FEAST OF FIELDS - SEA TO SKY Another summer weekend has come and gone and the last one presented as many events as seeds on a strawberry. We made it up to Whistler for the Whistler/Pemberton version of
Feast of Fields, an annual fundraiser for the
Farm Folk/City Folk organization. Thanks to the rain, attendance was a little down from last year (which to compare the weather was a bake off in 2006). That was a bit of a shame, because despite the drizzle and mosquitos the size of helicopters, there was much to enjoy, not the least of it being the venue itself - Pemberton's
North Arm Farm with its glorious vistas of mist-veiled mountain ranges and lush, green fields of produce. The setting is by far the most beautiful of any Feast of Field event, and that includes those held on Vancouver island and in Ontario.
For the sake of the event, we would have liked to have seen a bigger crowd, but for those who did make it out, the tranquil ambience provided certain advantages. For one, there was no need to play elbow hockey to get near the booths. The chefs, winemakers, brewers, and food artisans had plenty of time to talk about their products and an overstock of samples to ply you with ... which is quite alright when it's in the form of such things as
Hillary's Cheese, pulled pork tacos from
Big Smoke Mountain BBQ, beet popsicles by
Fat Duck Cuisine, stuffed squash blossoms, seafood cones courtesy of
Fifty-two 80 Bistro,
Maluma bison sausage, and cloud-like pavlovas topped with blackberries as big as walnuts from the pastry kitchen at
Araxi, to name just a few, of course. As well, there were some interesting new items that were strictly local such as the new vintage of
Pemberton Wines and a "
Hang Dog" hefeweizen from
Howe Sound Brewery.
Photographers know that hazy days are ideal for photo shooting because they make the colours of food and flowers and greenery pop, and you can see what we mean by the photos we have
posted in our Gallery Section.
This was a second time out for the Sea to Sky Feast of Fields, which is a younger sister to the Mainland Vancouver and Vancouver Island version of the event. It has a wonderful setting and proximity to the organic food of the surrounding Pemberton Valley farm belt going for it, but it could still use a little more support from Whistler's hotels and restaurants, and probably more from the area's residents themselves. (Most of the ticket buyers appeared to be from Vancouver.)
The cause behind it is a worthy one. Much of the proceeds go via the Farm Folk/City Folk organization to support local food security projects. In 2006 earnings from the Sea to Sky segment went specifically to assist the
Pemberton Community Garden Project.
Food from the community to benefit the community. That's what it should really be all about.
