Of Days Gone By and Wondering Why

Well, almost a year to the date I am paying attention to this blog again. Why? Because Spring is trying valiantly to get here and I have been thinking a lot about the issues of local food, slow food, sustainable agriculture, and its implications.

Plus, it's ticking me off that it's becoming a trendy buzzword now, thrown around by newspapers like the New York Times, most of whose readers couldn't tell a buck from a wether to save their lives.

Here's a link to their latest puffery:

Forging a Hot Link to the Farmer Who Grows the Food

Untill I get my next full post up (which I am working on), enjoy this harbinger of Spring 2009:

Of Soaking Rains and Growing Pains

Happy Earth Day all!

With that advent of this day, the almost four inches of soaking rain we had over the weekend, and the profusion of flowers and greenery that is ensuing, I figure it's time to fire up the blog again and start poking around for local goodies!

Hope the winter doldrums didn't get you down too much. I am shaking off the winter blahs. The good news is I have sold two baby bucklings. Only one more left who I might keep as a pet. The better news is I still have as many goats. Momma Faith had two baby girls thanks to an over-enthusiastic buck where she is staying. They are beautiful though and are a welcome Spring surprise.

Lord Justice left for Tennessee this weekend, but we remember him fondly:

Of Village Winery and Woolen Finery

This weekend, feeling a touch of cabin fever, I decided to explore the local countryside. I had read a small ad for a local winery I had not heard of before. What really caught my attention was the winery, Village Winery and Vineyards, was offering its own Elderberry Wine and estate-grown Elderberry Syrup. That was the push I needed to get my butt in gear on an overcast Loudoun winter day and head out to one of my favorite spots - the historic village of Waterford.

Now, I have tried to grow elderberries in the past and simply managed to kill off the nice bushes I got from Dave at Abernathy and Spencer nurseries in Lincoln. The raspberry and blackberry bushes I got from him last spring did really well and bore a decent first-year crop. Dave is a very committed and knowledgeable grower, his nursery offers a staggering variety of plants, herbs, shrubs, and trees grown in his on site greenhouses, and it's fun to see the free-roaming chickens and exotic birds on the premises.

But I got my elderberry late in the season and it just never thrived. One of the reasons I am so keen on elderberry is that I found a wonderful elderberry wine while touring Scotland, and was on the lookout for more. Also, for the last two winters, I have been taking elderberry extract to ward off colds and flu, and it really seems to work (when I remember to take it). It's an all-natural product called Sambucol and you can get it at Healthways Food in Purcellville. So I was already an elderberry convert when I headed out on Saturday to Village Wineries.

To reach the winery, I passed through the old Quaker village of Waterford. I got a lovely view of some of the vineyards as I proceeded up the drive to the tasting room. I was also happy to see, that on a dreary winter day, there was a good crowd in the parking lot, with license plates from all over the region.


The tasting room is a cozy, rustic nook attached to an old barn that the owners are lovingly restoring. I got to taste a variety of Village Winery offerings, including the elderberry wine, the elderberry syrup, some merlot, and their apple wine. The apple wine had been mulled and was warm and welcoming. I bought some elderberry wine and syrup and tasted some of the wines. It was a great way to spend a dready weekend afternoon.

An added nice surprise was that the winery turned out to be right next to a local fiber goat farm that I was familiar with but had never had a chance to visit. The pasture was right next to the winery's parking lot, with cars on one side of the fence and goats on the other. I always travel with goat treats in my car (you never know when they will come in handy). So I approached the fence with some and made friends with the fiber goats. They are quite grand-looking creatures. They were a bit aloof but after tasting the first few animal crackers, they came around.

Of Cloned Cows and Winter Browse

It's getting tough to get hay. The drought is catching up with local farmers and livestock producers. Their own hay stocks are getting thin, and I myself am paying twice as much for hay as I did last year.

I am sure you are noticing prices rising at your local supermarket. It's not just a regional weather glitch that is affecting how we need to think about our eating habits.

Of course, the corporate leaders of agribusiness, in conjunction with their yesmen at the FDA, have a great solution to the problem, as explained by the ever-interesting Verlyn Klinkenborg: Closing the Barn Door After the Cows Have Gotten Out.

Of Slitting Throats and Baby Goats

Chefs’ New Goal: Looking Dinner in the Eye

Sometimes "dinner" looks back:

Of Winter Buys and Possum Pies

I plan to do the rounds of the local winter farmers' markets this weekend. I'll report back, I hope with a new stash of goodies.


And no, this possum did not end up in a pie, even though I would have liked to punish it. It tried to hijack my car when I left the door open while I was unloading groceries. It is safe and sound now; Animal Control came and made sure it got back into the woods where it belongs.

Of Heritage Pigs and Nearby Gigs

In this part of my winter products report, I'm waxing poetic over local pork, lamb jerky, and socks...yes, socks. All of these goodies were purchased at the modest little gem of a farmers' market in Berryville, just a few miles west of the Loudoun County line. You can shop some of the vendors at the Clarke County Winter Market, which is held once a month on the corners of Main Streets and Church Streets right next to the Dollar General Store in the Town's Parking Lot. The market will be held on the following dates: 1/19, 2/16, 3/15, 4/12. The regular season begins again in May 2008.

As a special holiday breakfast treat, I broke out my frozen slab of heritage breed uncured bacon. It was made from Tamworth pork by Briars Farmstead. It was not too fatty, and a dark, pleasing color. The taste was definitely intense, a little gamy, not too salty, and a wonderful accompaniment to farm-fresh eggs. Briars Farmstead offers a variety of produce, depending on the time of year. You can reach Matt or Ruth at 540-837-2554 or email them for current product availability. Or better yet, stop by their stand at the market, say hi, and buy something yummy! For more information on natural pastured products around Virginia, check out the Eat Wild website.



I bought several items as Christmas gifts before the holidays from the Berryville Farmers Market. The best-received one was a thick, cozy pair of woolen socks from Virginia Lamb of Clarke County. Virginia Lamb is a family-run farm encompassing several generations of sheep farmers. The Childs family is very involved with agriculture in Loudoun and Clarke counties, including the Ag Extension and 4H.

I bought a few different flavors of their lamb jerky sticks, hoping to use them as stocking stuffers. Sorry to say they never made it into those stockings. The jerky was so good, I kept to all for myself. I'll have to see if they have more this Saturday, Jan. 19, when Virginia Lamb is scheduled to be at the Winter Market again. The socks were made of wool from their own flocks of blackface Suffolk and Southdown sheep. They were a welcome gift to my friend in blustery New England. You can check product availability by calling them at 540-955-4242 or email them. For information about lamb and sheep products in Loudoun County, see the Loudoun Valley Sheep Producers website.