Our ancestral grains

Our variety of ancient grain are selected with great care. Many are not yet commercially available on the Quebec market.

The profile of the grain’s flavor differs not only on their variety, but also on the area they come from. As in the case of a vineyard, the “terroir”, influences the taste of the wine.

“I prefer the varieties of ‘neglected’ grain that haven’t been crossbred. The ancient grain make hearty breads, like the ones families ate 100 years ago. They’re also lower in gluten, and therefore easier to digest.”

Some of our varieties

Einkorn

Originally from Asia Minor (Anatolia and Mesopotamia),Einkorn is rooted in the beginnings of modern man, and is the oldest cereal cultivated and consumed by humankind. Containing very little gluten,Einkorn has high nutritional value. Because of its protein content, it supplies the body with amino acids, including eight of those called essential since the body cannot produce them by itself.

Emmer

One of the oldest grain varieties,. Cultivated more than 7,500 years ago in the Middle East, it is, along with einkorn are among the oldest cereal domesticated by mankind. Very common and grown on a large scale in ancient times, emmer is today a residual grain in mountainous areas of Europe and Asia.

Touzelle

Very rare today, touzelle is a grain formerly grown in France. It dates from the time of the Roman domination. The grain is tender, red, somewhat grayish, slender and elongated. It produce a flour of very good quality. It’s also called, poetically, “the bearded wheat of spring.”

Tvengsberg Midsummer Rye

Of Nordic origin, this ancient cereal has an exceptional taste. It’s the result of a cultivation technique dating from prehistory and practiced up to the 1700s, which consisted in first of all burning down part of a forest to release nutrients that would later nourish the seeds. Illegal today, the technique was carried out in Norway, Sweden and Finland. Thanks to research, the grain has been rehabilitated according to organic farming methods that make it possible to conserve its unique taste.

Carrying on an ancestral heritage

Daniel Desrosiers invests a certain percentage of the bakery revenue in the development and use of ancient grains. He works on a small plot on the farm Cadet Roussel to make adaptability tests of ancestral grain. He acts as an agrifood laboratory for farmers, who will ultimately grow the ancient varieties selected further to his experiments.

“It takes several years to get certain old varieties of seed to grow. I’m funding this process myself, which lasts from three to five years. Currently I’m working with certified organic farmers in Québec on reinstating grains that I’ve tested in commercial baking production.”

I am currently working on the multiplication and adaptability of the following varieties in Quebec soil. Blé de Noé, Blé du lot, Rouge de Bordeau, Bladelle de Puylaurens, Blé fin de Tauriac