Sylvain Puccini in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

In 2019, we did an article about cheese making workshops in Montreal (click here). The classes were being taught by Sylvain Puccini and his partner, Philippe Kotula at Les Ateliers Fromagers. At that time, pre-pandemic, the classes were live and now they are a combination of live, online and video.

Sylvain is a very private person and there is very little information about him online. But, he was kind enough to give us this interview and we are grateful.

Sylvain’s Story

I was born in Marseille, France. I immigrated to Canada 7 years ago, and when I arrived in Montreal, as a good Frenchman, I planned to keep my cheese consumption as it was in France (big). Well, I realized it wasn’t possible because of the prices of groceries being a little bit more expensive.

So, I had an online business idea which was to work with small scale artisan cheesemakers via an internet platform. For that, I had to pass an exam on food hygiene and safety here in Quebec.

That’s how I met my current partner who is a professional cheesemaker. But after several meetings, I changed my business idea and we planned together to organize cheesemaking workshops, Les Ateliers Fromagers.

He gave me the basics (thank you Phil), around lactic cheese like faisselle, goat cheese and even quick mozzarella. But I quickly wanted to go further and organize cheesemaking workshops about aged cheeses.

So we started with camembert and now we’re teaching fresh cheeses but also raclette, swiss type, etc… a great venture! We have met so many wonderful people during these years, and it’s not over!

During the week, I’m an IT analyst (for 20 years) but when the evening comes, I change my hat to be a home cheesemaker and a teacher. I love this big contrast, but I have to say that some things between IT and cheesemaking are in the same DNA. We have to be meticulous, rigorous, and concentrated during cheesemaking, as it is when coding a web app, for example.

I don’t currently have an official cheesemaker diploma, so when I started, I had to do some research and buy some advanced books, because not only did I have to make cheese for my own consumption, but I had to teach our attendees how to make it at home, without special equipment.

Since then, I’ve done more than 200 workshops with my partner and maybe answered thousands of questions – hahaha, that’s what I love!

What do you most enjoy making?

I don’t have a real preference, I love all cheese but, yes, especially those which are stronger. I enjoy making goat cheese and washed rinds like munster style, vacherin style, raclette… It’s a real pleasure for me to age them a little bit more than expected to give them a special taste! Affinage is an art, even at home.

Camembert, brie or cheddar curds are cheeses I’m making a lot for my family. There isn’t a week that I don’t make cheese, even on holidays. I think that cheesemaking is something like meditating for me.

If you want to follow me on Instagram, that’s where I publish pictures of my makings.

What are your goals for the future?

My personal goals are to continue improving my skills everyday! You know, cheese books have been my bedside books for the last 6 years and my collection is not so bad (indeed, great books Ricki!).

I am also currently in the process of completing a food fermentation course at Harvard (online) and I plan to obtain a real cheesemaker diploma, maybe for a future life, who knows!

I have several projects that will go out in 2022 (I hope), but some have to be kept secret 😉

What advice do you have for beginners?

Read, test, try, be curious ! And never give up. Sometimes it could be a headache because we are working with a living matter (even if here in Quebec, we are not authorized to use raw milk) that could interact with so many things… milk/cream, recipe, cultures, rennet, the cheesemaker’s gestures, environment, aging cellar, etc…

The best advice I give when I’m teaching is to write everything you are doing because everything you change can make a difference. So, it helps to identify an eventual problem or to reproduce your dreamy cheese the next time! And, yes, of course, have fun during your home cheesemaking! It’s the main goal!

Do you have other hobbies?

Yes, too many! But first I love food in general and microbrewery beers! I like to choose beers to make nice pairings with my cheese.

I’ve been doing a lot of sports for many years like tennis and badminton, but especially during the pandemic I ran about 200 km per month (124 miles). I love doing this early in the morning to start my day, just before a – cheesy – breakfast 😀

I’ve also been drumming (rock music) since my youth for my pleasure.

And of course, I like to relax, in a kayak or a paddle on a lake. But my cheeses are never far away 😉

Les Ateliers Fromagers

Phone: (438) 388-2208

E-mail: allo@ateliersfromagers.com

Website: https://www.ateliersfromagers.com (You can opt to have it translated into English.)

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