Our floors are being refinished this week. The furniture is stacked in rooms where it doesn't belong…there's a fine layer of dust on every surface…and we've been playing a constant game of “musical dogs,” trying to keep them away from where they can't go. On Tuesday night, we were not-so-gently evicted from our house.
Which turned out to be a pretty good thing.
More on that below…
On the Menu…
Starters: Evicted!
Bites & Bottles: Sitting at the Bar at May Day
Tastemakers: Drew Robinson, Vermont Wine Merchants
The Long Pour: Ancient Asian Wine Pairing Proverb…
What’s On
Starters…
Watching the action at Hen of the Wood
There's something to be said for being forced out of your routine.
Tuesday night, with the house in full chaos, we were told we had to be out of our house for 24 hours. Our home for the night became Hotel Vermont.
A lovely room with a view, a cocktail at Juniper, dinner at Hen of the Wood next door. Nothing was planned in advance…just some excellent, familiar spots right in our own backyard that we don't get to nearly enough. It was a good reminder that some of the best evenings happen when you just go.
That idea sits right at the heart of the Champlain Dinner Club, which we launched a last week…and the response so far has absolutely thrilled us. In addition to the number of people signing up, we’re seeing comments like these
“I LOVE THIS! I did something similar in NYC (underground dinners) and it was awesome meeting so many new, interesting people!”
“This is so cool!”
“Such an awesome way to support local businesses!”
It seems the concept is landing exactly where we hoped it would. If you've had questions about how it works, we answered a few of the big ones in a Reel on Instagram this week. We’d love to have you at the first dinner in Burlington on April 21st!
And if the annual Burlington Wine & Food event in June event has been on your mind, now is a good time to lock in your tickets. The exhibitor lineup is almost complete, and we're also working on some events in the days leading up to the festival…including a fundraiser with our longtime partner Common Roots that’s sure to be fun. More details on all of it soon.
Bites + Bottles…
If you haven't made it to Burlington's Old North End lately, May Day is a very good reason to fix that.
The ONE, as the neighborhood calls itself, just wrapped its first Taste of the ONE restaurant week to an enthusiastic reception, and it's easy to see why the area is having a moment. There's real culinary ambition happening up there, and May Day has been our personal gateway into all of it. It also happens to occupy the spot where another Burlington favorite, Butch & Babe's, used to live, so we already had fond memories of the space before our first visit.
And those vibes continue…
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You may know Alton Brown from such Food Network mainstays as Good Eats, Iron Chef America and Food Network Star. He’s the guy who made food TV feel like a science class you actually wanted to attend…and he's coming to the Paramount Theatre in Rutland this Sunday, April 12th, at 7 p.m. The show is an intimate touring format, with storytelling, demonstrations, music, and what he calls "slightly scaled-down mayhem." Should be worth the drive down Route 7.
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The space at 30 Bridge Street in Richmond has been quiet since Hatchet closed last year. This week, John and Courtney Roettinger announced on Instagram that it will become Schaefer’s this summer. Melissa Pasanen at Seven Days tells us that John most recently ran operations at Burlington Beer Company, and both have long careers and deep roots in hospitality. With a slogan that reads, “Simple Food. Done Right,” we imagine Richmond will be anxiously awaiting their arrival.
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The folks at Upper Pass Beer announced that they brewed their first batch at their new Burlington home in the Ethan Allen Shopping Center on North Avenue on March 27th. They're targeting mid-April to open the doors in the space that was formerly home to Simple Roots Brewing. New North End neighbors, your wait is almost over.
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It's maple season, which makes it a perfectly logical time to talk about…vodka. The folks at St. Johnsbury Distillery make the Vermont Vodka entirely from Vermont maple syrup…fermented and distilled four times into what they describe as “smooth as silk.” At $100 a bottle it's a commitment, but as a concept, it’s a hard thing to argue with.
On the subject of maple…the Vermont Maple Festival is looking for its next two Maple Ambassadors. These are Vermont students ages 16 to 21 who will spend the year representing the maple industry at festivals and events across Vermont and New England. There's also a $2,500 scholarship attached. If you know someone who’s got what it takes, applications are open now.
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Tastemakers: Drew Robinson
Each week, we feature three quick questions with someone bringing something creative, thoughtful, or fascinating to the food and wine scene here in Vermont and beyond.
This week, we caught up with Drew Robinson, General Manager of Vermont Wine Merchants, a wholesale wine distributor that’s been serving restaurants, retailers, and caterers across the state for 30 years.
Read the full interview, including how they decide which wines earn a spot in the VWM portfolio, why the $12 to $18 range is a sweet spot, and what's driving buyers back to the classics right now.
Drew Robinson
The Long Pour…
ASIAN WINE PAIRING PROVERB: SWEET, MEET HEAT!
by Mike Stolese
In Chittenden county, we’re lucky to have a number of very good Asian restaurants that don’t have liquor licenses, but allow you to bring in your own wine or beer.
This gives you a real advantage…with a bit of knowledge, you can arrive with the perfect bottle for the heat and varied spices you get in Asian food, whether it be Chinese, Korean, Thai, or Japanese.
What’s On…
Birthdays, comedy and cookies…this weekend covers a lot of ground.
This Friday, April 10, Shelburne Vineyard hosts a Wit & Wine comedy night: with four Vermont stand-up comedians (Nico D’Elisa, Prince Awhaitey, Ian Paul and Geeda Seerfoorce), hosted by Shelburne's own Meredith Gordon. It’s a 21+ event, and be warned…it’s an adult show. Doors at 7, show at 8.
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Downtown Burlington’s Bar Renée turns a year old this weekend. On Saturday the 11th, they're celebrating the way you'd want a fun wine bar to mark the occasion: smash burgers on the grill, birthday cake, good wine, and open late. It's a party…show up accordingly.
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On Sunday the 12th, Queen City Brewery is hosting a cookie decorating class with Laura’s Cookies from 2 to 4 p.m. Four cookies, step-by-step instruction, and something tasty to show for it at the end. A nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon.
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Salt & Bubbles in Essex Junction is evidently feeling the same way about the season as we all are right about now. On Thursday, April 16, they’re hosting doing a free wine tasting called Spring Will Come…wines chosen for brightness and energy, and for the feeling of longer days that are almost within reach. Stop by between 5:30 and 7 in the wine shop.
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Next weekend is a busy one. Saturday the 18th is a big day in South Burlington, as they’re hosting their first International Food Festival from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at SoBu City Hall on Market Street. $35 gets you five tasting plates from a lineup that includes flavors from Mexico, India, Bosnia, Africa, the Ukraine, Venezuela, Cuba and many more. There’s live music from the Green Mountain Celts and Jeh Kulu, and a cash bar for drinks.
That same afternoon, Emily's Home Cooking is teaming up with Red Poppy Cakery in Waterbury to teach a Pulled Pork Sugo class. This is a rich, slow-simmered tomato and red wine sauce with tender shredded pork…deeply savory, hearty, and made for pasta. You’ll learn how to bring it together using simple ingredients and techniques you can easily recreate at home with just a slow cooker and a blender.
And up in Stowe, Sage Farm Goat Dairy opens its tour season that same day. Their 90-minute tours runs from 10 to 11:30 and take you through the barns and into the cheese room, ending with a guided tasting of their award-winning Alpine goat cheeses. Bonus…in April, there are also baby goats to bottle-feed. A few things worth knowing: wear shoes you don't mind getting dirty…the goats will nibble your clothes…and tickets are advance purchase only. They do sell out.
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This one’s worth looking ahead for: on April 25th, Waterbury hosts the annual “Onesie Pub Crawl,” and if you've never heard of it…yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like. This year's theme is "Hollywood Comes to Waterbury,” and you’ll hit a bunch of local spots like Blackback, Freak Folk, The Reservoir, Prohibition Pig, Salt & Rind in your most award-worthy onesie. Food and drink are pay-as-you-go, and tickets are $10 to benefit American Legion Post 59. Don't “sleep” on this one.
In closing…there are two new endeavors happening in the ice cream world right now that have no business working as well as they do, and yet here we are.
The New York Yankees (which it genuinely pains me to write, as someone who grew up near Boston) have introduced a Mini Dessert "Chicken" Bucket at Yankee Stadium this season. What looks exactly like a pair of fried chicken drumsticks is actually ice cream: a chocolate-covered cookie "bone" inside, coated in white chocolate and candied corn flakes. It's ridiculous. And it's kind of genius. Reportedly, it’s already selling out. My husband, the Yankees fan, approves.
📷 MLB via Instagram
Meanwhile, closer to home…Jasper Hill Farm and Canteen Creemee in Waitsfield posted (on April 1) about a partnership to bring a Harbison creemee to their menu this summer. Harbison is the spruce-bark-wrapped, cave-aged, bloomy-rind cheese…in soft-serve form? The comments on Instagram ranged from "I had a visceral reaction to this" to "Please please please don't let this be a joke." Is it an April fool? We’ll let you decide…
See you next week!