Strawberry Picking

Check out them berries!  Gillespie Farm near Gray, Maine, had a huge variety, and a million strawberries.  EVERYWHERE.  And they all looked incredible, no smushed ones.  The beautiful colors made me think in cliches, of strawberries as tiny jewels.  Sweet, delicious, rubies.

Cider Week 2013

This past fall, I was finally able to attend some awesome events for New York's Cider week, a celebration of all things malus domestica, organized by Glynwood.  A talk by the founder and owner of Original Sin, at Bierkraft, showcased many heirloom cider apples.  Most were familiar; some, such as Dabinett, which was bittersweet with a texture like freeze-dried ice cream, were not.

The event I was most excited about occurred at Jimmy's 43, an excellent beer and cider bar and restaurant located in a cozy downstairs location.  I had read about Andy Brennan, the owner and cider-maker at Aaron Burr cidery and was excited to hear what he had to say about making cider.  A proponent for using wild fruits and vegetables whenever possible, he told us about walking through the woods to find local wild apples, and about how their taste, and nutrients, are like nothing growing domestically.  He sat with us around a small table and I was mesmerized by his views and his quiet, almost shy nature, that belied the passion he has for he subject.  He did tastes of apples from his area, and then a peary cider pear.  The skin was so tannic, my whole mouth went dry from the tiniest piece, but the flesh inside was sweet and juicy, almost impossibly so.  Of course, no event was complete without a taste of cider.  These hard-to-find and costly ciders are worth the hunt.  They're like nothing else that's being made out there.  Johnny Appleseed would have been proud.

Casco Bay Eye

This past weekend was the Old Port Festival in Portland, Maine.  Fantastic timing led to me watching the sunset while spinning round and round.