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Vermont Fresh Network Dinner Celebrates 23 Years

July 8, 2019

A meal like no other returns to Shelburne Farms on Sunday, August 4th!

The Vermont Fresh Network (VFN) invites the public to a delicious tour through Vermont’s finest food and beverages at their 23rd Annual Forum Dinner on Sunday, Aug. 4. Vermont’s chefs and farmers will gather on the shores of Lake Champlain to prepare a grazing dinner celebrating local food.

Hosted in the Coach Barn at Shelburne Farms, guests begin the evening with a 5 p.m. cocktail hour when the courtyard is filled with local food producers offering food and beverage tastings. The cocktail hour participants reflect Vermont’s continued leadership in food and drink, from award winning Vermont cheese and beer to products that use maple in unique ways from sparkling water to infused syrup with locally-foraged mint for cocktails.

At 6 p.m. the doors to the Coach Barn open for diners to enjoy a menu of small dishes prepared by Vermont Fresh Network chefs from across the state, including James Beard semi-finalist Chef Cara Chigazola-Tobin of Honey Road in Burlington and first time participant Chef Vanessa Davis of J.J. Hapgood General Store and Eatery in Peru.

The sweet ending of the evening is provided by the folks at Strafford Organic Ice Cream with an old-fashioned Ice Cream Social on the lawn overlooking the sunset on Lake Champlain.

Ticket sales are limited to provide an evening with space for diners to talk with chefs, food producers, and each other as they taste their way through the night.

Attendees will be able to participate in crowd favorite contests including “The Best Bite” and “The Best Sip.”  And what has become a popular feature of the evening, the silent auction, offers an opportunity to bid on a variety of food and farm themed experiences, from VIP Dinner Packages in local restaurants to romantic getaways to baking classes to brewery and distillery tours.

Tickets are $60 for VFN members and $75 for non-members. For tickets and more information, visit www.vermontfresh.net. Diners are asked to pre-purchase their tickets; there are no ticket sales at the door. This dinner is a fundraiser for Vermont Fresh Network. All proceeds go to continuing programming that helps bring more Vermont grown and raised food to the table. 

Vermont Fresh Network thanks the generous sponsors who make this event possible, including our gold level sponsors, Black River Produce, Burlington Free Press, Farrell Distributing, Foley Services, Hotel Vermont, Shelburne Farms, and Vermont First.  A full sponsor list is found at http://vermontfresh.net/programs/annual-forum.

The following is a list of participants for 2019:

 

14th Star Brewing Company
Aqua ViTea
Artesano Mead / KIS Kombucha
Artisan Eats Vermont
Baird Farm
Bleu Northeast Seafood
Boyden Valley Winery & Spirits
Brio Coffee
Cabot Creamery Co-operative
Caledonia Spirits
Champlain Orchards & Cidery
Citizen Cider
Drifter's
Eden Specialty Ciders
Edson Hill
Good Measure Brewing
Honey Road
Inn at Shelburne Farms
J.J. Hapgood General Store and Eatery
Juniper Bar and Restaurant
Kimball Brook Farm / Green Mountain Orgainc Creamery
Lewis Creek Farm
Lincoln Peak Vineyard
Long Trail Brewing and Otter Creek Brewing
Mad River Distillers
Maquam
Michael's on the Hill
New England Culinary Institute
New Moon Cafe
Nitty Gritty Grains
O Bread Bakery
OM Fisher Homes
Prohibition Pig Brewery
Red Hen Baking Co
Shelburne Farms Cheese
Shelburne Vineyard
SILO Distillery
Stowe Cider
Strafford Organic Creamery
Sugar Bob's Finest Kind (SBFK Inc.)
Sugarsnap Catering
The Farmhouse Group
The Great Northern
The Lodge at Spruce Peak
TreTap / Ceres Natural Remedies
Upstate Elevator Supply Co
UVM Dining with VT First
Vermont Beekeepers Association
Vermont Fresh Pasta
Vermont Grass Farmers Association
Vermont Salumi
Windfall Orchard

 

   
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