury infused maple syrup (good for salad dressings and marinades)

Quinoa meals

Other favourites included infused maple syrups (there were two savoury versions (the rep said that they’re great for salad dressings and even as marinades for meats) and four sweet) as well as the many pastries offered by all the countries represented at the event (I loved Brazil’s pao de queijo, which literally means cheese bread. They’re mini buns made with cheese and dough, seen below) and a pre-packaged quinoa meal with vegan toppings (think yogurt and granola) from a US brand called Cucina Amore. Unfortunately, this is not available in Canada just yet. Of course, there were tons of olive oil and balsamic tastings, including the winners of this year’s Olive d’Or award.

Pao de queijo

The spread in the media/VIP space

The event was very well-run and I have to say that media were treated very well. In fact, this event is probably the only one where media and other VIPs had a comfortable lounge and were well-fed with “real” food. I think the only thing missing was a coffee station. Maybe in 2017. 🙂

About Cynthia Cheng Mintz

Cynthia Cheng Mintz is the founder and webitor-in-chief of this site and the petite-focused site, Shorty Stories. She has also written for other publications including the Toronto Star and has blogged for The Huffington Post. Her first novel, Aspirations, was published in 2007. Outside of writing, Cynthia researches and advises philanthropic ideas for family funds and foundations and also volunteers.