Classes at Ridgefield's 109 Cheese & Wine

Ridgefield's best source for artisinal cheese and wine, 109 Cheese & Wine has recently expanded its footprint and education offerings. The shop, located at Ridgefield's Marketplace, has posted an impressive and fun line-up of events throughout the summer. Advance reservations are recommended as class size is limited, call 203-438-5757.

Exploration into Italy: Cheese and Wine 

Friday, May 17 @ 7pm, $55
Explore a great evening of Italian Cheese and Wine, their relationship and how to pair them. Class will start with some wonderful small bites and a glass of Prosecco, then continue with a tasting and comparison of 5 cheeses and wines. Something sweet will end this evening.

Sarah Wine Bar & 109 Cheese and Wine Dinner Sunday 

May 19 2013 at 5:30 pm
Special Guest Henryk Teraszkiewicz, Director of the Woodcock Nature Center
Menu

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Spring Workshops at Millstone Farm in Wilton

Millstone Farm's spring workshops series has been announced. These events range from Pig Carving 101 with Chef Tim LaBant of The Schoolhouse to Raising Backyard Chickens with Millstone’s Master Farmer, Annie Farrell. You'll want to check these out. 

Pig Carving 101 with Chef Tim LaBant

Saturday, March 23:  12pm – 3pm 

Cost: $50, RSVP to f2f@schoolhouseatcannondale.co 

Back by popular demand! Join us for a hearty lunch and an up close and personal workshop on how to carve a whole pig, lead by Chef Tim LaBant of The Schoolhouse at Cannondale. Read more...

Raising Backyard Chickens

Saturday, April 6:  1pm – 4pm 

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Olive Oil Tasting w/ Olivette: Things I Never Knew...

Since I attended a 2-hour olive oil tasting at Olivette, co-sponsored by The Fairfield Green Food Guide, I am deeply ashamed of my olive oil buying habits and I promise to be a better person.

I thank Alina Lawrence, co-owner and general manager of Olivette, an olive oil and vinegar tasting room and specialty foods store in Darien, for her inspired decision to invite professional olive oil taster Arden Kremer to host the tasting. I thank Ms. Kremer for her patience with my sweetly stupid questions, and I will change my ways before someone sees what I am pouring on my salad. 

Historically, I have bought olive oil that comes in a bottle that has lots of Italian writing on it in squirrely script, maybe some pictures of olive trees. Also, sometimes there is a sale on industrial-sized cans of olive oil which I know will last me years because I live alone and do not use olive oil for any purpose outside of the kitchen.

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Visions of Gingerbread @ The Stamford Museum Opens Nov 17

CTbites is proud to be the media sponsor for Stamford Museum and Nature Center's “Visions of Gingerbread: The Sweetest Architects” exhibition. 

Every year, I buy one of those boxed gingerbread house kits and my kids and I go at it. We glop it together with that glue-like petroleum by-product substance that they call icing, we decorate with the stale jelly beans and mini gum balls they provide, and we call it a day. It’s fun and the kids enjoy it. Do yours? If so, head to the Stamford Museum and Nature Center (SM and NC) this month and next to see how the pros do it. “Visions of Gingerbread: The Sweetest Architects” is the name of the exhibition that the museum is presenting as both a showcase for local bakers and as a fundraiser for the SM and NC.

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Holiday Open House @ The Schoolhouse at Cannondale

This just in from The Schoolhouse:

It's that time of year again! Head on over to a Holiday Open House here at the Schoolhouse at Cannondale Restaurant. Get inspiration for your upcoming holiday and dinner parties with a few signature ideas of Chef LaBant's. The Schoolhouse will be featuring several workshop stations starring some of their favorite Hor D'oeuvres, Desserts & Pies (also available for pre-order), a Prosecco and Italian Soda Bar, and a Floral Arrangements & Decorations workshop.

The Open House will go from 7 pm to 9 pm on Tuesday, November 20th. Take home an original recipe book by Schoolhouse's own, included in the cost. Tickets are $65.00 per person. To reserve tickets, please contact: openhouse2012@schoolhouseatcannondale.com with your name, number of reservations, and a telephone number should we need to contact youdirectly. We will confirm your tickets via email.

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Chefs & Cookbook Authors @ Ferguson Library

As part of the Friend of The Ferguson Author Series, Food Writers Katie Workman of The Mom 100 Cookbook, Michele Stuart of the award winning Michele's Pies & Claire Criscuolo, and owner of Claire's Corner Copia in New Haven will be speaking about their experiences and signing books on Wednesday, November 7 from 6-8pm. 

Wine reception will begin at 6 p.m. Appetizers courtesy of Bar Rosso and Capriccio Cafe. Discussion will start at 6:30 p.m. followed by a book sale and signing. Tickets are $15. Proceeds benefit the Library.  Register Here 

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Sunday Talks & Tastings @ Yale Peabody Museum

The Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History will host Talks and Tastings, three events in conjunction with the current exhibition Big Food: Health, Culture and the Evolution of Eating. These events, part presentation and part tasting, will be held on Sundays, September 30, October 28 and December 2. 

• September 30: Spice of Life: Boosting Flavor Profiles and Healthy Eating
• October 28: Oncology Nutrition
• December 2: Nutrition for Young Children 

Admission to the Museum is free, but advance registration for these events is required. The Peabody Museum is located at 170 Whitney Avenue in New Haven, CT.

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Rhubarb Kitchen: Cooking School, British Style, in Darien

As if on cue, the day I attended class at the Rhubarb Kitchen, a cooking school with an emphasis on all things British, the sun disappeared and the weather turned appropriately overcast and drizzly. A perfect backdrop for learning about the delights of the very English ritual of Afternoon Tea.

But first, a little about the women who run this show. Rebecca Binks (aka “Becs”) grew up in Kent and learned the highlights of English food from her grandmother, mom, and eight aunts. A former banker and world traveler who has lived in France and Spain, Becs landed in New York City where she met Lisa McMullan. Lisa, an Irishwoman, grew up surrounded by lush farmland and her culinary path is inspired by a true farm to table experience. Lisa practiced as an optometrist, but her love of food always lingered in the background.

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Saugatuck Craft Butchery Classes & Events

The kids are going back to school, and so should you! Lead by example and take one of Saugatuck Craft Butchery's fall/winter classes. They are offering their usual Butchery 101 classes, as well as a special Holiday Edition. All registration is now done online, so visit the Craft Butchery website to reserve your spot. See below for details on all available classes. 

They are also conducting pig butchering demonstrations- unlike the classes this is not hands-on, but it is still a great way to watch and learn as our butchers walk through the basic anatomy of a pig, artfully carving it into primals, then individual cuts. 

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Class is in Session at 109 Cheese & Wine

School is back in session, and I don't mean the kind that requires boarding a yellow school bus. I'm talking about an education involving terms like bloomy, soft-ripened, blue-vein, washed-rind, and brined or full bodied, flowery or peppery. Ridgefield's 109 Cheese & Wine Shop's Spring/Summer class schedule is out with a full offering for any level of wine, craft beer & cheese appreciation. These classes expertly led by owner, Monica Brown, a wine and cheese connoisseur who, along with her experienced team, is dedicated to bringing a curated selection of the best products from around the corner to around the world to 109.

Check out the full line up below:

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