{"id":15844,"date":"2019-05-01T16:07:36","date_gmt":"2019-05-01T20:07:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rdpmag.co\/?p=15844"},"modified":"2026-03-07T15:18:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T20:18:07","slug":"two-trips-with-les-iles-sylvain-lague","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gentologie.com\/en\/fine-dining\/two-trips-with-les-iles-sylvain-lague\/","title":{"rendered":"Two trips with Les \u00celes : The First, Sylvain Lague"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

While Spring is slowly starting to show its nose, Quebec is seeing its local distillers pull out some great products. One of these new products is Les \u00celes. I spoke with Sylvain Lague, president and founder of Les \u00celes and Maximiliano Vall\u00e9e Valletta, new General Manager and brand ambassador for the Les \u00celes portfolio which includes White Keys vodka, Sainte-Marie\u2019s rum and Portage gin.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We know each other, Sylvain; here we are with a wonderful product, Les \u00celes, could you tell us a little about it? We are not far from the Aperol anyway?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With this product, we are in the family of aperitifs, the family of bitters, Aperol, it is a brand well known a bit like Frigidaire in the world of refrigerators, it\u2019s like when creating White Keys, people did not tell me that I had done a Belvedere, but with this product, people say that I did a Aperol, but that\u2019s ok too, because they are the ones who created the category, create a cocktail, the \u2019Aperol Spritz, the Campari group has done an incredible job, I\u2019m at the limit, I\u2019m a little impostor coming back and taking a share in it, but hey we wanted to create our signature products, we have changed it as we liked it, we are close to Aperol in his style, but with a signature that is strong, which is ours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we speak at the level of taste, what is different in relation to Aperol?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two are similar, and often the bars and restaurants will make Spritz with one product. Because we know that 95% of sales are in Spritz. The difference with Aperol is that we are less sweet (250 g per liter vs 200 g per liter), we have different flavors, our bitterness comes from gentian liquor, bitter orange, acacias, rhubarb, sea buckthorn, juniper berry, ginger, very aromatic, more than Aperol, and a little less sweet, without being negative, we feel more bitterness in the Islands. I am between Contratto and Aperol. I think it\u2019s a good comparison. I have always been a fan of Contratto, and I think we have a bit more bitterness than the latter we are closer to the Aperol, but we are closer to the aromatic bouquet Contratto. We can see it a bit like that, we made a price that is quite competitive at $23.85 in the SAQ, and this project, among the 4 is by far the one who has raised the most instantly with a unanimous enthusiasm. The number of places in Quebec is impressive and even though I have a hard time believing it. The sommelier, the bartender, and everyone all love the product. It\u2019s rare that I hear anything negative about the product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it possible that people do not know much about the aperitifs? Yes they drink it in Spritz, but do they really know the product?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Spritz
Spritz with Les \u00celes at Quai no. 4
Photo: Normand Boulanger | RDPMAG<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Yes it\u2019s true you are right. There is a lot to do, it\u2019s a growing product. For example, Aperol has to sell about about 50,000 crates of his product, it\u2019s huge just for Quebec. And it is the Campari group which is behind and which is a big world leader and Aperol represents 26% of its sales. It\u2019s impressive and I am a small player, if I manage to have 10% of its sales there in Quebec, I will be happy. There will be other competitors. There are 50 Quebec gins and 2 Quebec aperitifs. Some places in Quebec have just returned Aperol and start to make Spritz while it\u2019s been 10 years in Italy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Personal experience, last year, I was in Gasp\u00e9sie and I asked for a Spritz, they had no Aperol and they did not know that. It\u2019s a bit funny to see the trends that are different in different regions of Quebec.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That brings me to tell you about the name of the product because you talk about Gasp\u00e9sie, we Les \u00celes, my grandparents come from Gasp\u00e9sie, I go to the Magdalen Islands every year, I\u2019m a fan of everything is water sports, either kites or others. The islands remind us what? For us it\u2019s the Magdalen Islands, it\u2019s the holidays, it\u2019s the good weather, it\u2019s sunbathing. For someone else it will be the X Islands, we want to make the world travel, it is not a great Burgundy wine, aperitifs is made to live a pleasure, live a moment, it\u2019s good or it\u2019s not good, it\u2019s not meant to be of the utmost complexity, I could talk to you about Les \u00celes for 50 years, but at one point we keep it simple. In reality, it is a festive product that is made to have fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I could talk to you about Les \u00celes for 50 years, but at one point we keep it simple. <\/i><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In reality, it is a festive product that is made to have fun.<\/i><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The idea of \u200b\u200bthis product, where did you come from?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Les
Les \u00celes CEO, Sylvain Lague
Photo: Ronny Lebrun<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In fact, when mixing with our other products, we used a lot Aperol or Contratto, like Negroni or other and I think we have a good demand. 5\u20138years ago, a Quebec aperitif, that would not have followed. If there are 100 customers who buy, we do not go into it. It was necessary that the Aperol pierce the market and now the local, the artisanal market and we made our place quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nicolas Duvernois<\/a>, from Duvernois, launched his PUR Vodka<\/a> 10 years ago, and it was difficult at the beginning and it is still a huge market. I cannot imagine if it had been Aperol. It probably would have been more difficult. And when you open the door, everyone wins.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes exactly. Sometimes in Quebec, we tend to be mean to each other in the competition, but that is not the case. I do not want to take part with this product there to another product from here, but I want us and Amermelade continues to grow by taking shares of Aperol. PUR Vodka still took a nice share of the market by far the first sale in Quebec, I have placed well with White Keys over time, but the vodka market is difficult. With the appetizer, people are a little less sensitive to brands as there are fewer local products. There is more than one curious-adventurous side in there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is this category of aperitif, it sells more is the summer or the opposite?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s really the year. It is certain that we have peaks in the summer with the terrace and during the holidays, but it\u2019s really all the time. We drink appetizers year-round now. When the sun comes out, we see a difference in spritz and ros\u00e9 sales. In October sales of ros\u00e9s drop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were talking about Nicolas (Duvernois) just now who has a large market share with his different products in a can, could you have released a Spritz Les \u00celes in a can?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes. Listen. We could have done that \u2026 (laughs) We move with Les \u00celes and we will look where we go\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was saying that Aperol had bottles in Italy, and that even Dillon\u2019s in Ontario has a bottled Negroni as well.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ready-to-drink is a carrier, but I would not have done both in the same year for sure. We never know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To finish our interview a little, you advise people to drink it with what Spritz Les \u00celes?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n