– by Deborah Rogers –
This is the last in a four-part series on some of the unique and local shops the Saanich Peninsula has to offer.
Tucked away off Mills Road, Laura Waters has found a funky old farmhouse on four acres of attractive farmland. Surrounded by pretty flowerbeds sits the Snowdon House Studio: part workshop, part store. If you’ve visited a farmer’s market in the area you will almost certainly have encountered Snowdon House’s tasty products before. What you might not realize if you haven’t visited the studio is just how many products Laura, and her team of four, produce.
The walls are lined from ceiling to floor with intricate paper products: cards, stationery and gift wrap. Then there are shelves of gourmet food: vinegars, syrups, spice mixes, bread mixes, soups and pastas. It’s all packaged in the distinctive own label boxes, making every item look like an indulgence.
Local is very important to Laura. She had always dreamed of finding space to expand her business. The paper products were the beginning; first making packaging for other people’s products, now the focus is on packaging up their own gourmet line.
Everything is made on-site with a wonderful, crowded workshop at the back of the studio housing the machinery needed to create the unique paper. I’m told the process is a trade secret, but Laura lets me know that some of the inclusions are herbs, flowers and metal leaf. It makes for a really dynamic look and, of course, no two pieces are the same.
What goes inside the unusual packaging is the other part of the story. Since moving to North Saanich Laura has been working on developing and growing her range of delicious foodie items. The experimenting all happens on-site and relies on all the staff taste-testing and refining each recipe. Spice mixes are new this year. They join the ever-popular soup and bread mixes that are always big sellers at the markets.
I sampled a Douglas Fir Vinegar. Made through an infusion of the new tips of Snowdon House’s own 1,600 Christmas trees, the vinegar has an unusual floral lemon-pepper taste: a real West Coast flavour that works in many different recipes. The flavoured vinegars and syrups are all very versatile. I’m quite drawn by Laura’s suggestion of mixing them with ice and vodka, but you could make a strawberry sorbet instead.
The best way to learn some of these new techniques is to visit the team at one of the summer markets, or at the studio itself. (During August’s Flavour Trail they will be demonstrating sorbet making.) With the fifth anniversary of Snowdon House approaching, Laura has many ambitious plans including a big party to celebrate the occasion and to thank the community for their ongoing support. Open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., on Mills Road in North Saanich, Snowdon House is a treasure trove.
