Story by Adrian Brijbassi

Vacay.ca Managing Editor

Shane Chartrand says hesa国际传媒檚 making up for lost time.

The Edmonton-based chef only learned the extent of his Indigenous roots when he was 29 years old. Shortly after finding out about his lineage, Chartrand became determined to know all he could about his culture and use his skills as a chef to celebrate its cuisine.

Now 43, Chartrand is excelling. He represented the Alberta capital at the competition, has written a cookbook, sa国际传媒淢arrow: Progressive Indigenous Cuisinesa国际传媒� and is launching a new 150-seat restaurant at Edmontonsa国际传媒檚 .

On top of leading a kitchen in his home province, Chartrand also travels around Canada to introduce his cuisine and how it connects to stories of his culture.

On National Indigenous Peoples Day, June 21, he will be among chefs collaborating on a dinner in the Okanagan Nation, on the traditional territory of the Osoyoos Indian Band.

The 60-seat Elements Dinner sa国际传媒� so named for the Earth, Air, Fire, and Water that will inspire the feast sa国际传媒� is set to take place on the patio at winery, which overlooks vineyards and Lake Osoyoos.

Here is an introduction to the chefs who will be participating.

Shane Chartrand

The executive chef at Sage, also at the River Cree Resort, was raised in foster homes and later adopted into a M茅tis family in Alberta. When he learned he was from the Enoch Nation, part of the Plains Cree people, he also gained a new focus for his culinary talents.

sa国际传媒淚t can be deep and dark and cool,sa国际传媒� he says about Indigenous cooking. sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 wrapped in spirituality, and when I found out all of that then I thought, sa国际传媒榃hy cansa国际传媒檛 I celebrate my identity?sa国际传媒檚a国际传媒�

He shifted from Asian and Japanese cuisine to learning about game meats and foraged fruits, herbs, and flowers that are used so often in Indigenous recipes from central Canada.

sa国际传媒淔rom now to the day I expire, I will celebrate and research Indigenous backgrounds, food culture, and food relations with elders,sa国际传媒� Chartrand says.

In the past two years, he has visited nine different tribes, learning and documenting their way of life. From each of them, he retains stories about how their food consumption is impacted by their culture.

For example, he says he was moved by the Haida adoration of chum salmon, which is widely considered an inferior fish product. But, as Chartrand found out, the chum salmon is revered by the people known as the warriors of the Pacific northwest because of the fishsa国际传媒檚 tenacity, which gives it a kinship with B.C.sa国际传媒檚 Haida Nation.

sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 a big, strong fish, it has to battle through some difficult waters, and the belief is that strength will be part of you when you consume it,sa国际传媒� Chartrand says, explaining why an unheralded species has meaning to that specific Indigenous community.

sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 those kinds of stories that I bring from every nation and what I want to share when I cook. Food and story go hand in hand.sa国际传媒�

Joseph Shawana

At in Toronto, Joseph Shawana spotlights the ingredients and flavours of his heritage.

A member of the Odawa Nation, he was raised on the Wikwemikong Unceded Reserve in Manitoulin, a scenic destination about 550 kilometres northwest of Toronto.

Trained in classic French cuisine, Shawana has blended his skills with recipes and influences from the matriarchs in his family. The name of his 27-seat restaurant means sa国际传媒済randmothersa国际传媒� in Cree.

The result is a menu that makes a bold, uncompromising statement as it aims to introduce Indigenous food to a wide audience.

sa国际传媒淎 lot of our clientele are from European descent and theysa国际传媒檙e always blown away about the simplicity of what we do and how itsa国际传媒檚 not overcomplicated,sa国际传媒� he says. sa国际传媒淲e do a venison osso bucco; a braised elk and a pickled elk heart. We have a pemmican dish where we work with traditional recipes and try modernizing it.

He will be cooking in B.C. for the first time when he brings his skills to Osoyoos in June.

Shawana has teamed with Chartrand at similar events and says diners will enjoy a diverse meal.

sa国际传媒淓ach one of us has something to bring to the table,sa国际传媒� he says. sa国际传媒淪hanesa国际传媒檚 cooking technique and background are completely different than mine. When we collaborate we come up with some amazing menus. Thatsa国际传媒檚 one of the things to look forward to.sa国际传媒�

Orlin Godfrey

Godfrey, who oversees the menu at NKsa国际传媒橫ip Cellars, will be the host chef for the Elements feast. As such, he sees part of his role as a champion for the Okanagansa国际传媒檚 local growing scene.

sa国际传媒淲hat Isa国际传媒檓 hoping to do is to express what the Okanagan can do, because it is in between a lot of things. Wesa国际传媒檙e not on the coast and wesa国际传媒檙e not in the Alberta prairies, wesa国际传媒檙e kind of in the middle of those two places. And in the south, with our climate being so hot, we tend to see a lot of young leaves early,sa国际传媒� Godfrey says.

A Vancouver transplant, Godfrey has been amazed by the quality and variety of produce he comes across every day in the desert-like climate of the South Okanagan. The relationships he has built with farmers offers him deeper understanding of the areasa国际传媒檚 possibilities.

sa国际传媒淎s with any chef that is reliant on their area or the culture thatsa国际传媒檚 behind the area, you have to talk to the people who are actually out in the field, who know whatsa国际传媒檚 growing and whatsa国际传媒檚 growing well,sa国际传媒� he adds.

Godfrey also has the distinction of working at a winery, which has sa国际传媒渆xponentially increasedsa国际传媒� his understanding of food-and-wine pairing wines.

sa国际传媒淗aving a winemaker on hand to explain the flavours and how their wine works with a specific terroir is something I havensa国际传媒檛 been around before. Having that expertise about the land and what we grow is something I appreciate for sure,sa国际传媒� says Godfrey, who will be joined at the Elements dinner by NKsa国际传媒橫ip Cellars winemaker Justin Hall.

Although not a member of an Indigenous nation, Godfrey knows the power and emotional impact that collaborations such as the one planned for June 21 can have on guests. Hesa国际传媒檚 excited to team with Chartrand and Shawana, and keen to showcase his regionsa国际传媒檚 ingredients.

sa国际传媒淓verything is just getting going,sa国际传媒� he says of the spring growing season in Oliver and Osoyoos. sa国际传媒淲esa国际传媒檙e seeing a lot of fresh lettuces, herbs, arugula, asparagus popping up, and within the next month theresa国际传媒檚 going to be a lot more.sa国际传媒�

Justin Hall (winemaker)

Hall, a member of the Osoyoos Indian Band, will not only oversee the wine pairings for the five-course Elements Dinner,. but will also share stories about the history of NKsa国际传媒橫ip Cellars, which was named the 2016 Canadian Winery of the Year by Intervin.

Hallsa国际传媒檚 path to becoming one of the few Indigenous winemakers in North America began more than 15 years ago when the leadership of the OIB encouraged him to take up the trade.

He did so with gusto, studying in New Zealand and working alongside fellow winemaker Randy Picton to develop his talents at NKsa国际传媒橫ip Cellars, which is a partnership between the OIB and .

sa国际传媒淥ne of the things I learned early on is that winemaking isnsa国际传媒檛 about a recipe. This is about consistency. Itsa国际传媒檚 about educating yourself year after year, knowing your land and your vines so well that you know what wine yousa国际传媒檙e going to get even before you harvest your grapes,sa国际传媒� Hall says. sa国际传媒淲hen people suggest that winemaking is like art, I think where thatsa国际传媒檚 true is artists see the whole picture before they start. I see wine that way now. I see the end result before I begin the process.sa国际传媒�

Those results have produced national sensations that will be among the many wines poured on National Indigenous Peoples Day.

The Elements event will take place in cooperation with , the luxury resort that is part of the Hyatt Unbound Collection of properties and is next door to the NKsa国际传媒橫ip Cellars patio.

MORE ABOUT THE ELEMENTS DINNER

Date: June 21, 2018, 6:30-11 p.m.

Location: NKsa国际传媒橫ip Cellars patio, 1400 Rancher Creek Road, Osoyoos, B.C. (see map below)

Tickets: The five-course dinner includes wine pairings and costs $155 per person. .

MORE ABOUT SPIRIT RIDGE, UNBOUND COLLECTION BY HYATT

Location: 1200 Rancher Creek Road, Osoyoos, B.C. (see map below)

Website:

Telephone: 250-495-5445

Room rates: A search on the propertysa国际传媒檚 booking engine returned a nightly rate of $256 for a June weekend.

MORE VACAY.CA

sa国际传媒� One of Canadasa国际传媒檚 leading wineries, NKsa国际传媒橫ip Cellars is building on the reputation it has built for producing award-winning wines and providing outstanding tasting experiences.

sa国际传媒� Immigrants from India, farmers devoted to sustainability, and Indigenous community members have turned the grape-growing regions of Oliver and Osoyoos into global success stories.

sa国际传媒� The grape-growing land of the South Okanagan resides in the traditional territory of the Osoyoos Indian Band, which is a community of about 540 members.