Cherry Fest 2017 – By Mike Knox
Treasure Hunting View
What a great event at Varick Winery this weekend! Nothing starts out a treasure hunt better then the view, looking out on to Cayuga Lake. It was a beautiful ride down Rt. 89.
Varick Winery is part of the Cayuga Lake Wine Trail on the west side of the Lake. They offer a lot more then just wine, they have sauces, butters and of course cherries. You could go out in their orchard and pick your own! Several attendees were very proud of their take and told us it was well worth the effort!
The Event
Everyone was so friendly and helpful from the vendors we got to meet & the employees helping make the event a great success! Everyone we talked to had a story as you shell see!
Our First Find!
Our first find was some very tasty beer! I had an Amber & Kathleen had an IPA. The Amber was the winner in our taste test! It was nice to have a cold beer and walk down “Vendor Ave”.
Our first stop on the Ave. was at the Apple Chucking Tent! That was a blast to watch, there were targets out in the field that you tried to hit. I was able hit something out there but not sure what. The Kids loved it and would get buckets full of apples. It was all good fun for charity and I bet they raised some money!
The Treasures to be found!
Real treasures!
When we go treasure hunting we mean it! We were able to seek “valuables” by panning in this home made stream! Run by a mom & son team they set you up with a bag full of sand with hidden treasures inside.
I found several pieces of “gold (pyrite) several sharks teeth and the gem of all gems a nice gold stone that they made into a nice necklace for Kathleen! They thought of everything, if your gem was not to your liking they had a trading basket and you could select something else.
Art, more art and some more art!
From the Earth & Seas
Some of the crafters had the most unusual pieces that you would not expect at a Cherry Fest. Two of them really stood out! From the Earth and Seas had unique art work from Nicaragua.
The owners Ray & Linda have been going to Nicaragua for over 20 years. The local skilled artisan’s are becoming harder to find because they have no way to sell their creations locally and make a living.
From the Earth and Seas provides a market and is helping to make sure this is not a lost art form. They travel to over 30 shows a year. Their pieces ranged in price and form. Each artisan mixes their own colors so each piece is unique. If you would like to contact them let us know, they do not have a website.
Grogg a pirates drink!
What pirate wouldn’t want a mug like this! All reasonably priced and unique in design! Your not going to find anything like this in a store. We had already finished our beer or I would have had to get one.
Stay warm in the winter!
Twilight Alpacas had some great ways to stay warm in the winter, their home made scarves and hats from Alpacas wool were really nice work. Jeff the owner was telling everyone about their farm and answering lot’s of questions.
He told me that the Alpacas are sheered once a year, these two had just been given a “hair cut”. One of the Alpacas had 7 pounds of wool this year. What a great way to lose some weight. Learn more from their Facebook page.
Last Stop!
Which butter do I choose?
After visiting all the vendors we made our way back to the Varick Winery shop. We tasted their home made butter, there must have been 25 or more to choose from making the final decision difficult. They have an online store that you can shop from.
They have lots of other products and homemade condiments. The taste and effort put into their products is easy to see. We had a great adventure there and want to thank Varick Winery for letting us come by for the day.
More pictures: You can see more pictures here. Please support your local artisans they make the world a unique place!
