Fiddling with the formula Festival du Voyageur's annual celebration won't leave anyone out in the cold By: Alan Small Posted: 3:00 AM CST Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/02/2021 (1714 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

From “Oh, no!” to “Hé Ho!”

That’s the COVID-19 challenge the Festival du Voyageur has accepted for the 2021 edition of Winnipeg’s winter carnival, which began Friday night and continues to Feb. 21.

Festival has always been a way for Winnipeggers to get out of the house and enjoy the outdoors in the midst of a long winter. Roughly 95,000 people rough the often chilly conditions every year, converging on Fort Gibraltar and St. Boniface to celebrate the city’s French-Canadian and Métis cultures, and Manitoba’s fur-trading history.

People also check out magnificent snow sculptures, enjoy popular events such as the annual beard-growing contest, try some classic French-Canadian cuisine, meet with friends and learn a bit about the city’s culture and history through osmosis along the way.

“Festival was always a part of our lives growing up,” says Winnipeg bilingual singer-songwriter Rayannah, whose electronic music was part of the festival’s opening night of virtual concerts on Friday night. “It’s funny: as I became a professional performer, my relationship shifted. It’s become a part of my calendar of events that marks the year passing. February is always Festival.

“It’s something that I’ve always loved. I’m really glad they’re trying to keep that alive.”

Organizers are doing so by blending history and culture dating back to the 18th century with 21st-century technology. No parties are allowed at Fort Gibraltar; instead there’s a 2021-style festival that can be had at home.

It’s a journey fit for virtual voyageurs, ready to canoe the internet to rediscover a part of Manitoba’s history from the safety of the living room.

So put the parka in the closet and check out some of the highlights:

Festival à la maison — Festival at Home

Do you want to learn how to make your own snow sculptures? Christel Lanthier, the festival’s snow-sculpture co-ordinator, and her three young children show how much can be done with just a five-gallon bucket, a few simple tools and a bunch of snow.

It’s one of several videos the festival has filmed prior to the event that are available for viewing at its YouTube channel.

In just 11 minutes, Winnipeg chef Luc Jean shows how to make three French-Canadian classics — pea soup, tortière and pouding chômeur — in your own kitchen. Pouding chômeur translates to “unemployed man’s pudding,” but Jean’s looks quite rich after he drizzles a maple sauce over it. Recipes for the dishes are at the festival’s website, heho.ca.

And artist Marijo shows off her crafting skills by teaching kids how to make their own musical instruments.

Another series of videos focuses on Métis culture and fashion, and enthusiastic host Barney Morin introduces viewers to designer Andréanne Dandeneau of Anne Mulaire Designs, sash maker Miguel Vielfaure of Étchiboy and Paulette Duguay, president of Union nationale métisse Saint-Joseph du Manitoba.

The videos are in French — it is a celebration of francophone culture, after all — but English subtitles are available by clicking YouTube’s CC button.

Meal kits

For those who believe a big part of festival is getting an annual fix of French-Canadian favourites, one of COVID-19’s workarounds, the meal kit, can cure your cravings.

Promenade Café and Wine, which specializes in French cuisine, is offering kits specifically prepared for Festival du Voyageur. There are 10 main courses to choose from, including tourtière (meat pie) with traditional beef and pork ingredients, a vegan version and a smashed-tourtière poutine. Cost is $15.

The dishes are precooked and need only to be reheated in an oven or in the microwave, says Shawn Brandson, who owns Promenade as well as Gibraltar Dining Corp., which caters events at Fort Gibraltar.

“We call them FesTV dinners,” he says.

The meal kits will be available until the end of the festival and can be pre-ordered for curbside pickup at promenadeathome.com or by calling 204-233-7030.

One of the contests held at the festival every year is the pea soup contest. Promenade has an alternative to the competition, which can’t be held this year.

In its place, the restaurant’s chefs have come up with a four-soup sampler ($20) that gives at-home diners a chance to taste the many varieties of the French-Canadian staple.

They include the traditional version, which uses ham for flavour; a New Orleans-style pea soup that is described as a spicy turkey gumbo; a vegan pea soup that includes curry, lemongrass and coconut milk; and Nouveau Split Pea Soup, which has pickled mirepoix vegetables, crumbled prosciutto and arugula pistou.

It’s not all inside

There is one highlight of a usual Festival du Voyageur that remains in 2021: snow sculptures.

Local sculptors won’t be restricting their activities to Fort Gibraltar and St. Boniface, either. They will be carving 30 works of art across the city — carvers have ventured as far out as Bridgwater, Sage Creek and Kildonan Park — and the festival has provided an online map (heho.ca/en/snow-sculptures) that allows people to tour the city and check them out.

Sure, it’s cold outside — even the new normal freezes in its tracks when a February cold snap arrives in Winnipeg — but hardy voyageurs might consider a walking tour of St. Boniface to check out the works that are finished or visit sculptors while they’re at work.

Whittier Park (836 rue St. Joseph), where Fort Gibraltar is located, will have several snow sculptures and Provencher Boulevard, the hub of Winnipeg’s French quarter, will have five works on display.

Amateur sculptors are invited to take part, and can do so by sending an email to projetsdeneige@gmail.com.

Icy beverages

Voyageurs might need warm-up after a snow-sculpture hike.

Drinking Caribou, the boozy French-Canadian concoction of red wine, whiskey and maple syrup, from cocktail glasses made of ice is another festival tradition that gets a 2021 makeover, thanks to local distillery Patent 5.

Imbibers can purchase two different festival-themed cocktails, which cost $25 a bottle (about five servings per bottle): Festival du Voyageur Bonfire Taffy is made from Patent 5 Vodka, Ardbeg single malt, crème de cacao, crème de menthe, lemon juice and maple syrup; Festival du Voyageur Boreal Punch includes Patent 5 Manitoba Berry gin, Caribou, Caribou cordial, Ms Better’s Trans Canada bitters, Angostura bitters and citric acid.

They can be ordered at patent5.ca, and yes, reusable ice cocktail glasses are also available for $7.

A votre santé!

alan.small@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter:@AlanDSmall