Vintage Sardines 2023

Vintage Sardines 2023 by Mouettes d´Arvor

The Mouettes d'Arvor Vintage Sardines de Saison 2023 are fished off the coast of Brittany and processed into aromatic canned fish in Concarneau. Under the premium brand Les Mouettes d'Arvor, named after the football team Jacques (II) played for, Conserverie Gonidec has been launching a limited edition of vintage sardines every year since 1996. These sardines are caught at the end of the season, when their flesh has a high fat content, and canned in tins depicting the lives of Concarneau fishermen.

Sardines de Saison – Millésime 2023

The vintage, Millésimées sardines from Les Mouettes d'Arvor are exquisitely flavored, firm-fleshed, and have a unique aroma. The longer the vintage sardines are allowed to mature in the tins, the more tender the fish becomes, while also gaining in depth of flavor. Try it!

Mouettes d´Arvor - the premium brand of Gonidec

In southern Brittany on the Atlantic coast near Concarneau is the home of Valérie and Jacques Gonidec, the third. Their Conserverie Gonidec is a family-run business that has been producing canned fish using traditional methods since 1959. The fresh, high-quality sardines, as well as other fish such as mackerel and tuna, are caught off the coast of Brittany and then cleaned, cut, and preserved by hand in olive oil in pretty tins by experienced hands at the Conserverie. In 1995, the cannery moved to new modern production facilities. Many specialties and new flavors have since joined the traditional recipes, but the know-how about canned fish remains the same for all of them.

Sardines are migratory fish, so fishing for sardines is seasonal. At the beginning of spring, the famous sardines appear near the Breton coasts. Conserverie Gonidec has been sourcing freshly caught fish daily from fishermen in the port of the small town for 40 years.

As soon as the fish arrives at the factory, it is immersed in an ice-cold saltwater bath. This process, also known as brining, allows the sardine flesh to scale and firm up. Then, about forty employees perform the "tripping" process, cleaning and preparing the sardines by hand. They are then showered and dried on racks before being fried in hot oil and then allowed to rest and drain overnight. The canning ("emboîtage") only takes place the next day, when the sardines are freed from their tails and heads and placed into the tins by hand. Today, Condinac is the only remaining cannery in Concarneau.

Content 115g – Drained weight 87g – Best before end 2031