Bree Eagle moved to Salt Spring Island when she was five years old. Her parents ran a ten acre, certified organic farm and she spent her childhood learning to grow fruits and vegetables. She loved the apple orchard most of all including the young trees her parents planted and the 100 year old giants planted generations before. As the farm and orchard grew, Bree learned to preserve their abundance…canning, freezing, drying, and most of all…fermenting! Apple juice turned to hard cider and cider eventually to cider vinegar. And thus, a business was born. Now Bree focuses all of her time on the art of fermentation, harvesting island grown fruits and herbs to use for her vinegars, staying connected to her agricultural roots. Though she no longer lives on her parent’s farm, that land will always be a part of who she is. The beautiful apple tree in our logo is one of the heritage trees that still grow there. A Laxton Superb, planted in the early 1900’s, it is a piece of the past, rooted in traditions and still growing strong.
We make our vinegars using slow, traditional small-batch methods from a wide range of local fruits and herbs. The first step is to ferment local fruit into beautiful wines (that we sadly never get to drink!). The wine goes into fermentation tanks where natural cultures convert the alcohol to acetic acid. This natural fermentation takes a long time. We often wait for up to a year before the vinegar is ready to bottle. It’s tough to be patient, but the small-batch approach ensures the quality and uniqueness of our products. We make a wide variety of fruit wine vinegars, great for salad dressings and marinades. We also produce a line of balsamic-style fruit vinegars perfect for dipping with bread and oil or adding a fruity twist to your favourite cocktail!
We respectfully acknowledge that the Filberg Festival takes place on the unceded traditional territory of the K'omoks First Nation, Gila 'kasla...Hay ch q'a'.
