Almost Spring Between the Storms

A glorious weekend it was…. St. Patrick’s Day. The weather was absolutely perfect…. quite cool at night, but sunny and warm during the day. Warm enough that several brave souls plunged into the icy depths of the mighty Eel! They emerged…. breathless, yet refreshed! And just in time for the first round of food pairing with whiskey……..

Prior to the “over the top” dinner on Saturday, March 16, a number of things needed preparing…… like the farmhouse rooms and the Bunkhouse, Blackberry Hollow being one.

Next, the egg noodles upon which to place our main courses…. beef and chicken!

Ravioli, for another….. colored green with spinach to remind us of good ol’ St. Pat, and filled with a three cheese/fresh herb mixture. Linda, John and I learned a great deal about making ravioli that Friday afternoon. Of course we made far more than we needed…. But since, Kashaya and I have shared the bounty for days. The creamy mushroom sauce we put on top was extraordinary…. with dried wild Black Chanterelles, Blue Oyster, Lion’s Mane… and the tame Baby Portabellas.

Friends Carissa and Jessica laid out the charcuterie boards….. the salad was augmented with roasted beets, toasted walnuts, bosc pears, shredded lemon balm…. and paired beautifully with Crispin and Tamar’s bourbon. The following course, those luscious egg noodles covered with Beef Stroganoff and/or Citrus Braised Chicken, got an older, more intense tasting libation.

The oldest of all the bottles was a ten year old barrel select…. which was saved for the dessert course…. Bourbon Vanilla Creme Brulee and Flourless Chocolate Cake with Whiskey Infused Whipped Cream.

Below, Crispin Cain regales the room with the intricacies of distillation…. along with a few songs and stories…..

Fiddle music on the front deck created just the right ambiance for good food, good weather, and good company. Later in the evening, John exchanged his fiddle for his guitar, and led us through many a song from our Emandal Song Book.

Early Sunday morning, Maureen Jennison (the photographer for just about all these pictures) and her husband Matthew, hiked the Garcy Creek Loop… up the stairs to camp, out beyond Cabin 12, past the trails to Robin’s Pool, through Christmas Tree Woods, skirting past Washington Rock and the trail to the SawMill, around Muir Meadow, beside Winter Late, down to Rainbow Lake, then to Inspiration Point and the Peace Bell…. back down to the farm. The weather was crisp and clear, the wild flowers just beginning.

March 17th, St. Patrick’s Day…. Green was definitely de rigueur! Brunch included our house made corned beef in the hash…. the yellowest of farm eggs…. and biscuits beyond belief! We even had a visit from a local leprechaun, who told us that the pot o’gold was assuredly bound up in the garden before him!

All in all…. a lovely weekend! Here’s to all the folks coming this summer…. may your days be as magical as these were!