Article published August 30, 2009
Take time to enjoy the pleasures of our region before summer's gone
After tomorrow August will be gone, and summer won't be far behind. It will be more difficult to bring the curtain down on summer 2009 than in most years because of the near-perfect weather we have experienced. Many times in the past several weeks, when the days have been temperate and the nights cool, I have told friends "this is a Maui day."
Granted, that takes considerable imagination here at Posey Lake, where the only surf is the wake from a high-powered speedboat and sandy beaches are hauled in in bags. But the hundreds of geraniums that stand tall in my yard are testimony to a summer when we have been able to limit air-conditioning, and a light blanket is comfortable at night. This is the fourth summer for my geraniums, and each time I pluck off buckets of the giant salmon-pink blossoms that have died I wonder if I will take them into the warmth of the sun porch one more time this winter, or let them bite the frost and end up in the burn pile.
That decision doesn't have to be made for several weeks. In the meantime, let's move into September ready to savor all the good things this seasonal change from summer to fall offers, including taking a break for a short trip.
In fall, our tastes turn to squash, pumpkins, and apples, but the unpretentious sign at the corner tells me that Jim, who lives down the road, still has homegrown sweet corn to sell. Can we ever get enough of our wonderful locally grown sweet corn and tomatoes? I cringe when people put tomatoes in their market carts in the dead of winter. They just don't taste like tomatoes.
That brings up a question that has bothered me for years. Why do most supermarkets ignore local produce in summer and continue to sell products from California, Mexico, Brazil, and goodness knows where else?
If you must have tomatoes in your salad in winter, freeze the homegrown varieties now. Wash, remove the skins, cut in halves, place them on a cookie sheet, and put them into the freezer. When they are frozen, transfer to bags and return to the freezer.Last summer when I entertained Detroit friends I realized that some city folk don't know a lot about agriculture. It was the end of the season and they wanted to return home with a bushel of sweet corn. They doubted me when I said it was difficult to find corn that late in the season, because they saw cornfields on the road. I had to hide a smile when I said, "No, that's corn for farm animals. There is a difference. If you tried to cook and eat it you would know."
With that true story as a prompt, it may be a good time to take a drive through the countryside in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan and drink in our rich agricultural treasures. You will see that the corn really is as high as an elephant's eye in some fields, especially those in Williams County.
The notebook in the front seat of the car reminds me that on another drive in that direction I will turn off highway 127 South and drive a mile and a half to the Stoney Ridge Winery at the corner of Williams County roads G and 16. I have seen the sign for years on trips to Bryan and Pulaski, Ohio, but never took the time to stop until last week. The long driveway up to the winery surely looked inviting from the road, but I had decided to return when there was more time. From the annual production of 12,000 gallons of wine, owners Pam and Phil Stotz say their Barn Dance Red, Blush, and White are the big sellers. Seating for 100 outdoors and another 100 indoors attests to tasting attendance. Stoney Ridge is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m.
There was no lack of time or wines to taste at the Cherry Creek Winery in Michigan. Cherry Creek, on U.S. 12 near Michigan International Speedway, is in a charming old schoolhouse that has been restored as a tasting room. Owners Denise and John Burtka added live entertainment this summer that will continue in September. Check the Web site, cherrycreekwine.com, for dates. Summer Breeze, a semisweet white, won the gold medal from the Michigan Wine and Spirit competition, but Mr. Burtka is particularly proud of Montage, a dry red.
The First Family has endorsed Montage. Last November Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, were given the bottle of Montage that the Burtkas had given to the owner of Blackbird and Avec restaurants in Chicago where the President and his wife dined. Later Mrs. Obama ordered six bottles for a luncheon. That was before the inauguration, so we don't know if Montage has made it to the White House, but in these parts it's a warm, bubbly story. And it helps sell wine too.
Mary Alice Powell is a retired Blade food editor.
Contact her at: mpowell@theblade.com.
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