2 Bottles & 2 Questions with Gurth Pretty



Gurth Pretty (holding his book) is a published author, professional chef, cheese connoisseur and owner of Epicurean Expeditions Inc.

Gurth is truly passionate about cheese and his goal is to show to Canadians and the world the delicious cheese produced in Canada.


Gurth brought some fantastic cheeses to share at our Green Revolution event at Roots, and we thought it'd be fun to pick his brain a little bit about cheese...and of course, wine. Enjoy!

2 Questions


1. Word on the Street is that you’re known as “The Canadian Cheese Guru”what initially sparked your interest for cheese?
As a child living in Montreal, my parents and relatives introduced me to both Canadian and European cheese. I quickly became a grilled cheese sandwich maker child prodigy. The enjoyment and appreciation of good cheese was instilled into me at a young age.

2. You must get to eat and experience a lot of Canadian cheese and cheese culture. Was there one "cheesy" moment that really stands out in your mind as being memorable?

While researching for my first book, The Definitive Guide to Canadian Artisanal and Fine Cheese, I attended a culinary conference in Kelowna B.C. As part of the luncheon buffet, I met Ofri Bamfor and her daughter from nearby Carmelis Goat Cheese Artisan. They displayed their delicious goat cheese for the conference participants to taste. Myself, my publisher and Sinclair Phillip, innkeeper of the famous Sooker Harbour House, were very impressed with the selection of cheese. The Bamfors recently immigrated to Canada from Israel. Their facilities unfortunately burned down during the terrible Okanagan forest fires the previous summer. Their herd of goats had been saved but most of their cheesemaking facility had to be rebuilt. By the following February, they were in full production once again with cheese available for sale. That is an example of perseverance.

2 Bottles

1. Caroline Cellars Winery's French Revolution with Upper Canada Cheese Company's Comfort Cream. A Niagara wine matched to a Niagara cheese.

2. John Howard's Megalomaniac Narcissist Riesling with Monforte Dairy's Picone's goat cheese.

Pretty's Books:

* The Definitive Guide to Canadian Artisanal and Fine Cheese


* The Definitive Canadian Wine & Cheese Cookbook
, co-written with Tony Aspler.

For more information about Gurth please visit www.cheeseofcanada.ca

To join his facebook group "Cheese Lovers of Canada" click here.