Heads Up for this Week:
Eat Local Week starts this Saturday (Oct 6th) — Hosted by City Market, this event has plenty of fun food events to partake in. I did not put these events in the WFE though so please check their full calendar and details here.
Save the Date – On October 31st, the Food Systems Spire will host its 3rd Annual Food Systems Symposium. It will run from 8am-4pm with a variety of speakers — including Marsh Lecturer Dr. Wouter van Hoven from the University of Pretoria and many more. Details to come. Please check our Facebook page for future updates.
Eat Local Week Events run all week. Find them all here.
Thursday (Oct 4)
Bacon Thursdays
Attendees get platters of bacon that they can dip in a variety of sauces. Yum. Oh yes — there’s music and chatting too. Partial proceeds benefit NOFA-Vermont.
7–10pm. Nutty Steph’s. Middlesex. Cost of food; cash bar.
Share the Harvest
Please join us for the annual Share the Harvest event, a statewide fundraiser for NOFA Vermont’s Farm Share Program. On October 4, restaurants and food stores across Vermont will donate a portion of their days’ proceeds to Farm Share, which provides subsidized CSA shares to limited-income Vermonters.
All day. Across Vermont. More information here.
Friday (Oct 5)
Oktoberfest Weekend
Attendees get their yodel on — or at least, they can listen to some yodeling and try their hand at some traditional dances. Good food and patient dance teachers are included.
4–11:59pm. Hulbert Outdoor Center. Fairlee. $10-25. More information here.
Monthly Wine Dinner
Local food and wine pairings are served up by Chef Dennis Vieira.
6pm. Red Clover Inn & Restaurant. Killington. $75 plus tax and tip. Please preregister here.
One-on-One Ag Finance Hour
Now is a great time to update your financials. “Ag Finance Hour” is a time to sit down with a UVM Extension Farm Business Management specialist, one-on-one, to work on the financial planning, critical to your farm’s success. Meetings last an hour to an hour and a half and are focused on developing balance sheets, cash budgets or completing financial analysis.
9am-3:30pm. Middlebury Extension Office. 23 Pond Lane, Suite 300. Middlebury. $15. Call now to schedule an appointment with Christi Sherlock or Erin Clark at 802-223-2389.
Sustainable Energy Field Day: Energy from the Sun!
Leo Siemion will give us a tour of the sustainable energy features on his 25 acre organic farm. The farm produces 11 varieties of garlic in raised fields, eggs from heritage Dominique breed of chickens, and bottled honey, comb honey and beeswax candles from 12 bee colonies.
10am-12pm. Summit Naturals Organic Farm. Free. Contact Violet Stone with questions or for directions at vws7@cornell.edu or (607) 255-9227
Saturday (Oct 6)
DIY Alternative Hot Water Systems
French farmer/inventor Jean Pain became famous for his innovative ideas about the interrelationship between agriculture and energy production. His Pain Mound focused on collecting heat from the composting of a woody biomass. This course will consist of the construction of a Pain Mound hot water system expected to produce 120-140 degree water at a constant rate of ½-gallon per minute — enough to heat a typical 1000-square foot home with a radiant-floor-heating system, or to provide for the home’s domestic hot water use — by flowing well-water through a coil built into the mound of composting wood chips and mulch.
All day Oct 6-7. Yestermorrow Design/Build School. 7865 Main Street. Waitsfield. $320. Please preregister here.
Piccola Italia: Little Italy Burlington, 1886-1968
Burlingtonians take an afternoon to remember the Queen City’s Italian heritage with delicious food, performances, films, and more.
2–5:30pm. Burlington City Hall. Burlington. Free.
Harpoon Octoberfest
Why this Octoberfest is spelled with a “c” instead of a “k” still mystifies me (please email me if you know the origins of this spelling – haylley.johnson@uvm.edu), but this event is bound to be delicious. Lederhosen and bratwurst are the name of the day.
12–6pm. Harpoon Brewery in Windsor. $15 includes one drink ticket; ID required for beer; free for kids under 13. More information here.
Harvest Weekend
19th-century farm activities abound at this seasonal celebration.
10am–5pm. Billings Farm & Museum. Woodstock. Regular admission, $3-12; free for kids under 3.
Harvestfest, Brewfest & Chili Cook-Off
Attendees get to enjoy gondola rides in addition to all the fantastic items listed in the title.
9am–10pm. Stratton Mountain Ski Resort. Stratton. More information here.
Adirondack Coast Wine, Cider & Food Festival
Tasty seasonal eats help support regional agriculture.
2–8pm. Crete Memorial Civic Center. Plattsburgh. $20-25; $36 per couple. Purchase tickets here.
Bean & Brew
Coffee and beer might seem an unlikely combo, but they do actually work well together as evidenced by this annual event.
12–6pm. Jay Peak Resort. Jay. $20 includes a commemorative glass and 12 draught tickets. More information here.
Burlington Food Tours
Food lovers get a guided food tour as they are led through tastings from local restaurants and food producers. Tours start at East Shore Vineyards Tasting Room.
12:30–3pm. Church Street Marketplace. Burlington. $45. Purchase tickets here.
Discover Food & Wine
Entertainment by jazz and blues performer Jenni Johnson accompany some sip-able vintages.
5–7:30pm. Smugglers’ Notch Resort. Jeffersonville. $29. More information here.
Horse Barn and CREAM Open House, Hosted by Dean Josie Davis
Visit the student-run dairy and horse barn cooperatives and see horseback riding demonstrations!
11am-2pm. Paul Miller Research & Teaching Complex. 500 Spear Street . Shuttle buses will go back and forth continuously from the Paul Miller Farm and to the Davis Center from 10:45am to 2:15pm.
Sunday (Oct 7)
NEFCU Giant Pumpkin Regatta & Festival
If racing hollowed-out large pumpkins didn’t seem like a good time already, this celebration includes pie-eating contests and crafts too. Sold(!) to the writer of this events calendar.
10am–3pm. Races start at noon. Waterfront Park. Burlington. Free. More information here.
Pumpkin Festival
This party for pumpkins has horse-drawn wagons and cider pressing to complete this day of family fun.
10am–4pm. Cedar Circle Farm. East Thetford. Free admission; $5 per car. More information here.
Vermont Pumpkin Chuckin’ Festival
And yet another pumpkin party — we can throw pumpkins long distances (with trebuchets) at this one however. There will be music by Mike Dunn and Jenn & John to accompany the festivities. Proceeds benefit the Lamoille Family Center.
11am. Boyden Farm. Cambridge. $5; free for kids under 4; $20 family maximum. More information here.
Famous Apple Pie Festival
With over 1500 homemade pies surrounding attendees, everyone will be able to pick their favorite one. Trying to not buy all of them, however, may be a feat.
10am. Dummerston Congregational Church. East Dummerston. Cost of food.
Williston Chowder Challenge
14 area restaurants compeat to make the best chowder. Attendees get to try them too. Proceeds benefit the Williston Community Food Shelf and the Williston Police Officers Association.
12–3pm. Town Green. Williston. $10; free for children under 12.
Edible Forest Gardens
Edible Forest Gardening is the conscious application of the principles of ecology to the design of home scale gardens that mimic forest ecosystem structure and function, but grow food, fuel, fiber, fodder, fertilizer, “farmaceuticals” and fun. This workshop will offer an in-depth exploration of forest ecology, site analysis and assessment, the design process, and interaction with some of the lesser known plants that can comprise ‘perennial polycultures’.
All day 10/7-12. Yestermorrow Design/Build School. 7865 Main Street. Waitsfield. $320. Competency Level: Intermediate to Professional. Please preregister here.
Harvest and Courage Celebration
Harvest and Courage is an annual harvest festival put on by Center for Whole Communities at Knoll Farm. Not your typical harvest festival, it is a celebration of the land and its bounty, of community, and an event designed to renew our collective courage and be inspired for the work ahead. Included in the schedule this year are a variety of workshops and family activities, music by Wee Folkestra and the Brett Hughes Band, harvest lunch prepared from local fields. It happens rain or shine, so dress warmly. Bring your own bowl and spoon for lunch.
10am. Knoll Farm. 700 Bragg Hill Road. Fayston. Free. Please preregister here.
Harvest Festival
Celebrate the bounty of fall harvest with a local feast and live music by Katie Trautz & the Tall Boys. A fun and delicious way to celebrate the fall season!
11am-5pm. 3597 Route 74 West. Shoreham. $14 per plate for adults, $6 for kids. More information here.
How to Grow High Quality Crops
Join Dan Kittredge for his talk on Bionutrient Rich Crop Production.
3pm. Shelburne Farms. 1611 Harbor Road. Shelburne.
Monday (Oct 8)
No events known. If you have food events for this newsletter, please send them to haylley.johnson@uvm.edu.
Tuesday (Oct 9)
No events known. If you have food events for this newsletter, please send them to haylley.johnson@uvm.edu.
Wednesday (Oct 10)
Sun to Cheese Tours
Cheese lovers get an inside look at dairy farming and cheese production.
2–4pm. Shelburne Farms. Shelburne. $15 includes a block of cheese.
Swede Midge Workshop
Swede midge is an invasive insect pest that has been found in Vermont since 2006, but is recently expanding its range. The midge attacks the growing tips of brassica plants. This workshop discusses what is known about the midge, how to monitor for the midge, typical damage signs, and the current best practices for controlling the midge in organic systems.
3-5pm. Intervale Community Farm. Burlington. Contact Yolanda Chen with questions at Yolanda.chen@uvm.edu.
