413-298-3926 berkshirebotanical.org
Fall classes Farmscape Ecology: Nature and the Human Hand in the Rural Landscape Saturday, October 27, 10am – noon
Lecture Cost $25 All levels, co-enrolled with Horticulture Certificate Program Consider how the land has been used throughout this region for the last century. Join ecologists Claudia and Conrad Vispo for exploration and inspiration from studies of native plants and animals on productive and former farmland in Columbia County. This lecture will give gardeners and landscapers insight into the land use and ecology of the place we live. Claudia Knab-Vispo and Conrad Vispo are ecologists with the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program. They conduct research and outreach designed to help people connect to the ecological and cultural landscape of Columbia County. They hope to deepen compassion for the living land by fostering engagement with its history, present, and future. They have documented biodiversity on productive and former farmland as well as other habitats throughout Columbia County for the past nine years.
Brewing Up a Storm: Making Beer at Home Saturday, October 27, 10:30am – 12:30pm
Lecture/discussion Members $22; Nonmembers $27 All levels, offsite location One of America’s most popular libations, beer, is enjoying a resurgence through artisan beers, microbreweries and home brewing. Join two brewmasters from Barrington Brewery for an in-depth look at beer, beer-making and the history and science of this popular drink. Learn about the essential ingredients of beer, including the hops plant. This talk will cover the basic homebrewing process, ingredients and equipment. Andrew Mankin is head brewer and co-owner of Barrington Brewery. He began as a home brewer 27 years ago and then completed an apprenticeship at the Vaux Brewery in Sunderland, England in 1989. Scott Craumer has been a home brewer for six years and is now a brewer at Barrington Brewery in Great Barrington.
Making Alcohol-Free Spirits: Cordials, Shrubs and Syrups from Fruit and Flowers Saturday, November 3, 10am – noon
Lecture/demonstration Members $22; Nonmembers $27 Materials fee paid to instructor $22 includes finished bottle for shrub All levels Learn how to make syrups and shrubs from cultivated fruits such as raspberries, strawberries, currants and rhubarb. Also consider berry essences and elixirs made with native plants such as elder flowers, milkweed and aronia. This workshop will focus on how to make syrups and shrubs at home. Enjoy tasting various combinations of products and making shrubs from a 19th-century recipe. Each participant will take home a finished bottle of red currant, raspberry or strawberry shrub, a recipe for a vinaigrette-made shrub, as well as cocktail recipes for using shrubs. Participants should also bring wide-mouth, quart-size glass jars that they will fill in class, take home to age and then turn into shrub from a simple recipe included with each jar. Kate Keravian is owner of Bug Hill Farm, Ashfield, MA. They grow and make berry essences and elixirs made with native plants such as elder flowers, milkweed and aronia. Their signature concoction is “Kiss of Cassis” an alcohol-free cordial made from whole pressed black currants slightly sweetened with local honey. Their products are made from whole fruit and flowers.
The Big Squeeze: Making Apple Cider (Hard and Sweet) Saturday, November 3, 1 – 3pm
Demonstration/sampling Members $22; Nonmembers $27 All levels Join John Vittori of Hilltop Orchard for a look at the art and science of making both sweet and hard cider. This lecture/demonstration will cover the history, culture and lore of cider making. Practical information will include selecting apple varieties, cider-making techniques, timing and preserving of both sweet and hard cider. Following a demonstration with a beautiful two-bucket cider press, enjoy a tasting of this local sweet (or hard) drink. John Vittori has owned and operated Hilltop Orchards and Furnace Brook Winery for the past 24 years. His main interests are sustainable agriculture, integrated pest management and land preservation.
22