Classic Romaine destined for Maya, freshly picked and washed at Double H Farm

Good land, good farming practices, and a little hard work normally make for good food, but when you add great people, the food itself becomes amazing. At Double H Farm in Nelson County, the people themselves are amazing. 32 acres of beautiful land on a gentile sloping hill, Double H Farm, is so much more than a farm exactly because of the people who tend the land. Richard Bean and his partner Jean Rinaldi came to Nelson County from New York in 1997, and have created an oasis based on the premise of Happy Hearts, hence the Double H.

Richard Bean started Double H in 1997.

I first came across the wonderful people from Double H Farm at the Charlottesville City Market back in December when I was doing a photo shoot with Payne Ross & Associates for the Charlottesville and Albemarle County Visitor bureau.  In the end, the photos of the folks from Double H didn’t make the final cut for the ad campaign, but Ara and Gayane Avagyan, Armenian immigrants who were working the market for Double H that day, left an indelible impression on me for sure.

Ara, center, and Gayane Avagyan, right, last December at the Market

Since December, when I started to do more photography and delved into the foodie world that is Charlottesville, many of the people I’ve come in contact with have mentioned Richard, Ara and the Double H Farm.  After a few interactions and more casual meetings, it became apparent that this little farm in Nelson County was somewhat of a nexus between all those I was meeting.  Ben Thompson of The Rock Barn spent time there under the tutelage of Richard, and spoke very highly of him. Richard himself took knife in hand at an Easter goat roast at the Ivy Inn, and Ara was an indispensable part of the pig slaughter at Gail Hobbs-Paige’s place I wrote about back in February.

Ara inside a greenhouse full of tomato plants

After missing one appointment due to weather, last week I finally made it out to Nelson County to visit with Ara and his wife Gayane, and I came away with a clear understanding of the passion, knowledge and love they have for what they do, and desire to bring the best possible products to their customers,  Ara saying, “our goal is to grow healthy food for the people of our community, and to always be number one.”

Laying hens produce some 15 dozen eggs a day.

Ara explaining how he keeps track of his 300, or so chickens.

A fresh laid egg … still wet.

Ara came to the US in 2000 through a Farmer to Farmer exchange program that lasted seven months.  He visited California, Pennsylvania  and ended his stint with Richard in Nelson County.  Back in Armenia, where Ara’s family also owns a farm that his brother works now, Ara has a Master’s degree, but was looking for more of an opportunity. Because Ara has a Master’s degree, getting a visa to return and work with Richard was somewhat easier, but as Ara said “Richard, he worked very hard to get me a green card.” Richard, looking for someone he could work with and trust to eventually take over the farm in the long term, did work hard, and he hasn’t looked back.  Since 2005, when Ara and his family came back from Armenia, they have been working based on a rent-to-own agreement with Richard, and together they all make up the amazing folks from Double H Farm.

The grade school pigs

On the farm, before heading into the large barn like structure that houses the processing sections for meat as well as vegetables,  Ara and I jumped into a Gator and headed down to visit the pigs.  Ara explained how he divided up the pigs using a school yard analogy, first introducing me to the “grade school pigs,” and then the “kindergartners.”  Grade schoolers had been weened from their mothers and were young and full of spunk, while the kindergartners were just born and happily traveled in packs following their mother.

Kindergartners with their Mom

We then stopped by to see a five year old sow, who at about 500 pounds or more, was ready to give birth to a litter of piglets a week ago but hadn’t yet delivered. Ara rubbed her belly and checked her teats to see if milk was on the way, which is a sign she is about to give birth.  Still dry, she ended up giving birth to 13 little ones two days after my visit.

A new Mom, delivered 13 piglets just two days after this photo.

During my tour of the farm it became immediately apparent that they do everything at Double H Farm.  From eggs and chickens to pigs and peppers it can all be found on this one little farm in Nelson County, and that manifested itself when Gayane brought us all a ham sandwich and traditional yogurt drink for lunch.  So amazing to eat a lunch that was completely local, absolutely everything on the serving tray came from the farm, down to the fresh baked bread by Gayane, which until recently she used to sell at the farmers market as well.

Local, Local, Local, and so good

During lunch, speaking with Ara,  he explained, “If you compare us to others at the Farmers Market, some sell just eggs, another vendor just meat, we do so much … like with pigs, we grow, we start from zero, and because we do the right thing, it’s a health food for the community.” And not just directly to the community either, as many of the clients of Double H Farm are local restaurants and the Local Food Hub as well.

Gayane checking the delivery schedule

Summing up our visit Ara said, “If you do it right, you can produce the best,” and really who can argue with that?  When asked about what is next for Double H Farm Ara answered, “the next step is I’m looking forward to owning this property, and making investments in equipment to make things easier and to expand more.”  That in itself is not only good for Ara and his family but will surely be good for the Charlottesville community.

Ara in the “meat department”

Thanks for reading along and remember, F2% Because Heavy Cream is Always Better!

Cheers,

JI

Our spatchcocked bird on the grill

We don’t often rave about the food we eat at home here, this isn’t that kind of a blog, but this weekend we had the best damn chicken we’ve ever had.  A week ago I spent the day at Free Union Grass Farm processing 200 chickens with Joel and Erica, and their two new farmterns – farm interns, yes I just made that up – Emma and Andy.  At the end of the day, Erica and Joel sent me home with one of the culled birds, because the skin on the breast had been sliced open, and although it was perfectly good to eat, it just didn’t look as pretty as the rest of them.

The trusty Weber in action

So on Saturday, I fired up the trusty Weber and split the chicken down the middle of the back – it’s called spatchcock, I learned from my wicked smart wife, and drizzled a little olive oil on both sides, threw on some salt and pepper and a few herbs from our garden, and voila, our bird, one I had very likely killed myself last week, was ready for some low and slow roasting on the grill.

Beautiful little carrots we picked up at the Charlottesville City Farmers Market.

Susan cut the tops off some beautiful little carrots we picked up at the Famers Market, and simply washed them and threw them on a pan to roast in the oven with salt and pepper and again, some olive oil.  They were so sweet and fresh they needed just a few minutes in the oven until they were perfect.

Slow roasting …

…. kept the bird moist and succulent

When all was said and done, in about an hour and a half, the bird came off the Weber juicy and crisp, and paired with the carrots we picked up at the market, our dinner was just about 100 percent local.  The chicken, perfectly done, was amazing.  Susan raved “it was such a pure and fresh chicken taste,” and continued, “this is the best chicken I’ve ever had.”  We were totally blown away by the flavor, and in this case it wasn’t the Chef, whose preparation was stupid simple, who could take the credit, but the farmers.  We even called Joel and Erica and left a message on their phone that night (we don’t have internet or cell service at home otherwise we would have texted them), eager to share our new-found devotion with them.

So next time you stop by the Charlottesville City Farmers Market, make sure you hit up Joel and Erica from Free Union Grass Farm for a bird or two, and I guarantee you won’t be disappointed, and you will never buy a grocery store chicken again.  We won’t.

Thanks for reading along and remember, F2% Because Heavy Cream is Always Better!

Cheers,

Justin & Susan

Hamiltons’ on the Downtown Mall

Hamiltons’ is Chef Curtis Shaver’s first tour as Chef du Cuisine.

I spent an evening at Hamiltons’ a couple of weeks ago as Curtis Shaver the new Chef de Cuisine of Hamiltons’ at First & Main prepped his kitchen for evening service.  I spoke with him about his thoughts on local food, his background and where he finds inspiration for what he cooks.

In a town that owes most of its current population to The University of Virginia, it’s interesting to find that the culinary scene here has a number of roots in upstate New York at Cornell University. Curtis Shaver, the new Chef de Cuisine of Hamiltons’ at First & Main hails from that region of the country, and after studying at Pennsylvania Culinary Institute in Pittsburg, PA, he returned there to take a job at as a prep cook at the Genesee River Hotel. Moving on from his hometown, he soon took up residence at Cornell University, where he met Chef Craig Hartman, and the die was cast for his arrival in Charlottesville. After working with Hartman for about three years, Hartman eventually left Cornell for Keswick Hall, and when he did he asked Shaver to follow him down to Charlottesville and be his Sous Chef.

Leading by example on the line at Hamiltons’

BREAD … it’s important!

After a number of years in the business, many of them in banquet situations, this is Chef Shaver’s first stint at the top of the Chef ladder, and he’s excited to be at Hamiltons’. “It’s been going really well, and we’ve had a lot of good reviews,” he said, continuing, “we’ve done a tasting for the new menu, and now we’re doing brunch on Sunday’s and getting used to being busy with the patio open now.”

Chef Curtis behind the line.

Shrimp and crab cakes

Chef acknowledged that using local, fresh products is obvious these days, but that he tries to “work with them in a different and unique way.”   “Good quality food, that’s not very hard to explain to the customers” is what he is striving to make, and he continued saying, “I’m not trying to do anything too overly sophisticated for anybody.”   Asked about his cooking style, Chef said he has been influenced by Italian and mediterranean styles in the past, but ”since I moved down here I’ve kind of really gotten involved in this new southern style of cooking, bringing back things like black eyed peas, braised kale and collard greens.”

Local Kale from The Local Food Hub

Chef talks with the front of the house staff before service.

Really though, his inspiration comes from “the ingredients I get,” explaining that many days “I’ll just come in without any idea of what I’ll do, and take a look in the walk-in and see what I can use, and just kind of be inspired by the ingredients and what I can do with them.”  Ultimately what this young chef’s philosophy boils down to is “just making it good … good honest food, really is all I really want to do.”

And that is exactly what is happening on the downtown mall at Hamiltons’ … Good, Honest, Food.  Go get some!

Thanks for reading along, and Remember, F2% Because Heavy Cream is Always Better!

Cheers,

JI

Knife at the kill station

As I’ve said before, I think it is vitally important for us to know our food, where it comes from, how it is raised, treated and ultimately how it is slaughtered and brought to our table. The “farm to table movement” was pioneered by many, but Alice Waters who in 1971  opened Chez Panisse, a restaurant in California, famous for its organic, locally-grown ingredients has been given much credit in the past.  In the ensuing 40 years since “Farm to Table” was coined, that movement has picked up traction, and some would argue, has transformed into a “local and sustainable food movement.”

Morning chores for Emma at Free Union Grass Farm include feeding young goats.

In order to learn a bit more about where our chickens come from, I visited Free Union Grass Farm this week, a ten minute drive from our place in the Mission Home section of Free Union. We get our chicken from Joel and Erica at the Charlottesville Farmers’ Market and I wanted to check with them as they processed chickens for the first time this season.   Erica, one of the dynamic duo who own and run FUGF, said “It will be so nice to finally have chickens at the Farmers’ Market this week,” after explaining that many customers have been inquiring when the first batch would be available.

Emma Shirley, one of two new farm interns at FUGF.

On a chilly Tuesday, with the sun rising, I met up with Joel in the field where the ducks and chickens were grazing and he introduced me to Andy Hannas, one of two brand new farm interns at FUGF.  Andy and Emma, newlyweds from Richmond, are “farm curious” after working in the culinary field, and have signed on to an internship for the next six months to understand farming better, and “see if we enjoyed the lifestyle” said Andy. “We cold called them, really …” said Andy when asked how he got in touch with FUGF, and Erica proceeded to explain that the two of them were “cheerfully persistent”  which made them locks for the job.

Andy and Joel collecting chickens for processing.

As Emma and Erica completed the daily chores, feeding the goats and giving an orphan calf a much needed bottle (seems when cows give birth to twins, the smaller one is often left to fend for itself), Joel and Andy collected chickens from the field and loaded them into crates in the back of a pick-up truck.  The plan for the day was to process 200 birds in two groups of 100 or so, and sorting out the smaller, lighter birds was the first challenge of the day.

Orphaned but not forgotten

Once the chickens, Cornish Cross broilers, were loaded into crates, we brought them over to the processing tables situated outside under a deck, about 100 yards or so from the field. The fact that these chickens have traveled a mere 100 yards to be processed, and will be sold 15 miles away at market or delivered to restaurants in Charlottesville is about as “local” as you can get, except for those that were “culled” by Erica and Joel, and will become their dinner sometime soon, on the farm where they were raised.

Erica putting chickens into the kill cones. They can process four at a time.

There are a number of ways to process chickens and killing cones are used at FUGF.  Because it is a small operation – until this time Joel and Erica were the only ones to process in the last three years – four birds are processed at a time. The birds are slipped upside down into a cone that tightly holds them in place as their heads dangle out the bottom. The birds are quiet, and because of the constriction, they are quite calm. The kill is made with two quick cuts with a sharp knife, on each side of the chickens throat, avoiding the wind pipe, and severing the jugular and carotid arteries.

Next up

It’s over quick. The chicken’s bleed out in a couple of minutes.

After bleeding out, the chickens are loaded into a chicken scalder, which is new to FUGF. The birds rotate in a bath of scalding hot water, carefully monitored and gauged to loosen the feathers but not cook the bird.  The next step is to be dropped in a plucker, which will take off most if not all of the feathers in a mater of seconds, and the birds will be ready for final processing.  These two steps, which are the only real “mechanical” steps in the whole process, both have greatly increased the productivity of the farm and have allowed FUGF to decrease the time of production, while maintaining a great product.

Joel grabs the birds from the killing cones.

Birds whirl around inside a plucker.

Now free of feathers, the birds are brought to the processing table where their head and feet are removed, and the internal organs are taken out, saving hearts and livers for separate sale.  This process is done in stages, and the birds are looked over extensively by hand, to make sure that each feather has been removed, and they are checked for blemishes that may have happend in the process.   For Free Union Grass Farm, each bird that ends up packaged for sale or delivery to local chefs has to be perfect, and a cut in the skin or a chicken leg improperly cut during the removal of the feet (I did this a number of times before I learned what I was doing) ends up being culled into the “really local, FUGF consumption only” cooler.

Internal becomes external

Erica, Joel and Emma during processing

Close inspection of each bird maintains quality.

Once the birds have been checked completely, they get put into a chiller tank filled with cold water and ice to rest for about an hour and a half to bring down the body temperature of the birds before they are checked one more time, wrapped in plastic and put into a freezer.  In a full day of processing, 200 birds were dispatched, in record time, and most if not all will either be delivered locally or sold at the Farmers’ Market by Saturday.

Andy and Erica wrapping things up.

In the afternoon, after an amazing lunch prepared by Andy (see below), I was able to put down my camera and take part in the second batch of processing.  Because of Joel and Erica’s exacting standards, I self-limited my participation to killing, scalding, plucking and removing the head and feet of the birds, all more gruesome, granted, but the decidedly less delicate parts of the work, which I felt I couldn’t screw up (see above for that result).

Andy’s Thai inspired duck lunch

Because I had the distinction of killing the last four birds of the day, I also was afforded the honor of declaring “Last Chicken, Dead,” hence the title of this post. A tradition Joel and Erica started a number of years ago when they first started processing chickens themselves, this season “Last Chicken, Dead,” will be heard more and more as the season goes on.  Along with that honor, a sense of accomplishment of a full days work and the satisfaction of knowing where our food comes from filled me with pride as I drove over the hills back home. Being able to see, undertand, and participate in our food system is important to me, and hopefully you.

Thanks to our friends at Free Union Grass Farm, and to you for reading along.

Remember, F2% Because Heavy Cream is Always Better!

Cheers,

Justin

Having arrived just a year ago from Boston, last week weighed heavy on our hearts, and with my connections to the news photographers in the city (I was a staff photographer at The Boston Herald) and Susan’s work at The Brigham and Women’s Hospital, we had dozens of friends who were intimately involved in the recent events in Boston.  So it was a great pleasure to get away from the TV coverage and head into Charlottesville for Hill & Holler’s Dinner honoring the ladies from Beyond the Flavor at The Old Metropolitan and to share some amazing food with new friends.

Tracey Love of Hill & Holler greeting guests.

Erik, AKA “Red”, from Red & the Romantics playing outside on the Mall.

Things started outside the Old Met on the downtown mall, with Red and the Romantics playing some original folk bluegrass music while the guys from Potter’s Craft Cider in Free Union served up some dry cider as a never ending supply of passed canapés, including crabmeat on toast, chicken liver pate in savory pâte à choux puffs (from Free Union Grass Farm) and scrumptious red bliss potato soufflés.

Potter’s Craft Cider

Red bliss potato soufflés

Once we moved inside The Met, and got a look at the menu from Chef Dean Maupin of  The C&O Restaurant, I knew right away I was going to be rolled away from table at the end of the night. Each of the four courses would be paired with wine from Pollak Vineyards, a local vineyard I visited for a story that was published in The Local Palate back in October.

Chef’s menu for the evening featured local in season produce and meats.

Susan and I were lucky to score a seat next to some of the coolest farmers in the area, Joel and Erica from Free Union Grass Farm, who I featured here a while back, as well as some new friends – a new employee for Susan who during our conversation blurted out, “Oh my god, you’re my new boss …” when the connections came alive.  The space inside The Met is long, and it was set up with two tables, and dinner was served family style, which worked well to encourage interaction between folks who didn’t know each other well.

Long tables and lots of conversation made for a wonderful night.

The walls inside were decorated with heavy burlap and photos of the featured farmers taken by Sarah Cramer Shields and Andrea Hubble of Beyond the Flavor, and mixed and matched place settings by Tracey Love of Hill & Holler created a warm atmosphere that made you feel like you were at a family gathering.  In the small kitchen at the back of The Met, Chef Maupin and his staff assembled beautiful dishes that tasted as good, and even better than they looked.

Chef Maupin, center, assembles the first course.

Leek confit, potato purée and sottocenere fonduta

Free Union Grass Farm duck confit tortellini

Slow braised lamb from Border Springs with gnocchi and gremolata

Silky Cow Milk and Brown Sugar Pie

Everything was super unreal, and the plates kept coming and coming. The wine parings worked very well with each course, the Rosé was my favorite with the Free Union Grass Farm duck confit tortellini, though the dessert paring was overly sweet when the wine and Silky Cow and Brown Sugar Pie were combined. Personally,  I would have loved to see some Calvados at the end of that course myself … will have to talk with Tim and Dan of Potter’s Cider about that.

Free Union Represents! Dan of Potter’s Craft Cider and Joel and Erica of Free Union Grass Farm.

Over all it was an amazing night with some really great food, good company, and lots of new faces.  A pretty good way to end a really depressing week, and to start off the spring season here in Charlottesville.  Last year spring was so hectic because we had just arrived, so it feels a bit more comfortable this time and it really does feel like a re-birth.

Thanks for reading along and remember, F2% Because Heavy Cream is Always Better!

Cheers,

Justin

PS – Along Free Union Road going home after the evening we found this guy.  I wanted to stop and pick him up, but Susan wouldn’t let me. Seems someone did though, ’cause he wasn’t there this morning … or maybe he was just taking a nap.

Unfortunate place to take a nap along Free Union Road.

Justin Bagley, The Pie Guy

“With something that is not really all that familiar to Americans, (Aussie Pies) I thought it was something that they needed to see,” said Justin Bagley as he sets up a custom made food cart outside of Mudhouse on the downtown mall.  With “Pie Guy 2″ on the license plate (Pie Guy 1 is his truck) and a look reminiscent of Eric Church, with a trucker hat and sunglasses, Bagley prepares to hawk a little bit of Australia to customers right here in Charlottesville.

“I can be where the customer want’s me to be” said Justin.

Bagley, a graduate of VCU travelled to Australia and New Zealand in 2009, and during his time there he fell in love with, among other things, the iconic local food known as Meat Pies.  ”I ate them every day” he said, and decided when he returned to bring them with him and share their greatness with others.  ”The Australian Classic is best served with ‘tomato sauce,’ which is what Australians call it, we call it ketchup,” said Bagley as he explained the menu and traditions around meat pies.  ”Most Australians do not use a fork, they just take the pie out of a tin and eat it handheld,” he explained, but said that he has forks on hand in case people want to eat them without getting their hands dirty.

Justin getting some pies into bake.

“The Pie Guy,” is a monicker he credits to his girlfriend Claire’s sister, who are both Australian, and says that the whole process had been supported by a wide range of family and friends.  At this point, it’s less than two weeks old, and the offerings include two meat pies, two chicken pies and two vegetarian pies, as well as a sweet apple pie for dessert, and a breakfast pie made with bacon, cheese and eggs.  All of the produce is locally sourced from here in Virginia, and he has plans to integrate specials and other flavors in the near future.

Look for The Pie Guy on the Downtown Mall.

The Pie Guy  is on the web and can also be found on Facebook.  His hours have been irregular until now, but with the start of Friday’s After Five he plans on keeping a steady presence from Tuesday thru Sunday.  Part of the problem has been the sheer success of the pies.  The first day Justin came down to the mall for lunch with a full cart expecting to stay until 8 PM, but sold out within hours saying, “It was overwhelming .. I guess it was a good problem to have.”

Thanks for reading along.

Remember, F2% Because Heavy Cream is Always Better!

Cheers,

JI

Marathon Kiss – An SX-70 from the 1998 Boston Marathon

Cocktail shakers have been around since the beginning of time, and by the late 19th century, the cocktail shaker as we now know it was in wide use.  But it took a bit of southern flair and it two former students from UVA, Eric Prum and Josh Williams to bring the Mason Shaker into existence. “We were randomly selected as first year roommates,” said Eric Prum via email, “and hit it off right away. I am a Charlottesville native, and Josh is from Northern VA, and we have been fortunate enough to still be able to work together 9 years later.”

“The actual idea was born out of makeshift mason jar cocktail shakers we fashioned in college” said Eric.  Both Virginia natives were from the Class of 2008 at UVA and presently can be found in Brooklyn, NY. “It took a bit of design work and time to get there, but we finally came up with the final concept last spring,” and the Mason Shaker is the first of a number of new items they have in mind.

I personally found the Mason Shaker to be a great addition to our kitchen because of it’s natural appeal and size.  You can make double and triple drinks – or even more if you have to – inside the Mason Shaker which holds a full 32 oz..  Another nice part is that you can actually see inside the jar as your are mixing the drink, which is both enjoyable and handy.  Eric said “The shakers are great- the Ball Jars have both metric and imperial measurements on each side, they look great on the mantle, and the cap acts as a one ounce jigger,” which can be helpful in creating cocktails.

The Happy Cook is stocked up with Mason Shakers, and they are a great addition to any cocktail makers kitchen.  With warmer weather, the advantages of being able to make multiple drinks at once will make the Mason Shaker one of the hot items this summer.  And be sure and be on the look out at The Happy Cook for some new items from the former UVA grads coming in May.

Cheers,

Justin

The term locavore was coined by professional chef and author Jessica Prentice back in 2005, and the word was the Oxford English dictionary’s word of the year in 2007. The idea to eat “locally” spawned a movement that has since spread world wide, and here in Charlottesville, one of it’s biggest proponents is Chef Harrison Keevil of Brookville Restaurant.  On Sunday,  April 14, 2013, Chef Keevil will share some of his philosophy, cooking skills and inspiration at The Happy Cook Farm to Table series, from 5:00 – 6:30 PM, and you can call (434) 977-2665 for tickets, which are $40 per person, tasty bits and beverages included.

I caught up with Chef Keevil last week at his restaurant and talked to him about the upcoming class at The Happy Cook.  Chef Keevil grew up in Richmond, Virginia and after a circuitous route to the kitchen, which included stops in California, London and San Francisco, he opened Brookville Restaurant in Downtown Charlottesville in 2010 with his wife.  About the class series, Chef said, “We partnered with The Happy Cook to create a Farm to Table class series, where I team up with a local farm, and we could just show and give credit to the local farmers who are really doing all the hard work.”  It seems to me to be a prefect match, because The Happy Cook itself is locally owned and operated since 1978.

“Brookville was founded with the philosophy of sourcing and utilizing as much locally grown product as we can,” said Keevil, “right now we are 90 percent locally grown … so most everything comes within 100 miles, and everything else we get from small local purveyors here in town, so our money can go back into the local community.”  This standard will be on display during the Farm to Table cooking class at The Happy Cook  when Chef Keevil presents Shiitake Crepes made with locally sourced mushrooms from Sharondale Farm on April 14, 2013.

“I love this recipe because it is a fun vegetarian recipe that is delicious year round,” said Chef Keevil. “It’s a nice simple vegetarian dish … the last of the cold weather kind of warm you up dishes, that will hold you over until all the greens of the spring arrive.”  Crepes, a thin French kind of pancake, is something everyone can benefit from learning how to make.  I learned to make crepes in Normandy, France back when I was an exchange student, and once you make your own at home – you can fill them with sweet as well as savory items, they will become a regular on your weekend menu. When asked about the hardest part of making crepes for this recipe, Chef said, “The hardest part is the crepe. You have to make sure your heat is not too high because you want as little color as possible.”

So come on out and support our LOCAL FARMS and CHEFS, and sign up for this great evening at The Happy Cook.  Chef Harrison Keevil from Brookville Restaurant will be cooking Shiitake Crepes, among other treats! Learn about this local farm, eat great food, and enjoy a fun evening out with your friends! $40/person, beverages included. (434) 977-2665 Sun., April 14, 5-6:30 pm.

A modified pick-up bed serves as a chicken coop.

Along a small country road in Esmont, VA, where the speed limit appears to be just a suggestion, a small farmhouse sits atop a hill overlooking a flood plain bordered with wild blackberries and Ballinger creek.  Red Row Farm, established in 2010, is the brainchild of Chef and owner of The Whiskey Jar and Rev Soup, Wilson Richey and his wife Lisa. They describe it as “a little agricultural experiment in sustainability that is part farm-to-table, part homestead, and part whim.”

Wilson inside the farm office with the book that started it all

The farm to table part of the manifesto is understandable.  With two successful restaurants up and running, and a desire to locally source as much produce as possible for both establishments,  it became clear to Wil (short for Wilson) that it would be easier to plant what he needed when he needed it, rather than rely on other local sources which didn’t always have exactly what he wanted.  ”Sourcing food locally is not a matter of importance,” said Wil, “it is the only option.”  He continued explained his reasoning saying “It supports a vertical system of total wholeness, keeping money in our community, providing meaningful work for local folks, and being a good steward of the land.”

The whimsy on the other hand comes from fact that prior to moving out of “downtown Charlottesville” and into the country, neither of the would be farmers had any farm experience what so ever.

Lots of books took the place of experience the first couple of of years.

Fake it until you make it, though, was not part of the plan for this new family of farmers. The farm office is a veritable library of all things gardening, farming and homesteading, and it is clear that a logical, educated and thoughtful approach to farming by two admitted “food geeks” was going to start with a book.  Specifically, John Seymour’s Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live it.  Wilson, who came to food not through an education at the CIA or some other such institution, but from a strong background of Francophile parents said, “I would love to be completely self sustaining, not so much to separate myself from the world but more so to curb contributing to the worlds many problems, socially and environmentally,” and continued “I believe in understanding the mechanisms that support your own life and lifestyle and being an on hand contributor to those mechanisms.”

Plantings in the green house

I met Wilson and Ben Thornes, Red Row’s farm manager, this week for a spring tour of the farm, and to see what a self-sufficient life starts out like. With temperatures still hovering around or below freezing at night, things on the farm are still brown and have barely recovered from the long winter.  In the past two years since this farm experiment began, various setbacks and learning experiences have whittled down many of the animals found on the farm to only chickens and a few “free range” rabbits, but with spring, hope always comes.  ”The best thing about moving to the farm,” said Wilson  ”has been the vision of a self reliant lifestyle. I can grow my own food, breed and raise animals, build and tear down and construct a piece of land that is mine into the shape I want to live in … it is total freedom.”

Riding in the back of a pick up never seemed so safe

At this point ducklings are on order and will arrive next week, and piglets a short time later.  The focus has been growing a few things in the greenhouse and getting in early plantings of spinach, peas, and beans.  In total Red Row has about an acre and a half of plantable land, and with the help of Ben full time, and WWOFF interns here and there, Wilson thinks production this year should be substantially increased over the previous years. “It’s all about systems,” says Ben as he gives a tour of the chicken coop made from a pick up truck bed, “and the weather is a big factor too.”

Wilson and Ben talk in the chicken yard, while Scout, a gets a scratch from Wilson.

Wilson walking through the first plantings.

Around the farm,  large wooden rain barrels collect water from gutters to be used for plants and shrubs close to the house and cedar timbers from overrun land, now set aside for the new pigs, form supports for terraces inside the garden.  A clear sense of working with the land and whatever is available to this family is apparent everywhere you look. Sustainability and a “do it yourself” lifestyle is not just a chapter in some book.

Eggs are everywhere on the farm.

This choice seems to agree with Wilson, explaining, “I will eventually leave restauranting for farming, but who knows when though.” Embracing the slower more relaxed lifestyle of a small local farm seems to fit in well for Ben, the farm manager as well, who hails from Idaho.  Like any farmer, planning long-term is relative, and this week getting the tiller back from the shop is the main concern of everyone.  Without a tractor on hand and no tiller to work with, planting becomes complicated and a mental note to call the mechanic is shared a loud by Wilson as we make our way back from the larger field close to the creek.

A basement overseen by none other than Bob Dylan, on right tipping his hat.

In a basement work space complete with an industrial sink and scales to weigh produce, Wil shows me the last bits of canned items from seasons past.  Beans, pickles and a Mason jar of clear liquid, vinegar perhaps, are found along with a ham from one of their last pigs that was cured at Kite’s in Wolfstown.  Ben grabbed some more seeds for planting as Wilson and I made our way upstairs, and we parted company for the time being.  When asked what was next for The whiskey Jar and Rev soup, Wilson responded, “To complete the farm to table (for lack of a better phrase) system I have been working up to with Red Row Farm.” When pressed he said, “I would like to expand the model so that the farm is providing the majority of food stuffs to the restaurants, creating a total local food and community output – there is much more we can do to grow the farm’s part in the final meal that one orders from the restaurant, and working to that end will be the focus of the next few years.”

Thanks for reading along and remember, F2% Because Heavy Cream is Always Better!

Cheers,

Justin