Cellars & Cave Tour of Heath with Colrain Extension

The Heath Agricultural Society invites you to the second Cellars & Cave Tour taking place the fourth Saturday in March (3/28/15). If you have an interest in learning more about do-it-yourself skills like making cider, cheese, beer or preserving food in a root cellar here is your chance to see it for yourself and learn from your neighbors. New on the tour this year will be the Colrain Extension including the Stoneman Brewery and Katywil Farm Community. Returning this year will be Bourke Shire Farm, Colonel Maxwell Farm, and Manse Farm. Also new this year, “Make your own” workshops will feature the basics of making cheese, cider, beer and cured & smoked meats. Lunch is provided for tour participants in the Community Hall. The tour has a suggested donation of $5/person. Workshops are an additional fee of $10. Pre-registration is required and space is limited. Meet at the Community Hall at 9:00 am (don’t be late)

To RSVP, please contact the event organizer, Jessica van Steensburg, via email or phone (see info. below)

RSVP by 3/21/2015

Schedule:

Sign in at 9:00 – Heath Community Hall (1 East Main St.)

Tours begin promptly at 9:15

Lunch – 1:00 – 2:00 (**bring your own bowl and utensils)

Do-it-Yourself Workshops from 2:30 – 4:00

Tours:

Beer Brewery – Stoneman Brewery (Colrain)

Cheese Cave – Katywil Farm Community (Colrain)

Root Cellar- Col. Maxwell Farm (Heath)

Cider Cellar – The Manse Farm (Heath)

Do It Yourself Workshops:

These will be 60 – 90 minutes in length.

Cider:

Speakers: Bob Bourke of Bourke Shire Farm and Doug Mason of The Manse Farm

Discussion on cider making equipment, materials and techniques from raw juice to finished product. We will briefly cover pressing, vessels, hydrometers, yeasts, additives, fermentation, troubleshooting, and bottling. Samples and worksheet will be provided. 60 minutes in length

Cheese:

Speaker: Sheila Litchfield of Dell Farm

Introduction to cheesemaking with mozzarella cheese making demonstration. Recipe provided and we get to enjoy what we made!  60 minutes in length.

Beer:

Speaker: Justin Korby of Stoneman Brewery, known for the first beer CSA in MA and also for having the smallest brewery in the state. 

Home brewing workshop where you will learn how to brew your own beer in your kitchen

Cured and Smoked Meats: 

Speaker: Haynes Turkle of Katywil Farm Community

Introduction to the ancient and delicious art of charcuterie. We will touch on the curing process, aging, curing caves, and smoking. We will also discuss sausage making and fermented meats. Finally, you will see a demonstration of how to prepare Bresaola, a delicious Italian cured and aged meat