A few months ago, we attended a major gourmet food trade show in Paris, where we met old and new business customers and producers and learned about new products. Two of the most important meetings involved our favorite fish, sardines:
We met Jacques and Valérie Gonidec, the two owners and managing directors of Conserverie Gonidec, which was founded in 1959 in the Breton town of Concarneau and is now the only cannery in the city that still produces its fish preserves using traditional methods. All the fish is caught off the Breton coast, carefully selected, transported overnight to the factory, and processed immediately. Then it is cleaned by hand and sorted by size before being fried in oil and hand-packed into cans. This traditional production gives the fish an incredible aroma and firm flesh. Thanks to the exquisite combination of quality, taste, and tradition, the “Les Mouettes d’Arvor” preserves, Gonidec’s premium brand, have enjoyed a high reputation for 50 years. Every year, the company releases several specially designed vintage sardine cans that are highly sought after by collectors.
While at the trade show, we managed to negotiate attractive terms for direct import, and we are now delighted to be able to offer you even more excellent sardines from this traditional brand. Not only do we now carry the new 2014 vintage sardines with fresh designs in the collector’s edition, but also a wide selection of new flavors.
The sardines in spicy olive oil from “Rios”, a brand of the family-run company Pinhais & Co. Ltd. near Porto, also made it onto our tasting table. This too was a result of our trip to Paris, where we managed to meet the owner and managing director, Dr. Antonio Pinhal. After almost a year of trying to convince him, we finally managed to win over the silver-haired patriarch in person at his stand.
Conserveira “Pinhais” was founded in 1920 in the small fishing village of Matosinhos near Porto and is now one of the country’s most renowned fish canneries. True to the company motto “Quality over quantity,” Pinhais processes only freshly caught fish and fresh, natural ingredients. Furthermore, Pinhais & Co. Ltd. still uses traditional methods, with machines only sealing and sterilizing the cans—all other steps are done by hand, which is a rarity today.
The tasting:
Our tasting began with four of the new sardines from “Les Mouettes d’Arvor”:
The sardine in olive oil with truffle, a very refined combination, tasted very subtle and was not overpowering. The truffle accentuated the delicate sardine, whose flesh had a perfect consistency: tender but not too fatty, firm but not dry.
Theresa had tried them on toasted bread slices on New Year’s Eve and reported that the heat brought out the truffle aromas even more clearly.
You can certainly keep this can for a while—it will develop more intense aromas over time.
The sardine with candied lemon and chili opened with a delicate lemon note that accentuated the sardine beautifully without overpowering it. The chili peppers complemented the composition in a subtly spicy (not hot) way, creating a very balanced, fresh combination.
We also liked the sardine with sun-dried tomatoes because of the savory-sweet note of the sun-dried tomatoes, which gave the more classic tomato combination an interesting twist.
The “Sardine à l’Andalouse” with chorizo and tomato is also very interesting. It tastes smoky, savory, rustic, and, as Jens aptly observed, could easily pass for a full meal rather than an appetizer. We really liked the combination of fish, meat, and tomato, so we also opened the “Sardine à la Luzienne” from Belle-Iloise for a direct comparison—a combination of sardine, Bayonne ham, tomato, and Piment d'Espelette. Once again, we were delighted: this recipe tastes fresh, spicy, fruity-tart, deep, complex, smoky… in one word: umami.
At this point, we somehow fell into a kind of frenzy: instead of the planned 4 cans, we ended up opening and tasting a full 11… we really wanted to know, and we were prepared to make any necessary sacrifices ;)
The “Sardine aux 2 piments” (sardine with double chili) was very well received, distinguished by a subtly spicy but beautifully fruity pepper note.
The “Sardine piquante”, again from Les Mouettes d'Arvor, really knocked our socks off; we unanimously voted it the “hottest sardine in the range,” and it literally brought tears to our eyes ... This recipe surprises with an immediate and long-lasting pleasant chili heat, combined with elegant spice notes of cloves, capers, etc.
The Portuguese “Rios” sardines in spicy olive oil provided a real relief for our irritated palates afterward, as they offered a very pleasant and comparatively subtle heat. In the pretty sun-yellow can featuring a charming young waitress in a vintage look, there were 3 large, shimmering silver sardines, along with a cute little chili pepper and beautifully arranged pieces of cucumber and carrot.
Our conclusion:
In a direct comparison between the Breton and Portuguese sardines, it is noticeable that the Portuguese sardines are a bit more rustic than their French brothers and sisters.
Portuguese cans usually contain three slightly larger, and therefore fattier, sardines (the larger the sardine, the higher its fat content, which plays a major role in carrying the flavor) in lighter oil. These sardines transport you straight to the harbor, and you feel like you are eating something completely rustic and authentic—a piece of tradition …
The Breton cans usually contain four to five sardines packed in very high-quality, cold-pressed olive oil with an intense golden color, which immediately invites you to dip bread into it. Visually, they therefore look a bit more elegant. More than once, we were overcome with euphoric delight: to us, the sardines were “pure elegance,” “pure silver,” “a jewel,” or even “a can of luxury”!
Another realization is that Belle-Iloise adds a dash of vinegar to all the recipes, which makes the oil taste less greasy and go down a little easier.
After this tasting, we were completely stuffed and very satisfied: all the sardines were impressive, and we learned even more about the differences.
If you have become curious or still have questions, feel free to contact us—it will be our pleasure to advise you and help you choose the right sardines!
