2010 saw Maize Valley Farm Market and Winery go to its very first garlic festival. The very first Cleveland Garlic Festival was held in September by the North Union Farmers’ Market and were invited!
Size Matters! ?
Great food, live music, even “Miss Garlic”? Oh and garlic too.
Miss Garlic, uh she's on the right...
Did I say there was garlic there? We loaded our truck with about 300 lbs. of garlic, shallots, Red onions and a whole host of canned garlic products such as, galic stuffed olives and hot pickled garlic.
Tastes like garlic
Some of the Ohio Wine and More blog post from Maize Valley Farm Market and Winery focus on different things. We will put our wines up against any in the state from dry reds to sweet fruits. But we focus a great deal on the partnership with food too. Not only food you buy but what we grow too. It is important to us to be real. No we don’t do everything or raise everything we sell or produce but as much as makes sense to do we give it a shot.
Memories to last a lifetime
You are what you eat it has been said. No you don’t want to be a giant clove of garlic but just think about it. Doesn’t it make sense within reason to eat more foods that are closer to what our human bodies have become used to over the generations? In general less processed, whole foods eaten in a balanced diet of vegtable and animal protein are benificial to you.
Here is our garlic patch from 2010, about 10,000 set. For 2011 it is about twice as large. We sold all of last years crop and have added more as well as some new varities too.
2010 was a great year at Maize Valley Farm Market and Winery, thank you! We really mean that. We are a family farm business that has been making a living with the soil since the 1800′s. Throughout all those year’s my wife’s family the Vaughan’s have been leather tanners, school teachers, carpenters, and all along farmers. You see you just did what you had to do to survive. As Dorie says in finding Nemo, “just keep swimming, swimming, swimming!
We grow about 52 different crops on about 700 acres but the most important crop is fun! Fun = memories and we try and build special events that cement those memories and last a lifetime. Our event calendar is loading up for 2011. We are working on making new events and adding and improving old ones too.
Look for our Vines, Wines, and Pines, cross country race to expand to include a “Farmathlon”, yea it’s gonna be cool! We are working on the half marathon and with any luck will be able to handle the expected growth up towards 2,000 runners.
The Pink Poker Run to raise money for Susan G. Komen 3 day for the cure will be back with a “Bike Rodeo” on the back side of it and hog roast.
We are pulling the plug on the Haunted corn maze and will be planting pumpkins in that area and making the woods part of the wagon ride paths. Plus the Pony Express is going to make it’s way back into the Corn Maze design.
The cane burning Par-Tay is gonna have a bigger pile, the monthly “Vintner Dinner” series keeps selling out so look for some new ideas coming there, the cruise-ins’ are every week starting in May and well wait to ya see the giant Hill-Slide we are building…..! Whew, and that’s not all! Stay Tuned!
I'm Walking 60 miles in 3 Days to help find a cure can you help me?
Michelle with me at Daytona Bike Week
Why I’m Walking
I’m walking because I can. Because so many can not. Because this disease has taken so much from so many. I’m walking for my sister in law who fought to the end, for my dad who grew up without a mother , for my aunt who started her fight 30 years ago, for my mom who started her fight 2 years ago.
I’m walking for myself – to prove that the past year has been just a speed bump in the road of life. Many of you know that I was diagnosed with breast cancer August 31, 2009. Since that time I have had two surgeries, the second being a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. That means they took the old ones with the cancer and gave me new ones (although it’s been a little more involved than that).
I’m walking for my children, that they may never have to walk. That they will never have to hear the words “we got the results, it’s cancer”. That some day there will be a cure and a world without breast cancer.
I’m walking because someone, walked for me. For without the advances in early detection and treatments, my cancer might still be hidden, my story might have a very different ending.
The Susan G., Komen foundation has been involved with every major advancement in the fight against breast cancer.
The Cane Burning Party will take place in our hilltop Pavilion on Saturday, May 29. Admission is $10 ($5 of which will be donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation) and will include hamburgers, bratwurst, potato salad, chips and s’mores around the fire. With Live entertainment for “Me and this other guy”.
My wife Michelle was diagnosed with Breast Cancer last August. She is walking in the 3 day walk. You can donate directly and learn more about her journey by visiting www.maizevalley.com and click on her picture and link.
Come on out and enjoy a good old fashioned big ole’ “Bon Faaarrr”, from Back in the Day. The canes are the wood we prune from the vineyard, not disabled persons walking aids either!! When they burn down we have more wood to add! We might even take a “moon light wagon ride” once the tunes die down, C how it goes!
Food starts about 6:00, wine sales in the pavilion too, we “Light it up” bout 7:00, probably hang out till bout 10:00-11:00 ?
New Year's Eve 2009 at Troutman's, boy I hope 2010 is better!
It’s been such a long time I think should be blogging, but time just slips away and keeps on going…..
Tons has happened here at Maize Valley since August, I am sorry to say I have lost track of time and fell down on the posts. As of late we are dealing with our sixth straight weekend of rain. Pretty much since the start of our fall harvest season and corn maze opening. Per the haunted maze we have had it open only one night out of a possible seven to date. Hopefully tomorrow night will be the second night, rain forcast for next weekend?
Most of all what rocked my world and has divided my attention was the news that my wife Michelle was diagnosed with breast cancer on August 31st. Wow what a deal, dropped me to my knees. We had surgery last Monday, things went as well as could be expected, now we wait on final test results and plan future treatments. I guess it was good we were busy this fall, it helped to occupy our minds.
But we didn’t back down anywhere here on the farm. We just kept pushing like we have all our lives. Just one more challenge, with this time family first. I have learned a great deal about myself, I have learned a great deal about breast cancer and all the success stories as well. But you see a two years ago we lost my sister-in-law Mary Ellen Cole-Bakan, just over a year ago Michelle’s Mom survived. A roller coaster nobody should have to ride.
Mary Ellen helped us in the pumpkin patch from day one. She was great, anybody who would “forget” to pay as they got back on the wagon she would gracefully approach with a smile and be sure we got our money for the pumpkin. She was just a soft and bright soul and I often think of her as I see families in our pumpkin patch building their memories, as she is part of mine.
Cancer scared the hell out of me, I did not want to have memories I wanted to have my wife and business partner of almost 24 years now. You see this business with the help of her family, (mostly Chelle’s Mom and Dad) we have built together from the start at our first farm market conference back in Dayton over 15 years ago. That is where we got our first glimps of direct marketing, corn mazes, pumpkin picking and more. From there we began building a place that in turn helps build memories to last a lifetime for others. She and I are not “in love”, it is something that we do… Thanks Clint Black. Without her this place is just a body of work, hollow without her.
The surgery went well, we think and hope for now she is going to be in that close to 75% that survive today due to our early detection. Time will tell but more than time we are on this one with both feet. And the marketer in me looks to 2010 with breast cancer awarness month in October maybe we can help others by dovetailing our personal journey and our business into their lives as well.
Stay tuned, as maybe that is my purpose behind this new journey my wife, lover and best friend have embarked upon. Thanks to all the family and friends that have helped to lessen the sting with their actual help here on the farm, in the store and in the winery. Thanks to all the stories of realatives and friends that are still here today and words of encouragement of their success stories. That is what we plan of doing for others at the very least!
