To join, click here.

Harrisons Restaurant

Many ski towns offer a variety of food, but not a variety with quality.  Stowe is known for having both; here are a few of our local favorites:

Harrison’s, ask for Andrew and Kathy Kneale, the mother and son duo that has been pleasing locals with their food for decades. Casual dining located in the Stowe village below the Coldwell Banker Carlson Real Estate office, try the mussels or cheese burger, both are amazing. http://www.harrisonsstowe.com/

Frida’s Taqueria brings traditional Mexican to Stowe. Known for clean, crisp flavors and local ingredients, Frida’s offers something not normally found this far north. The tres tacos platter offers you variety; the fried cod, fried oyster, carnitas and carne asada are just a few that bring Mexico to the cold north. http://www.fridastaqueria.com/

Cork located in downtown Waterbury, VT at the corner of Stowe Street. This wine bar and market was just opened by a long time friend Danielle Nichols. She offers a wide variety of beautiful tasting wines along with a cozy atmosphere. Stop by on your way to Stowe for a drink and pick up a bottle on your way out the door. http://corkvt.com/

Piecasso Pizzeria, NYC slices in Stowe also rated Top 11 slices in America by Travel and Leisure Magazine. They have a great family set up and also a cool bar and game room, plus the pizza is great. http://www.piecasso.com/

Gracie’s, another Stowe Classic, run by Archie, you’ll never leave there hungry. Known for their burgers, Gracie’s take it to the next level. I love the boxer and their famous chicken sandwich. http://www.gracies.com/

Cactus Cafe is Stowe’s Tex-Mex favorite. Offering their famous jalapeño chips at the table, beware they bring the heat. Also on the menu are slow smoked pulled pork tacos, a southern twist to a Mexican standby. Wash it all down with their Mansfield marg! http://www.thecactuscafe.com/

McCarthy’s is the only stop for breakfast in Stowe. They’ve been serving it up for over 30 years and know how breakfast should be done. Ask for Diane, she’ll probably be at the door waiting for you with a smile. Their homemade corn beef hash is made from scratch, just like the maple nut bread. http://mccarthysrestaurantstowe.com/

For more formal dining try:

Michael’s On The Hill located in Waterbury center, just south of Stowe. This chef owned restaurant sources local foods at a very high quality. Offering tasting menus and creativity, Michael’s if perfect for a romantic dinner. Try their Manhattan, made with port wine, as a bourbon lover; I give it two thumbs up. http://www.michaelsonthehill.com/

Hen Of The Wood located just off I-89 in Waterbury this kitchen has been cranking out high-end food for many years. The unique location and old stone mill offers a view of the river and waterfall which is only match by the quality of the food. http://www.henofthewood.com/

Kitchen Table Bistro, a bit further away, located in Richmond, but well worth the drive. As with the other two they locally source their food and offer a stunning wine list. The menu changes with the seasons and offers a real look into handcrafted Vermont food. http://kitchentablebistro.com/

Example of a healthy school lunch

School lunch has been an issue brought up again and again over the past year.  How do schools work within their budgets, but at the same time provide nutritious and quality food to growing kids.  Keeping it affordable is usually the main driving factor, which is why some schools classify pizza as a vegetable.  One Vermont school, Harwood Union, has made the effort to combat this issue by keeping it local and embracing a farm to school outlook.  They coupled this with the hiring of a professional chef.  Harwood is one of 200 Vermont schools that participate in some sort of  farm to school initiatives.
To read more about Harwood’s efforts click here: Vermont Life Magazine – Winter 2011 – 2012.

Click here to learn more about Vermont’s FEED program

Here’s the idea as presented to us:

As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high gear to provide Americans with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods — merchandise that has been produced at the expense of American labor. This year will be different. This year Americans will give the gift of genuine concern for other Americans. There is no longer an excuse that, at gift giving time, nothing can be found that is produced by American hands. Yes there is!

It’s time to think outside the box, people. Who says a gift needs to fit in a shirt box, wrapped in Chinese produced wrapping paper?

Everyone — yes EVERYONE gets their hair cut. How about gift certificates from your local American hair salon or barber?

Try Salon Salon, located on the Mountain Road in Stowe. Ask for Montana or Jen. Having grown up with both of them I know you’ll be happy with your salon services. http://salonsalonvt.com/

Gym membership? It’s appropriate for all ages who are thinking about some health improvement.

Try The Swimming Hole, it offers Stowe’s best indoor swimming and work out combo. Try taking a class from Molly to get into skiing shape. http://www.theswimmingholestowe.com/

Try Phit for those who want a no frills gym and high energy classes. http://phitperformance.com/

Are you one of those extravagant givers who think nothing of plunking down the Benjamin’s on a Chinese made flat-screen? Perhaps that grateful gift receiver would like his driveway sealed, or lawn mowed for the summer, or driveway plowed all winter, or games at the local golf course.

Call AJ at Yankee Home Solutions. AJ, a Stowe Vermont local, is known around town for going the extra mile for his customers and clients. AJ has a vast knowledge of all things home related and can easily address any job. He also is a master mower and snow plower. Call AJ at 802-598-4348

Try Ryder Brook Golf Course, ask for Johann. This family run golf course is a low pressure course. The nine holes are challenging, but a great place for beginners to start. Johann is a very good friend and you’ll be well taken care of and enjoy the course.  www.ryderbrookgc.com/home

There are a bazillion owner-run restaurants — all offering gift certificates. And, if your intended isn’t the fancy eatery sort, what about a half dozen breakfasts at the local breakfast joint. Remember, folks this isn’t about big National chains — this is about supporting your home town Americans with their financial lives on the line to keep their doors open.

Some of our local favorites:

Harrison’s, ask for Andrew and Kathy Kneale, the mother and son duo that has been pleasing locals with their food for decades. Casual dining located in the Stowe village below the Coldwell Banker Carlson Real Estate office, try the mussels or cheese burger, both are amazing. http://www.harrisonsstowe.com/

Frida’s Taqueria brings traditional Mexican to Stowe. Known for clean, crisp flavors and local ingredients, Frida’s offers something not normally found this far north. The tres tacos platter offers you variety; the fried cod, fried oyster, carnitas and carne asada are just a few that bring Mexico to the cold north. http://www.fridastaqueria.com/

Cork located in downtown Waterbury, VT at the corner of Stowe Street. This wine bar and market was just opened by a long time friend Danielle Nichols. She offers a wide variety of beautiful tasting wines along with a cozy atmosphere. Stop by on your way to Stowe for a drink and pick up a bottle on your way out the door. http://corkvt.com/

Piecasso Pizzeria, NYC slices in Stowe also rated Top 11 slices in America by Travel and Leisure Magazine. They have a great family set up and also a cool bar and game room, plus the pizza is great. http://www.piecasso.com/

Gracie’s, another Stowe Classic, run by Archie, you’ll never leave there hungry. Known for their burgers, Gracie’s take it to the next level. I love the boxer and their famous chicken sandwich. http://www.gracies.com/

Cactus Cafe is Stowe’s Tex-Mex favorite. Offering their famous jalapeño chips at the table, beware they bring the heat. Also on the menu are slow smoked pulled pork tacos, a southern twist to a Mexican standby. Wash it all down with their Mansfield marg! http://www.thecactuscafe.com/

McCarthy’s is the only stop for breakfast in Stowe. They’ve been serving it up for over 30 years and know how breakfast should be done. Ask for Diane, she’ll probably be at the door waiting for you with a smile. Their homemade corn beef hash is made from scratch, just like the maple nut bread. http://mccarthysrestaurantstowe.com/

For more formal dining try:

Michael’s On The Hill located in Waterbury center, just south of Stowe. This chef owned restaurant sources local foods at a very high quality. Offering tasting menus and creativity, Michael’s if perfect for a romantic dinner. Try their Manhattan, made with port wine, as a bourbon lover; I give it two thumbs up. http://www.michaelsonthehill.com/

Hen Of The Wood located just off I-89 in Waterbury this kitchen has been cranking out high-end food for many years. The unique location and old stone mill offers a view of the river and waterfall which is only match by the quality of the food. http://www.henofthewood.com/

Kitchen Table Bistro, a bit further away, located in Richmond, but well worth the drive. As with the other two they locally source their food and offer a stunning wine list. The menu changes with the seasons and offers a real look into handcrafted Vermont food. http://kitchentablebistro.com/

How many people couldn’t use an oil change for their car, truck or motorcycle, done at a shop run by the American working guy?

Call Larson at Larson’s Garage. He’s great for a quick oil change, tire swap or larger body work. Larson: 802-888-4439.

Thinking about a heartfelt gift for mom? Mom would LOVE the services of a local cleaning lady for a day.

Give Eva a call; she’s always on the move and looking for new homes to clean. She doesn’t let dust lie. She brings her own cleaning supplies and can do long term or one time cleaning. Eva Beugnies: 802-399-0160

My computer could use a tune-up, and I KNOW I can find some young guy who is struggling to get his repair business up and running.

Call Frank at Fix PC, they are the Stowe experts on all things computer related. If you need your system cleaned up or need an entire office network set up, Fix PC can get the job done. http://fixpc.com/

OK, you were looking for something more personal. Local crafts people spin their own wool and knit them into scarves. They make jewelry, and pottery and beautiful wooden boxes.

MTL Jewelry Design, custom and handcrafted jewelry done by Molly. This is not your standard cookie cutter jewelry, these are unique and one of a kind designs. As my wife, sister and mother can attest, these make great gifts for any woman in your family. http://www.mtljewelrydesign.com/

Stowe Gems, Barry’s been a fixture in the Stowe jewelry scene for decades. He offers all kinds of gems done in custom designs. Barry’s knowledge of gems and how they work with metals and the best way to present them if unmatched. As the creator of my wife’s engagement and wedding band I can tell you that when you are looking for high-end gem work, Stowe Gems is the best. http://www.stowegems.com/

Plan your holiday outings at local, owner operated restaurants and leave your server a nice tip. And, how about going out to see a play or ballet at your hometown theatre.

Stowe Theater Guild has been entertaining locals and visitors for years. Love the theater or have someone in your family that does? Treat them to a night at the show. http://www.stowetheatre.com/

Musicians need love too, so find a venue showcasing local bands. This is where we talk about bars! Stowe has plenty to offer, but if you are looking for music there are a few choice places.

Matterhorn is known for a few things, one is après ski, and it’s the place to go. Cozy up to the wrap around bar and wash down the day’s skiing with some suds and pizza or sushi. The Matterhorn has live music Thursday through Sunday during the ski season, offering the area’s best local artist. They’ve been serving them since 1950, so you know they do it right. http://www.matterhornbar.com

Rusty Nail, Stowe’s largest night club. It offers bands and DJ’s throughout the winter. They have the largest dance floor and stage in town, so if you want to get down it’s a good start. http://rustynailbar.com/site/

Rimrock’s Tavern is more sports bar than music venue, but they do crank out the latest hits and have DJ’s on weekends. So if you’re looking for a mix of both it’s a good place to start. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rimrocks/91014860686

Honestly, people, do you REALLY need to buy another ten thousand Chinese lights for the house? When you buy a five dollar string of light, about fifty cents stays in the community. If you have those kinds of bucks to burn, leave the mailman, trash guy or babysitter a nice BIG tip.

You see, Christmas is no longer about draining American pockets so that China can build another glittering city. Christmas is now about caring about US, encouraging American small businesses to keep plugging away to follow their dreams. And, when we care about other Americans, we care about our communities, and the benefits come back to us in ways we couldn’t imagine.

Don’t miss the seven miles of shopping.

Wine tasting at Trapp Family Lodge.

Stowe Farmers Market.

4th of July Celebrations Here.

Come celebrate wonderful wine, food, scenic vistas of Trapp Family Lodge and help our local hospital!  The 13th Annual Stowe Wine and Food Classic will take place June 24, 25 and 26, 2011.  The Classic will feature local chef’s and artist as well as stunning wine provided by Arcadian Winery.

On Saturday June 25th Before heading to the Gala Diner & Live Auction at Trapp Family Lodge, we invite you to stop by our pre-Gala cocktail party from 4 to 6 PM located at Still Point. 

100 Haul road is located just down the road from the Trapp Family Lodge and offers breathtaking views of the Worcester Mountains and open meadow lands.  Join us before you head off to the Gala. 

RSVP to the party by emailing: info@smithmacdonaldrealestategroup.com

For more information about Still Point, please click here.

For more information about the 13th Annual Stowe Wine & Food Classic, please click here.

{First We’d Like to Say}

California has more sand. Texas has bigger hair. New York has more Knickerbockers.
But when it comes to certain other things, Vermont is No. 1 in our book.

Researched and written by Kathryn Flagg
Illustrated by Willa Koerner

Arts & Letters ★ Vermont has more writers and authors per capita than any other state. ★ Vermont also has the most libraries per capita in the country, even though it is one of only eight states that do not supply funding directly to the libraries. Colleges ★ More colleges per capita than any other state. Sacrifice ★ More Vermonters died in the Iraq War per capita than any other state. ★ During the Civil War, Vermont contributed more per capita from its treasury and from its population of young men to the conflict than any other state in the Union. Service ★ Most Peace Corps volunteers per capita. Farmers Markets & Local Foods ★ We’re leading the United States in the number of farmers markets per capita. ★ Vermont also has the most CSAs, the most certified organic farmers, the greatest amount of certified organic farmland and the greatest number of local dollars spent buying local foods. That’s per capita for the country. Cow Power ★ Vermont has the highest number of farm digesters, which turn cow manure into energy, per capita. Breweries ★ Vermont has more breweries per capita than any other state in the country — one brewery for about every 30,000 people. Artisan Cheese ★ Greatest number of artisan cheesemakers per capita. Dairies ★ Vermonters lead the nation in per capita production of dairy products. Oatmeal ★ According to Wikipedia, Vermont leads the United States in per capita consumption of cooked oatmeal cereal. Tennis, Anyone? ★ Vermont has the most tennis courts per capita of any state in the country. Health ★ In 2009, the United Health Foundation ranked Vermont the “healthiest state in the country.” Vermont ranked first this year for a combination of reasons, including low rate of obesity, high number of doctors and low rate of child poverty. Wildlife Watchers ★ According to a 2002 study by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that compared the states, Vermont had the highest percentage — 60 percent — of residents engaged in some form of wildlife watching.

Preservation ★ No. 1 per capita in the use of federal historic tax credits for rehabilitating old buildings. Patents ★ No. 1 per capita. Green ★ Vermont ranked No. 1 in the inaugural survey by Forbes magazine of “America’s Greenest States.” Public Safety ★ Vermont has the fewest state and local sworn police per capita, with 15.5 per 10,000 residents. However, the state is ranked the third safest in the country based on the number of violent crimes per capita. Moonlighting ★ Highest percentage of population who work more than one job (9.4 percent) among all New England states, and well above the national average of 5.2 percent. Maple ★ Vermont has the highest percentage of sugar maple trees of any state in the nation and is the largest producer of maple syrup in the country. Home Value ★ The foreclosure crisis continues to batter much of the United States. But in the third quarter of 2010, Vermont’s largest city, Burlington, led all metro areas nationwide in percentage increase in the median price for the sale of existing homes — 17.6 percent. Rural Rides ★ Highest percentage of unpaved roads in the nation. WE JUST MISSED Close only counts in horseshoes and the Olympics, but here are some categories where Vermont finished near the top. 2nd ★ High school graduation rate. ★ Hunters per capita, behind Alaska. ★ Golf courses per capita, behind Florida. 3rd ★ Skier and snowboarder visits, behind Colorado and California. ★ Per capita exports to the rest of the nation, behind Washington and Texas. ★ The well-being of children, based on 10 health indicators such as infant mortality and teen birth rate. 4th ★ “Best-run” state, according to business website www.247wallst.com, blending a range of factors, including percentage of people with health insurance, state debt levels and violent crime rates. 5th ★ Vermont was No. 5 globally (and No. 1 in the United States) in “destination stewardship,” a National Geographic study that weighed such factors as environmental quality, social and cultural integrity, historic preservation, aesthetic appeal, quality of tourism management and outlook for the future.

In the corner of the basement cheese-aging cave at Mt. Mansfield Creamery in Morrisville sits a single open bottle of Rock Art beer. “It’s for the cheese, not the cheesemaker,” jokes Stan Biasini as he starts pulling some of his Inspiration cheeses from the shelves, turning them and carefully wiping them down with a mixture of salt water and the beer. “This cheese was complex and it paired really well with beer so I thought it might taste good made with beer,” Biasini, 51, explains. “It gives the cheese a nutty finish, an added twist. And people like it; they ask for the cheese made with beer.”

Even though Mt. Mansfield has only been in business since June 2009, its beer-washed, Corsican-style tomme is already a favorite of local tastemakers. “I love the cheese,” says Donnell Collins, executive chef and co-owner of Leunig’s Bistro in Burlington. “The Rock Art wash on the rind catches the eye of a lot of our younger clients and it just puts the cheese on a whole other level. I think it makes it nuttier, earthier. It’s like you can almost taste the hops. It’s totally different from any other cheese out there.” Success has both thrilled and slightly stunned Biasini, who grew up around Utica and originally trained as a chef, and his wife, Debora Wickart, 46, a Vermont native who has raised cows since she was a teenager. The family started their cheese business to supplement low liquid milk prices and tide them over until the economy improved and their rug installation business rebounded. “The demand is really overwhelming,” says Wickart with both a sigh and a smile as she sweeps the barn after the morning milking.

This happy marriage between one Vermont cheese and one Vermont beer is more than just a delicious bite. It represents the parallel and complementary growth of artisanal cheese and craft beer within Vermont and across the nation, as well as the significant contributions these two taste-based entrepreneurial niches have made to Vermont’s reputation and landscape. Nationally, there has been a return to handcrafted, small-batch food and drink as consumers search out unique authenticity versus generic corporate sameness. “Cheese and beer are among the artisanal foods that were most ruined by our industrial food system during the 20th century,” notes Garrett Oliver, longtime brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery and editor-in-chief of the forthcoming “Oxford Companion to Beer.” “They were wonderfully pleasurable foods that were made into ‘food facsimiles.’ Now that we’re in recovery from that era, we are returning to normal, and it’s natural that beer and cheese should lead the way.”

Shaun Hill of Hill Farmstead Brewery

In Vermont, it all started in the early to mid-1980s when pioneers like Shelburne Farms, Allison Hooper and Bob Reese of Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery, and Marian Pollack and Marjorie Susman of Orb Weaver Farm began making handcrafted cheese. Around the same time, the late Greg Noonan spent three years lobbying the Vermont legislature to legalize brewpubs before opening the Vermont Pub and Brewery, the East Coast’s third brewpub, and Stephen Mason and Alan Davis co-founded Catamount Brewery, one of the original New England microbreweries. “Vermont was one of the first places in the eastern United States where the craft-brewing renaissance took hold,” Oliver elaborates, “and I think it’s not a coincidence that it’s one of the few places in the country that never entirely lost the culture of real cheesemaking. Vermont cheddar is a touchstone for American cheesemakers.”

Vermont now claims the highest per capita number of cheesemakers (more than 40) and breweries (more than 20) in the country, draws sell-out crowds annually to the Vermont Brewers Festival and the Vermont Cheesemakers Festival, and earns top national awards for both its cheeses and beers. In 2004, the Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese (VIAC) at The University of Vermont was established as the nation’s first and only comprehensive center devoted to artisan cheese education, research and technical services.

The state is a “beacon” in both fields, says Liz Thorpe, author of “The Cheese Chronicles,” a cultural history of the new American cheese, and vice president of leading specialty retailer, Murray’s Cheese. “Vermont is unusual and different from many other states in terms of cheese and beer diversity,” she adds.

At a basic and tangibly tasty level, beer and cheese are slowly but surely nibbling away at the time-honored pairing of wine and cheese. Oliver often faces off against sommeliers during tastings in which the same cheeses are matched with both wines and beers. “Beer always wins,” he reports. “Essentially, beer and cheese both come from grass,” he explains. “Barley is a grass and wheat is a grass. It may sound outlandish, since there’s a cow, a sheep or a goat in the middle of the cheese production process, but there is a flavor of the pasture in great cheeses. There are warm, bread-like flavors in real beers. There is a primal bond between the two foods that tastes natural on the palate.” D.J. D’Amico, a senior research scientist at The University of Vermont and VIAC staff member, adds that beer lacks the acidity and tannins that can make wine a challenging partner. The carbonation also cuts the fat in cheese, he explains, “literally breaking the flavor open and exposing it to your mouth.” Beer is also less risky from a price standpoint and less intimidating, especially to younger generations. “Wine works too,” allows Thorpe, “but it’s harder.” Cheese and beer, she says, are “a case where one plus one definitely make three.”

The crowd that pressed around the bar at Burlington’s Farmhouse Tap and Grill last fall didn’t need much convincing to enjoy bites of pungent Bayley Hazen blue cheese between sips of bourbon oak-aged oatmeal stout or Cabot’s caramel-kissed clothbound cheddar with an all-American Imperial IPA. The beer-focused gastropub offers the best brews it can find both locally and globally along with a fully Vermont cheese list. For the fall event, dubbed “Beer Loves Cheese #1,” the restaurant paired Hill Farmstead Brewery, one of the state’s newest brewers but already attracting serious attention, and Jasper Hill Farm, the seven-year-old operation of the Kehler brothers, who have made waves nationally not only for their own award-winning cheeses but also for their ambitious project: a state-of-the-art cheese cave. Here they age cheeses from other regional cheesemakers like Cabot in an effort to support the state’s dairy business, preserve agricultural land and build critical mass for New England artisanal cheese.

Shaun Hill, Hill Farmstead’s owner and brewer, was on hand with Zoe Brickley, Jasper Hill’s sales and marketing manager. The brewery and the cheesemaker are both in North Greensboro and share close ties, Hill explained, starting with the fact that he is a cousin of the cheesemaker’s namesake, Jasper Hill. As relationships between breweries and cheesemakers go, Hill asserts, “None is as intimate as ours.” After brewing at The Shed in Stowe and at Nørrebro Bryghus in Copenhagen, Hill, 31, returned to his family’s seventh-generation homestead to start his own brewery, which opened in the spring of 2010.

Stan Biasini of Mt. Mansfield Creamery

 
Many of his beers are named for relatives, like the Imperial India pale ale called Abner after Hill’s great-grandfather who raised 14 children where the brewery now stands. Hill also brews a custom Belgian lambic-style beer that captures wild yeasts from the Jasper Hill cellars and is used to wash their seasonal Winnimere cheese, a rich, oozy and often funky delicacy, which has even made it to Thomas Keller’s Manhattan restaurant, Per Se. The practice, explains Brickley, goes back to the Benedictine monks who made similar styles of cheese and beer and used their beer, the most sanitary liquid available to them, to clean the ripening cheeses. “The sweetness of the beer helps balance the subtle bitter notes of a washed rind,” she says.

One of Jasper Hill’s latest projects involves working through the Vermont Food Venture Center in Hardwick to teach small dairies how to make more of the in-demand Bayley Hazen blue cheese. Efforts such as this have earned Jasper Hill support from various sources, including the Vermont Economic Development Authority (VEDA), which provides financial assistance to promising businesses. Over the years, VEDA has financed a number of cheese and beer enterprises like Magic Hat Brewing Company, Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery, and Rock Art Brewery. “The food industry seems to be a niche in which we can really generate some traction,” says VEDA’s chief operating officer Steve Greenfield. “Those businesses benefit from the already established Vermont karma and the state gets added oomph when more products are out there.” Greenfield also notes that these ventures also support critical sectors like tourism and agriculture and generate revenue from outside the state. Naturally, there will be business failures like that of the still-missed Catamount Brewery, as well as the risk that successful homegrown companies will be bought, as happened this past summer when North American Breweries purchased Magic Hat. “Definitely, when you create an interesting little brand,” says Hooper of Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery, now topping $10 million in annual sales, “you have suitors.”

Back in Morrisville, Matt Nadeau, president and co-owner of Rock Art Brewery, says, “I’m having too much fun right now” to sell. “It was never the goal to be on every supermarket shelf,” he continues. “Craft beer is about fresh, local beer, not that your beer is in 30 different states on every shelf.” The 14-year-old company broke ground last fall on a new building just down the road that will double the size of their brewery to 10,000 square feet, a huge leap from the original basement brewing operation launched by Nadeau, 44, and his wife, Renée, 41. Their first 220-gallon tanks with homemade foil jackets lined with bubblewrap are still in the brewery, dwarfed by newer tanks 10 times their size. “When we got started we could hardly keep one of those half full and now we’ve got five states waiting for beer,” says Nadeau proudly.

Success, of course, brings its own growing pains from overexpansion to market demand outpacing supply. Rock Art experienced its biggest challenge in 2009 after Nadeau filed a trademark for his Vermonster American-style barley wine only to receive a cease and desist letter from Hansen Beverage Company, owner of Monster Energy drinks. Even though lawyers believed the huge corporation had no case, they also cautioned that he could lose his whole business in a David versus Goliath battle. “That didn’t sit well with me,” Nadeau recalls. “That’s not what our Founding Fathers intended.” Prompted by independent retailers who boycotted Hansen and public outcry fueled by media and the Internet, the giant backed down. “You’re going to tell a Vermonter you can’t use Vermonster?” Nadeau recalls. “Good luck. You just pissed off a whole state, a small but very vocal state.” He is now working with Sen. Patrick Leahy on trademark law reform and hopes to effect change that will benefit small businesses nationally.

The Nadeaus started their basement brewery in 1997 with a conservative $12,000. Across town in his basement cheese cave, Biasini washes cheese with Rock Art beer and shares his similarly careful approach to launching Mt. Mansfield more than a decade later. With an Intervale Center Success on Farms grant, Biasini took a course with a highly regarded Vermont cheesemaker and consultant who told him that he’d need $100,000 to get going. Biasini did it for $6,000, and “I paid cash for everything,” he recounts, showing off his steam kettle bought used online for $1,500 and an old gas station cooler for $500. His only employee is a retiree who offered to work for cheese and his cheese press is weighted with filled plastic gallon jugs. “A gallon of water didn’t cost anything,” he notes. To meet the growing demand for his cheeses, Biasini knows he must expand and is cautiously exploring his options. Despite Mt. Mansfield’s early success, the cheesemaker observes as he gently stirs the morning’s milk, “You’ve always got to remember that this may be fun, but it’s a business.”

Tasting Beer and Cheese Together

 D.J. D’Amico, a senior research scientist at The University of Vermont, is also on the staff of the Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese and is a competitive home brewer. He frequently organizes Vermont beer and cheese tastings. Here are some of his recommendations, and you can find more @ vermontlife.com.

• l First, the flavor intensity should be similar between the two. A delicate cheese needs a delicate beer, while a strong cheese requires a beer with heft so that neither is overpowered by the other.
• Try to match flavors to accentuate or complement. This could mean matching the chocolate flavors of stouts and porters to those same nuances found in some blue cheeses, or in the case of wheat beers and fresh goat cheese, use the spicing of the beer to complement the citrus tang of the goat’s milk.
• Or go for a contrast like porters with aged cheddars, or the dark fruit flavors found in Belgian-style dark ales to balance the funk of washed-rind cheeses.

 

With these guidelines in mind, D’Amico suggests these pairings:

• Aged cheddars like Cabot clothbound with a moderately bitter pale ale or India pale ale such as Lucky Kat IPA from Magic Hat or the chocolate and coffee notes of porters and stouts such as Wolaver’s Oatmeal Stout.
• Fresh goat cheeses with light-bodied Belgian-style witbiers (wheat beers) like Long Trail Belgian Wit or Harpoon UFO White and harder aged goat cheeses like Blue Ledge Farm’s Riley’s Coat with the less pronounced spicing of American wheat ales or hefeweizens like Harpoon UFO Hefeweizen or Magic Hat Circus Boy.
• Bloomy-rind Camembert or Brie-style cheeses made from goat’s milk like those from Vermont Butter and Cheese Creamery, Lazy Lady, Does’ Leap and Blue Ledge with funky Belgian-style saison beers like Rock Art’s Sunny and 75°. The more delicate, buttery versions made from cow’s milk go well with the butterscotch and toffee notes of Irish red ales and mild ales like Long Trail Harvest.
• Alpine-style cow cheeses like Cobb Hill’s Ascutney Mountain or Thistle Hill and Spring Brook Tarentaise, and sheep cheeses like Vermont Shepherd and Woodcock Weston Wheel with lightly hopped nutty amber and brown ales like Long Trail ale, Otter Creek Oktoberfest and Wolaver’s brown ale.
• Washed-rind cheeses with funky and strong flavors but soft texture like Lazy Lady’s Barick [sic] Obama or Mixed Emotions, or Jasper Hill Farm’s Winnimere with strong but complex beer like Belgian-style ales Harpoon Quad or Long Trail Double IPA and Otter Creek Imperial IPA.
• Blue cheeses like Boucher Blue or Jasper Hill’s Bayley Hazen with English-style old ales and barley wines like Rock Art’s Vermonster or stouts with chocolate and roasted coffee flavors like McNeill’s or Otter Creek Russian Imperial Stout.

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One of Stowe’s most famous and historic inns, Edson Hill Manor, is the quintessential New England Inn.  Located on 38 plus acres of pristine Vermont country side, this Manor has drawn celebrities and has been the back-drop for several movies.  A known destination for weddings, romantic get-a-ways and summer and winter activities Edson Hill Manor is a true Vermont gem.

Edson Hill Manor Features:

• 9 Rooms with fireplaces and baths located in the main house
• 4 Carriage houses with 16 rooms with fireplaces and baths
• 60 Seat full dining room with fireplace
•  Commercial kitchen
• 35 Seat separate bar with fireplace and HD TV
• Central living room with bar
• Beautiful terraces with handcrafted stone walls
• Pool & Pond
• Wedding/Event field
• Horse stables, includes care and riding equipment
• Cross country touring center includes x-country ski & trail maintenance equipment
• Separate caretakers house

Edson Hill Manor capitalizes on Stowe’s many tourist seasons.  Like Stowe, Edson Hill Manor started as a winter destination offering miles of maintained cross country trails and sleigh rides.  The Manor comes complete with an established touring center and horse barn.  Both the touring center and barn come fully stocked with all the necessary equipment.

Edson Hill Manor isn’t just busy in the winter, drawing visitors year round.  One area the Manor has expanded greatly is hosting an average 30 weddings a year.  The ability to have family and guest stay at the Manor helps to generate such continued business.  The Manor will be sold with all of the necessary wedding equipment, including a tent, tables and chairs with the ability to host up to 250 people.

Contact us today for more information at 802-793-3566 or 802-375-5009.

info@smithmacdonaldrealestate.com