Category: People

Maine Brew Bus & Dave Geary Interview

| Posted in Beer, People

This week’s edition of The Forecaster includes a double article about the Maine Brew Bus,

The tour visits three of Maine’s leading breweries: Allagash Brewing Co. off Riverside Street, where the visit begins with a tour and ends with a tasting; then to Maine Beer Co. in Freeport for a beer sampler and snack, and finally to Rising Tide Brewing Co. in East Bayside, for a final tasting.

and containing an interview with Dave Geary.

Geary, who lives in Cape Elizabeth, said the brewing scene has changed dramatically in the years since he began building his brewery in 1984.

“There we no real road maps, how-to guides,” he said. “All of our equipment is custom made. These days you can buy it off the shelf, turn-key operation, if you’ve got enough money.

Apples/John Bunker/Apple CSA

| Posted in People, Farming

The Portland Phoenix has published an article about this year’s apple season, the apple CSA and John Bunker,

For five years now, Bunker and his wife, Cammy, and crew have run an “Out on a Limb” heritage apple CSA, with two drop-off locations in Portland. I just joined and can’t wait for this week’s first pickup of the 10 to 12 pounds of apples. Last year, the CSA distributed dozens of rare and beloved Maine varieties, including deep purple (plum-like) Black Oxfords and dense Blue Pearmains, aromatic Garden Royals and Idareds, Cox’s Orange Pippins and Northern Spys. Willow Pond Farm in Sabattus is known for these late season Northern Spys, crisp yet juicy, and equally good eaten fresh or baked into pie.

For more on the apple CSA see this post from The Blueberry Files about the first week’s distribution.

Bunker & the Apple CSA

| Posted in People

It’s apple season, yesterday marked the start of the Out on a Limb apple CSA and so it’s perfect timing for The Root to post an article about Maine apple expert John Bunker.

Super Chilly Farm in Palermo, Maine is the home of John Bunker and Cammy Watts, and the base of operations for the “Out on a Limb” CSA program. A self-taught preservation pomologist, John has been tracking down heirloom apples and pears, particularly those originating in Maine, for decades. His 2007 publication Not Far From the Tree: A Brief History of the Apples and the Orchards of Palermo, Maine chronicles his fruit exploring adventures.

Omi’s Coffee Shop

| Posted in People, Profiles

The Portland Daily Sun has published an article on Omi’s Coffee Shop,

Omi’s Coffee Shop takes its name from co-owner Naomi Hall, and also functions as an exclamation one might make after drinking a cup of coffee there, as in “Oh my!”

In addition to the organic, fair-trade coffee, Omi’s also serves homegrown tea, baked goods from Standard Baking, and Union bagels.

and Natalie Ladd’s weekly column.

Bollard: Harding Lee Smith Article #2

| Posted in People

The Bollard has published a 2nd article about chef Harding Lee Smith, owner of The Front Room, The Grill Room, The Corner Room and Boone’s Fish House & Oyster Room.

During the two months since our July issue hit the streets, hardly a day has gone by that I have not encountered someone eager to share their own account of awful behavior by the subjects of that issue’s cover story: Chef Harding Lee Smith and his wife, Darcy.

Imbibe: Matt Bolinder from Speckled Ax

| Posted in People

Matt Bolinder, owner and roaster at Speckled Ax, was featured in article about wood-roasted coffee in the latest issue of Imbibe magazine.

For Bolinder, wood choice is about controlling this highly specialized process. “The type of wood is important for the rate of burn and how quickly I can manipulate temperature,” he says. “I can’t go from zero to full gas in a second like most roasters, so I compensate by using different types of wood. Ash takes off quickly and with it, I can increase temperature fairly quickly. On the other hand, red oak takes longer to catch and start throwing heat, but its large pieces hold the temperature.”

The article isn’t yet available online but there is a copy behind the counter at Speckled Ax which you can take a look at. Imbibe has posted a short list of coffee shops in the US that feature wood-roasted coffee.

Interview with Mike Keon & Anthony Allen & 2013 Honey Crop

| Posted in People

The Press Herald has published an interview with Mike Keon and Anthony Allen, owners of Otto Pizza.

Q: What’s next for Otto Pizza?
A: Allen: We like what we do now, but the idea of growing bigger probably means we’d be working for someone else, and we look at each other and say, “Why do we want to do that?” We added four locations last year, and this year we’re down to two and next year is going to be for retrenching and making sure every line on our notepad gets more attention and every product gets more scrutiny. It’s time to just fine-tune things.

Also in today’s paper are articles about the dismal 2013 Maine honey crop,

Bees and beekeepers have been struggling through one of the worst summers for honey production in Maine in recent memory.

A Visit to Bartlett’s

| Posted in People, Profiles

Sharon Kitchens, author of The Root, and bartender Andrew Volk finished off their 3-part series on Maine distilleries with a visit to Bartlett’s Spirits of Maine.

When Bob Bartlett and his wife Kathe arrived in Maine in 1975 they brought with them a passion and knowledge of wine-making. In 1983 they opened Bartlett Maine Estate Winery in Gouldsboro and became the first winemakers in the state. In 2007, the couple added a distillery to produce pear eau de vie and apple brandy (the apples are sourced from Maine producers). Two months ago they introduced Rusticator Rum made with organic molasses sourced from South America.

In parts 1 and 2 of the series Kitchens and Volk visited New England Distilling and Sweetgrass Farm Winery & Distillery.