Piedmont Virginian Spring/Summer 2018 by Warrenton Lifestyle Magazine

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GROUNDED WOMEN

PIEDMONT ART

AT THE RACES

“The Hunt in Belvoir Vale” by John Ferneley Sr. Photo courtesy of National Sporting Library & Museum

Historic

Middleburg Virginia

Discover our Traditions while creating your own... Shopping, Dining, Arts, Horses, and History VA Fall Races

Horses History Dining Shopping

• April 13-July 22: A Sporting Vision: The Paul Mellon Collection of British Sporting Art from the VMFA @ NSLM

Jumping Rocks Photography

• April 15: Arts in the Afternoon, Middleburg Concert Series • April 21: Middleburg Spring Races, Glenwood Park • April 29: Middleburg Hunt Point-To-Point Races, Glenwood Park • May 19: Art in the Burg • June 2: Mosby Heritage Association: Virginia in World War I Centennial Commemoration • June 4-10: Upperville Colt and Horse Show, oldest horse show in America • July 4: Fireworks Celebration at the Middleburg Community Center - FREE • July 6,7,8: Brook Ledge Great Meadow International at Great Meadow • August 3,4,5: Annual Sidewalk Sale • August 7: National Night Out, Middleburg Community Center • October 5: Mosby Heritage Annual Conference on the Art of Command in the Civil War • October 13: Virginia Fall Races • October 18-21: Middleburg Film Festival • May-October: Farmers Market, 8-12 Saturdays

Red Fox Inn

• NSLM: Open Late free concerts: 5/25, 6/29, 7/27, 8/31 • Middleburg Community Center: free Concert on the Steps: 4/20, 5/18 • Middleburg Concert Series: check web site for future events Jodi Miller Photography

MBPA

The Middleburg Business & Professional Association in support of the local business & retail community.

540 . 687 . 8888

www.visitmiddleburgva.com VA Fall Races

Red Fox Inn

Old Browntown Lane, Huntly

Contemporary farmhouse on 17+/- acres with mountain views from great room, 3 BRs, 4 BAs, and plenty of space for guests with a guest apartment. Includes 6-stall stable, fully fenced pasture, pond and two streams surrounded by old stone walls. Renovated in 2016; whole-house generator incl. $745,000

Leeds Manor Vineyard, Markham

Own a vineyard in peak production in the Heart of the Piedmont with Blue Ridge mountain views and farm land all around. The 14.5 lot has four acres of magnificent vines and is fully fenced. With 4 AC of planted vines, it would be simple to turn the property into a thriving winery or the perfect weekend getaway. $475,000

Eldon View, Woodville

With its Blue Ridge panorama, Eldon View is private, convenient and spectacular. The property includes a 3BR, 2.5 BA main house, a 2 BR, 1BA guesthouse, an extra-large garage, a pond and 16 +/- acres. Call for Price

The Middleton Inn, Washington

This stately historic home stands on a 5.7 acre rise above the western entrance to the Town of Washington. Built c. 1840, the property is a brick 6 BR and 6.5 BA estate. The current owner operates the award-winning boutique Middleton Inn, however, it is just as viable as a private residence. Blue Ridge Mountain views. Price Upon Request

Pickerel Ridge Retreat, Sperryville

Enjoy stunning views of the Blue Ridge mountain range and the SNPark from this meticulously maintained home on 19 acres perched on the southern slope of Pickerel Ridge. Convenient to the vibrant village of Sperryville this 3 BR/3.5 BA retreat with a floor to ceiling stone fireplace, artisan crafted built-ins, and two luxury master suites offers gracious living in a perfect setting.$849,000

Black Bear Crossing, Washington

Black Bear Crossing is a mountaintop retreat on a 21 acre +/- lot. This 4 BR home is a blend of country charm and sophistication. Includes a pool and nature hiking trails. The views are the most stunning in Rapp. Co. $896,500

307 Main Street, Washington

Located in Little Washington, the Shop on Main Street building has one of the best locations in town. The 3 floors currently contain a gallery/ retail space. Upper level has a 2 BR/1 BA apt. Business is not for sale. $595,000

cheriwoodard.com

37 Main Street, Sperryville, VA 22740

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ART AROUND US

Firnew at Fifteen Time flies when you’re making art: Firnew Farm Artists’ Circle is turning 15. The Madison County farm/studio/gallery will celebrate 15 years of creativity and community at its juried art and photography show on Sunday, May 6, from 1 to 5 p.m. at the gallery. The exhibit will feature works by more than 40 regional artists, all from Virginia, in varied mediums — oil, photography, watercolor and mixed media.

BY JOHN BERRY

Charlottesville’s IX Art Park

“Our focus is the natural Virginia Piedmont landscape that surrounds us. It is the perfect muse. It is line and color. It is ever changing and precious; and each artist has a unique and individual response to it,” says Trish Crowe, founder and leader of Firnew Farm Artists’ Circle. This year, photographer John Berry is taking his passion for large prints to the next level. The May show will feature new, large print installations of his work outdoors (left). About Firnew and the show: More at firnewfarmartistscircle.wordpress.com and on the gallery’s Facebook page

W W W. I N N AT W I L LO W G RO V E . C OM orange, virginia

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FEATURES SPRING/SUMMER 2018 • VOLUME XII • ISSUE 1

14 L’Auberge Provencale A four-hands (down) winner of a dinner BY MORGAN HENSLEY

36 Grounded Women Moutoux Orchard BY LISE METZGER

56 Metal Muse Blacksmith Nol Putnam BY VERIONIKA BENSON

62 Live an Artful Life 30 years of creativity BY TOM NEEL

74 A Steeplehcase Homebred Sara Collette’s Zanclus

BY JACKLY DYRHOLM

BY PAM KAMPHUIS

Right: At the Oatlands Point-to-Point in 2016, Sara Colletes’s Zanclus was the winner of the 3.5-mile William Corcoran Eustis Cup open timber race. ON THE COVER Springtime in the Piedmont 16” x 26” Oil on canvas By Tom Neel PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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DEPARTMENTS GARDENS AND THE LAND

FOOD AND DRINK

H ER I TAGE

Flowers in the Garden

Brothers, Brewmasters, and Bandmates

A Modern Miller’s Tale

It’ll Take a Miracle, or Maybe Just a Flower Fairy BY CARLA VERGOT

Sperryville’s Pen Druid Brewery

Lockes’ Mill

BY BETSEY ARNETT

BY MORGAN HENSLEY

32 Going Nuts over an Old Favorite

52 Waterloo Bridge

A connection between the present and the past BY PAULA COMBS

The Chestnut in the Piedmont BY GLENDA BOOTH

The Art of Aging Well

Maintaining the Glory of a Natural Beauty

Culpeper’s Calhoun Hams BY PETE PAZMINO

The Crepe Myrtle

BY GEORGE SANBORN

Erin Scala

Garden week in Watercolors BY BETH MARCHANT

23 A star of the wine world shines in Charlottesville BY KEITH MILLER

WRITING

26 Poetry

BY DAVID ANTHONY SAM

79 Life in the Piedmont A Country Wedding

BY TONY VANDERWARKER

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— Walter Nicklin, Piedmont Virginian founder

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Place to Hang Your Heart - Elegance & craftmanship are shown in this truly outstanding contemporary farm estate on 25.39 acres w/ additional 83.98 acres available for purchase. Built w/ entertainment in mind; upon entry in the foyer your eyes are drawn to the huge custom stone fireplace, beamed ceilings, expansive windows of the living/great room, a bright kitchen w/ lots of storage, 1st floor master suite, formal dining room & amazing laundry/mud room are all part of this well planned home. Truly outstanding views of the pastures & pond from every window, mature trees & landscape add shade & privacy, a very large deck for all of your outdoor entertaining. 3 BR, 3.5 BA w/ bonus room (Possible 4th bdrm?), approx. 2759 sq. ft. of finished living space & 1830 sq. ft. unfinished. Property also has full walkout basement, detached 6 car garage, & many other features. $749,000

ettle in among the rolling hills of Albemarle County. Offering a stunning departure from the ordinary, you will find building lot(s) of 21 to 67 acres w/ mountain top views. Pick your choice of streams, open fields, or wooded hilltops. Blandermar Farms is a prestigious estate neighborhood featuring multi-million dollar homes. Easy commute to Washington DC, Richmond, or Charlottesville (approx. 9.5 miles to UVA). 21 Acre lots starting at $425,000

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esteryear Charm ﬁlls this tranquil 4 bedroom 2 bath colonial home with a wrap-around porch. Enjoy outdoor living with a front porch and a large back deck. Tall ceilings, nice staircase, large dining room and more give you lots of room for entertainment. Yes it needs some updating, but the possibilities are endless. Large lot with paved drive and 2 large sheds. Within walking distance to local shops and restaurants. Located in Historic Gordonsville - $190,000

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434-906-0274 • PremierVirginiaProperties.com • Gordonsville, VA 22942

FOUNDING EDITOR: Walter Nicklin

CO-FOUNDERS: Arthur W. (Nick) Arundel, Sandy Lerner

PUBLISHER Dennis Brack EDITOR Pam Kamphuis DIGITAL MEDIA AND EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Morgan Hensley SENIOR EDITOR Gus Edwards SALES DIRECTOR Jim Kelly ACCOUNTING MANAGER Carina Richard Wheat CIRCULATION MANAGER Jan Clatterbuck 540-675-3338 CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Glenda Booth, Andrew Haley, Jordan Koepke, Doug Lees, Keith Miller, Eric Wallace, James Wilkinson

FABRICS UNLIMITED

BEAGLE MIX Angel The Piedmont Virginian is published biannually by Rappahannock Media, L.L.C. 11 Culpeper St., Warrenton, VA 20186 540.349.2951, info@piedmontvirginian.com Subscription inquiries: 540.675.3338 All editorial, advertising, reprint, and/or circulation correspondence should use the above address, or visit the website: www.piedmontvirginian.com The editors welcome but accept no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts and art. Reprints or bulk copies available upon request. Single-copy price, $5.95. One-year subscription rate, $15.95, Two-year rate, $29.95 © 2018 by Rappahannock Media, LLC. ISSN # 1937-5409 POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to The Piedmont Virginian, P.O. Box 59, Washington, VA 22747.

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OUR CONTRIBUTORS Betsy Arnett is a writer, photographer and historic preservationist living Boyce. An Air Force veteran, she holds degrees from Texas A&M University and the University of South Carolina. Visit her at www. valleypreservationist.com. Veronika Benson grew up in Maine and spent three years pursuing a creative writing degree at George Mason University. She is currently working on a novel. Veronika was drawn to the Piedmont region over 18 years ago because it reminded her of home, but without the harsh winters. She resides in Washington, Virginia.

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Glenda Booth, a freelance writer and editor who lives in Northern Virginia, writes about natural resources, historic sites, interesting people, public policy, travel, and other topics for magazines, newspapers, and online publications. She grew up in Southwest Virginia and received degrees from Longwood University and the University of Virginia. Fauquier County native Paula Combs studied journalism and communications at the University of Colorado. Her career began in film production in Los Angeles, but she later

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transitioned to the environmental field. She returned to Virginia in 2014 and became the senior editor for The Piedmont Environmental Council. Beth Marchant, official watercolorist for Historic Garden Week in Virginia, has been a full-time freelancer producing paintings of homes and buildings across Virginia. Her plein-air work has won several awards. She shows at Brazier Gallery in Richmond and the Beach Gallery in Virginia Beach. www.bethmarchant.com, instagram.com/b.marchant_art facebook.com/Watercolorsand-Oils-by-Beth-Marchant

Northern Virginia photographer Lise Metzger is writer/photographer of the Grounded Women project. As a site host for a CSA, she connects people to their food sources. When not on assignment or or writing about women farmers, she cooks seasonal meals for herself and friends. You can see her work at www.lisemetzger. com and www.groundedwomen.com. KeIth Miller is a certified French Wine Scholar, certified Specialist of Wine, and certified sommelier. He works with the wine team at a five-star, five-diamond

restaurant, and grows animals and vegetables on Touchstone Farm in Amissville. Rappahannock County writer Pete Pazmino offers his second feature for The Piedmont Virginian. His fiction appears in numerous publications including Gargoyle Magazine, JMWW, The Rappahannock Review, and Memorious. He has received two Claudia Mitchell Arts Fund grants from the Rappahannock Association for the Arts and Community. Contact Pazmino at petepazmino@gmail.com.

Former Germanna Community College president David Anthony Sam has written poetry for 40-plus for more than 70 publications. He’s authored three collections and been featured in The Hurricane Review and the inaugural issue of Light: A Journal of Photography & Poetry. His chapbook, Finite to Fail: Poems after Dickinson, was 2016 Grand Prize winner of GFT Press Chapbook Contest. Certified Master Gardener George Sanborn turned from medicine and teaching to the beauty of Virginia, and in par-

ticular the Piedmont, after years of living out-of-state for the military and specialized medical training. Now semi-retired, he lives in Madison County adjoining the Shenandoah National Park near Old Rag Mountain. He is certified through the Virginia Cooperative Extension of Virginia Tech. Tony Vanderwarker attended Andover and Yale, served in the Peace Corps, Marine Corps, and Army. A recovering adman, he has authored four books, including his latest, I’m Not From the South But I Got Down Here As Fast As I Could. He

lives in Keswick with his wife, four dogs, two horses and a Sicilian donkey named Jethro. tonyvanderwarker.com. Carla Vergot recently finished her first book, a mystery romance set in Marshall. She’s working on the second in the series. For fun, she and her husband Ricky work in the garden, play fetch with the dogs, and take Jeeps off-road. Ricky points out that Carla’s planting skills far exceed her wheeling skills. To date, no one disagrees with that.

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BREWING Jennings inspects the latest batch with the eye of a scientist and the mind of an artist

Brothers, Bandmates, Brewmasters Three Rappahannock natives infuse their unorthodox brews with a rock ‘n’ roll ethos. .

BY MORGAN HENSLEY

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efore there was Pen Druid, there was Pontiak, a psychedelic-rock band formed in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains by the Carney brothers: singer and bassist Jennings, lead vocalist and guitarist Van, and drummer Lain. Formed in 2004, the group had earned critical acclaim and developed a worldwide fanbase with their hard-hitting riffs, droning soundscapes, and hypnotic vamps. While on tour in Belgium, the power trio visited Saint Bavo Cathedral in Ghent to behold the magnum opus of two other talented brothers, Hubert and Jan van Eyck, the fifteenth-century Flemish Renaissance painters whose joint work the “Adoration of the Mystic Lamb” is one of the art world’s prized treasures. The multi-panel triptych, which depicts Adam and Eve, a majestic and ornate Jesus, and a gathering of saints around the Lamb of God, is maximalist, gorgeous, and sublime. The three brothers left the cathedral in awe, strolling through a nearby courtyard to a café where they could sit, mull over the spectacle of the art, and have a stein or two of the local brew. While journaling about the experience, Jennings sipped his beer, a typically mundane act that he happens to recall vividly: “This beer blew my mind. It was a completely different animal. Not a crazy, rip-your-mouth-out IPA, more traditional than that. Sour, but not sour for sour’s sake. This was the kind of beer I wanted to make.” True epiphanies are rare, but when they occur they alter the trajectory of a life considerably. The term derives from Greek meaning a “striking appearance” or “manifestation,” and here on a coaster in a café in Belgium was the physical embodiment, a tangible symbol, of the next phase of his life. A single beer is rarely life-changing, but this one conjured words from deep inside— complex, stunning, unexpected, and ecstatic— words that could describe both the Van Eycks’ masterpiece and this brew. “How do I make this beer?” Jennings wondered. So what was this beer that was so singularly spectacular it inspired a conversion, a near-

BREWING

COURTESY OF PONTIAK/COURTESYOF PEN DRUID/BY JACLYN DYRHOLM

Left: Outside the walls of the brewery, the brothers form the band Pontiak Below left: Van and Casey Gustowarow of The Farm at Sunnyside inspect the organic wheat Pen Druid uses in its beers

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BREWING

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wine is infused with the region’s unique terroir. This is the microcosm contained in the flavor: the climate, the soil conditions, the topography. Expert sommeliers are, in a sense, cartographers; their knowledge of terrestrial elements and their cultivated palettes seamlessly intertwine, map unforeseen connections, and then translate these relationships between land and taste into

Top: Jennings at work sulfuring barrels Bottom: Pen Druid is Sperryville’s watering hole, a place to tell stories, catch up with old friends, and make new ones

language to describe what differentiates one wine from another. “I like to call it the ‘air-oir,’” Jennings jokes. He pauses. His demeanor is cerebral, measured, even-keeled. Then he adds, “Another definition of terroir is ‘cultures,’ those that brew the beer, their sensibilities and tastes, their definition of what makes a beer ‘good.’”

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Spontaneous fermentation is unconventional, nonconformist, and anachronistic. Only two other breweries in Virginia produce spontaneous beers, The Veil Brewing Co. in Richmond and Reaver Beach in Virginia Beach. This approach is analog, almost pre-modern. “We’ve kind of gone back to how people were brewing a couple hundred years ago, except we understand the science of what’s going on. We understand the rules; it’s not purely trial and error,” Jennings says. This age-old method is environmentally friendly as well, certainly for a brewery that produces 400 barrels annually. The whole process, unbelievably, is entirely wood-fired. Pen Druid uses organic red wheat from the nearby Farm at Sunnyside. The relationship is symbiotic: local farmers exchange wheat which, after fermentation, is then given back to the farmers to feed to their cattle. “Plus, we cut down on deliveries by using the stuff in our backyard,”Jennings adds. This holistic relation with the region stretches back generations for the Carneys. Their family history is, in fact, contained in the brewery’s name. A pen is a female swan, and a druid is an oak. Together they conjoin the family’s Irish coat of arms and the wilderness of the Piedmont while paying homage to their grandparents’ Rappahannock County farm, the original Pen Druid. The brewery’s logo, a swan with its beak pierced by an amulet, is silhouetted and rough-hewn, as though forged and hammered on the village blacksmith’s anvil centuries ago. The name, like the beer, encapsulates the landscape and the family’s relationship to it. After all, the brewery is a family affair. In Pontiak, each brother contributes his musical expertise and dexterity with one instrument to create a harmony that is greater than the sum of each of the component parts. Similarly, with the brewery, each brother contributes his wisdom in different areas. Jennings, with his unmistakable proclivity toward the conceptual, is infatuated with processes, whereas, “Van is the overall brain. I guess if this were a ship, he’d be steering it,” Jennings says. “Lain is incredibly technical. He built the bottler, installed the wiring for the glycol jacket and the plumbing. He’s a systems dude. We’re all very different, but in overall spirit we share the same ultimate goals.”

BY JACLYN DYRHOLM (2)

ecstasy of sorts? A gueze, which for the uninitiated amateur like me is a blend of aged and young lambics, a type of dry, cidery Belgian beer. The flavor derives from the wild yeast used to cultivate and ferment the beer. This isn’t some wholesale, massproduced yeast ordered from some supplier hundreds of miles away. No. This yeast was nurtured across generations; it is a fossil, a relic, an heirloom handed down from generation to generation. When the brothers unloaded their guitars and drums at the airport, they brought with them something else, something borrowed from Belgium that not even the shrewdest TSA agent could detect: a knowledge, a brimming excitement to approach an ancient art from a new perspective. Upon returning to Sperryville once the tour was over, the Carney brothers scoured and foraged along the Thornton River to gather their own wild yeast samples. In November of 2015, they gleaned wild rose hips, flowers, fragments of bark, blades of grass, a discarded coffee bean, anything and everything that crossed their path. In total, they collected 50 samples which were then cultivated in vials to ferment. Of the 50, 10 were good, three were viable, and two— the wild rose hip and a small, nondescript white flower—merged into one culture. Wild yeast is the backbone of Pen Druid’s beers; it’s the factor that infuses their beers with the Piedmont. “All of our processes are guided by the yeast,” Jennings says. “How does it taste? How do we keep our yeast happy, healthy, and vigorous?” The fascination with and respect for wild yeast don’t end there. The brothers also implemented the antiquated, finicky, and unorthodox method of spontaneous fermentation. The process starts with a nutrient-deficient, unfermented, opaque beer called a “wort” that is then boiled in a wood-fired tank for five hours to increase and caramelize the sugars through evaporation. This mixture is sprayed into coolships, shallow copper pools that allow for a gradual drop in temperature over the course of twelve hours. During the cooling process, airborne yeasts consume and ferment the wort. Like the harvested samples, these airborne yeasts are irreproducible in any laboratory and impart a distinct flavor. As any wine connoisseur will tell you, a fine

BREWING They work as a collaborative unit not just within the walls of Pen Druid, but also with other breweries. Last year they partnered with D.C.’s Right Proper Brewing Company, the Richmond outpost of Stone Brewing, and the Seattle-based experimental metal band Sun O))) to create a Nordic IPA called “Soused.” Aromatic and redolent with honey, mango, and juniper, the beer was a smashing success. Never ones to step into the same river twice, the brothers plan to release a sweet-and-sour beer infused with raw Rappahannock honey this spring. As you read this, check to see if it’s available: these limited-run specials draw imbibers from all over and supplies don’t last long. The Brothers Carney take an unorthodox approach to all that they do, in music and in brewing. A trained ear can tease out influences in their music ranging from the primordial roar of Black Sabbath to the “Wall of Sound” technique Phil Spector pioneered in his happy-go-lucky soul and bubblegum pop of the 60s. With the beer,

identifying the influences and tracing the lineage is more difficult. When Jennings discusses Pen Druid’s beer, it’s as much about the liquid itself as it is the conceptual frameworks underlying the process. The brewery is a vision as much as a product, a collage of myriad impressions: beers drunk, songs heard, books read. Like the initial yeast foraging expedition, he sheds preconceptions and dives in with an open mind. “I don’t see inspiration coming from any specific Muse,” he says. He goes on to paraphrase a section of David Abrams’ Spell of the Sensuous, a dense, multidisciplinary work that blends anthropology, philosophy, and Native American culture. Abrams correlates Apache moral fables to geographic landmarks in order to illustrate the deep interconnectivity between these tales and the natural world, a relationship between man and nature. The natural world finds its way into the beer where it can be consumed and appreciated by visitors to the brewery and thus to the surrounding landscape. “There’s a strange

synesthesia. I’m taking this thing and metamorphosing it into taste.” This synesthesia courses through the region like a river; it is the wellspring of the Piedmont and its inhabitants. The people are sent out into the world like ambassadors to explore, learn, taste, devour, behold. Then, when the time is right, they return home and bring with them all that they have learned, all that they can share with their community. “The community congeals around these people,” Jennings says. Through their travels, music, and curiosity, the Carneys turned Sperryville into a two-brewery, zero-stoplights town. Bob Dylan plays over the speakers and fills the brewery’s tasting room with ambient song, echoing and reverberating throughout the minimalist chandeliers and salvaged-wood bar built by a local carpenter who just happens to be there at the same time as I am. “We just wanted to contribute something to the community,” Jennings says.

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FOOD

A (Four) Hands Down Winner of a Dinner Sophisticated cuisine melds with country comfort for a most memorable meal BY MORGAN HENSLEY

hile driving to L’Auberge Provençale for the Hunt Country Four Hands Dinner—a collaboration between Chef Richard Wright of the White Post bed and breakfast and Chef Tom Whitaker of the nearby Ashby Inn and Restaurant—the sky opened up. A deluge of rain spewed from the thunderheads. I ratcheted up my windshield wipers, turned on my hazard lights, and proceeded at a crawl; my date and I weren’t about to miss this dinner over a mere torrential downpour. Two chefs, six courses, Virginia’s finest wines. We were prepared to swim there if it came down to it. Finally, a light at the end of the tunnel in the form of a welcoming, pastoral bed and breakfast. We sprinted through the rain. Inside, a warm, effusive glow spread through the room, along the bar, weaving between eager diners holding their Champagne flutes and bantering in a low murmur as though there wasn’t a rainstorm of near-biblical proportions outside. We were greeted with two glasses of Trump Winery’s 2012 Blanc de Blanc. Sparkling, effervescent, with notes of green apple, lemon, pear, and a hard-to-place mineral component. Though not a Champagne, on account of the wine’s being manufactured in Charlottesville and not France, the effect was the same: buoyant, tingly, and the perfect blend of formality and fun. Then came the wine’s complement: a Canadian Raspberry Point oyster garnished with pomegranate and apple and a hint of cranberry. The briny slickness of the oyster balanced evenly with the pucker-inducing tartness of the cranberry and the splintering crunch of a single pungent pomegranate seed. The combination 14 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

was potent and reminded me, strangely, of a well-told story in that the conclusion is at once surprising and inevitable. Such a bold and balanced amuse bouche bode well for the six courses to come out of the kitchen of chefs Wright and Whitaker. So, who are these leading culinary figures of Virginia? The Ashby Inn and Restaurant’s Tom Whitaker hails from Hexham, in the north of England. “There’s no greater thing in life than the love of food,” he said. “It can evoke memories from childhood dinners, pub lunches with the family, comfort you in times of distress, and elevate enjoyment in times of happiness.” This curative, almost nostalgic approach to food is evident in his cuisine. There’s a warmth, a heartiness, a feeling of having eaten this before, but never quite like this. Then there’s Chef Richard Wright. Born in the Philippines, Wright graduated from culinary school and cut his teeth for five years at New York’s Le Bernadin, owned by three-Michelin Star Chef Eric Ripert. “I’d like to take the philosophy of the owners along with my own and elevate our food and give it a modern approach,” Wright said of L’Auberge Provencale in an interview with Huffington Post. “To me, it’s also important to include even more local and sustainable cuisine. We already use ingredients from our own garden and local farms, but I’d like to do even more of that.” His intensely seasonal, as-local-as-possible approach manifests itself delightfully in his dishes. Tensions often run high in kitchens. When two master chefs are crammed into the same cramped, sweltering kitchen for hours on end, one could expect there to be at least a little bickering, if not a full-

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on Gordon Ramsay meltdown. Especially when those two chefs are from nearby restaurants in something like a crosstown rivalry. I’m happy to report there was none of that. No Montague-Capulet feud, no simmering Hatfield-McCoy conflict. Merely by tasting their dishes, by admiring the harmony of their composition and presentation, I could tell that there was a spirit of collaboration, of teamwork, of mutual inspiration. I guess I should tell you about the dinner then, huh? I’m delaying a little. On the one hand, I’m apprehensive: pictures won’t do it justice, neither will my words. On the other hand, I went into this dinner with high expectations and no idea what was on the menu. So isn’t it fair that I try to make your mouth water a little bit while building some suspense? Okay, I’ll stop now. Without further ado, the menu! This is important. I mean, picture yourself seated at a table—pristine white tablecloth, low ambient lighting, a glass of sparkling wine and an empty plate, and this secret menu right there before you. Your imagination runs wild. Quail and duck? Veal sweetbreads? And what, exactly, is “The Broadway”? Your mind races as you try to envision the possibilities, the combinations. Then the food arrives. And it’s prettier and tastier than you could’ve ever imagined. So, let’s get to the food, what say you? Up first was George’s Mill goat cheese panna cotta with Romanesco broccoli, The third course: veal sweetbreads with sunchoke, salt-baked Arkansas black apple, and truffle

COURTESY OF CHEF TOM WHITAKER, ASHBY INN

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FOOD Clockwise from top left: Chef Tom Whitaker (left) of the Ashby Inn and Chef Richard Wright of L’Auberge Provencale teamed up for the Hunt Country Four Hands Dinner. A talented culinary team puts the finishing touches on the second course Facing page: Clockwise from top left. The second course (Wester Ross Scottish salmon with caviar, crème fraîche, chive, and a gaufrette), final course (lamb with celeriac, royal trumpet mushroom, black garlic, watercress, and date), the fourth course (quail with Jambon de Bayonne, tarbias bean and confit cassoulet, grilled leek garnish, and preserved tomato), and the grand finale: the Broadway.

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fourth-generation chef, certified pilot, and one of Discovery Channel’s “Great Chefs of the East.” The two founded the restaurant/ bed and breakfast in 1981, and together built it into the cherished destination it is today. Alain, who retired in 2013, and Celeste were seated at the table opposite mine, and I can truthfully report that they were smiling ear-to-ear at every dish that came out of the kitchen and every glass of wine introduced by their son. The second course was a Wester Ross Scottish salmon with caviar, crème fraîche, chive, and a gaufrette (a.k.a Neapolitan wafer; it’s always fun to learn a new word at these dinners!). Two thin, gorgeous strips of succulent salmon with caviar that burst with flavor and the crème fraîche (somewhere between a pinch and a dollop: the

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COURTESY OF CHRISTIAN BENTLEY/L’AUBERGE PROVENCALE (2)

Meyer lemon, poppy seed, and almond. The goat cheese was mild, subtle, and as creamy as a lightly poached egg at a Sunday-morning brunch. The baby broccoli was crunchy and earthy, fractal and magnificent. The almond added a smoky component, while the lemon cut through with its sour palette and the poppyseed added that missing piece of the puzzle. Then add to the mix the 2016 Sauvignon Blanc from Glen Manor Vineyards in Front Royal. “Such a pure expression of Sauv Blanc,” said Christian Borel, sommelier. “A dry, crisp, vibrant wine with minimal manipulation. Hope you all enjoy!” Not only is Christian an expert, discerning wine aficionado, but also the son of L’Auberge Provençale founders Chef Alain Borel and innkeeper Celeste. Alain is a

perfect amount so as not to overwhelm, but rather accentuate each bite) together created a silken combination of rich and salty flavors that were punctured by the chives and playfully interrupted by the snap of the wafer. The dish was paired with a Chardonnay from Arterra Wines in Delaplane. Christian described it precisely: “This 2016 has the fattiness of a vintage that is often mistaken for ‘oakiness,’ but is actually quite light on the oak.” I’ll concede: I’m far from a oenophile, but I love when a word and a sense—image, sound, or in this case, taste—align. Christian’s knowledge of wines, his carefully calibrated taste buds, are matched by his poetic descriptions. Sweetbreads are divisive. The texture is off-putting to many, the metallic flavors offensive. And that’s to say nothing of what sweetbreads actually are (Hint: neither “sweet” nor “bread”). I, for one, love them, especially when they’re paired with sunchoke (or Jerusalem artichoke), salt-baked Arkansas black apple, and truffle. In fact, this was my personal favorite. As much as the balanced textures and flavors, I loved that the two chefs were willing to take a risk. The dish had such a rich, sanguine flavor that was buttressed by the saltiness of crisp apple. The tenderness was unsurpassed. The dish was complemented by the evening’s first red wine: Rappahannock Cellars’ 2016 Cabernet Franc. Vintner Theo Smith introduced the wine, which he described as “a fruit-forward blend of two different wines, one from Shenandoah County, the other from Rappahannock.”

COURTESY OF CHRISTIAN BENTLEY/L’AUBERGE PROVENCALE (4)

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An up-close, behind-the-scenes look into the high stakes of a gourmet kitchen The first course of the dinner: George’s Mill goat cheese panna cotta with Romanesco broccoli, Meyer lemon, poppy seed, and almond

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table-mates were now our friends. How could it get any better? In a word: lamb. Or, more specifically, lamb with with celeriac, royal trumpet mushroom, black garlic, watercress, and date. In keeping with both chefs’ dedication to seasonal vegetables, the wintry celeriac was wonderfully hearty, nutty, and sweet. This versatile vegetable offered different tastes with each bite, an astounding example of culinary magic that would leave seasoned diners scratching their heads. Aided by the sharp, mustardy, arugula-on-steroids pepperiness of the watercress and the syrupy, caramelized black garlic, the dish was unlike any that I’ve ever had before and ever will again (unless I get really lucky). Delaplane Cellars, a neighbor of RdV, provided a red blend, Williams Gap, from 2010. Comparing and contrasting this with RdV’s blend was the highlight of the night as far as wines go. To reiterate: I’m not an experienced wine buff. I can barely pronounce terroir, much less define it or, God forbid, give you an example of it. But comparing two wines from the same year, grown from grapes in the same county, proved to be a delightful game. Whereas RdV’s was “eccentric,” Delaplane’s was lush. Both equally fruit-forward, both equally divine and well-paired with the different dishes. Surely such a comparative tasting was planned

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by the sommelier, and added yet another wonderful component to what was shaping up to be a memorable evening of incredible food, wine, and conversation. And then they brought out the “Port,” which I put in quotes only to delineate the Virginia-grown, 100% Norton wine from the eponymous Portuguese dessert wine. The Rappahannock Cellars’ wine from 2015 was a great capstone on a fantastic evening. More a digestif than a dessert, the “Port-style” wine tickled the tastebuds with vanilla, coconut, and cocoa aromas. The 42-proof wine cleansed our palettes with waves of rich, tannic notes and readied us for the final course: the enigmatically titled “Broadway.” What’s left to say? Do you harbor any suspicions that this course was any less magnificent than its predecessors? I hope not. The mulled apple tartlet was charged with candied bits of fruit. The warmth of the pastry and the cold tang of vanilla ice cream melded together and accentuated the complexity of the wine. The pastry was reminiscent of a fortune cookie, and I felt fortunate indeed. Fortunate to have been a guest, fortunate to have chefs such as Tom and Richard who work together to provide diners with an unforgettable experience. I’ll be there next time. Of that I’m sure.

COURTESY OF CHEF TOM WHITAKER, ASHBY INN (R)/ COURTESY OF CHRISTIAN BENTLEY/L’AUBERGE PROVENCALE (L)

Smith was a crowd favorite. A knowledgeable storyteller with wit and no shortage of jokes, we could’ve listened to him describe the life of a winemaker for hours if we weren’t so eagerly anticipating the next course: quail with Jambon de Bayonne, tarbias bean and confit cassoulet, grilled leek garnish, and preserved tomato. That’s a mouthful. Pun intended. Well, not really, but it’s there and I’m leaving it. Grilled leek might be the biggest takeaway from this evening, for me anyway. Young, spindly, tender, this flavorful garnish accentuated the meatiness of the quail and duck. The tomato sauce intermingled with the juices of the two birds to produce a sweet and savory alloy that would delight umami lovers. The presentation encapsulated the flavors in a bizarre, incredible synesthesia. The two circles—one quail, one duck—were joined as it were by the grilled leek I was just raving about. The charred onion taste bridged the two poultry elements. A “high-end Bordeaux,” as Smith described it, enriched the trinity of taste. A 2010 blend from RdV was “eccentric” and “concentrated the dark fruit” notes. What was next? Our expectations had been raised, exceeded, and raised again after every course. Our stomachs were getting full. Our cheeks were rosied by wine. Our

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The Art of Aging Well Curing Calhoun’s country hams is an art and and a science BY PETE PAZMINO

could not be greater. It all comes down to the cure. The curing of a honey ham is sugarbased, which causes the ham to retain and actually increase its moisture. It’s not unusual for an 18-pound ham to go up to as much as 24 pounds after a sugar cure. With country hams, though, the cure is salt-based. “The salt goes in, the moisture comes out,” Tom explains, which means that a country ham can lose up to 20 percent of its starting weight after being cured. This, the art of curing country ham, is one that Tom learned from his grandfather, who owned a cotton farm in west Tennessee that, as a child, Tom traveled to every summer from his home in Alexandria. “I got a feel for it as a young man,” Tom says. “As a kid, really.” He

goes on to describe how his grandfather used to cure hams by putting them in a wooden box and covering them entirely with salt. But, Tom explains, “Nobody’s going to buy a ham like that anymore.” Today, Tom uses his own proprietary cure that he rubs over a ham until it’s about a quarter of an inch thick. He likens the process to applying a dry rub before grilling. Afterward, the ham sits on a shelf in a refrigerated room for two weeks. Then, Tom rinses off the cure. Many would stop there, but Tom doesn’t. He re-applies the cure, viewing it as a point of pride that all his hams are cured twice. After another four weeks, he explains, the salt will have worked its way down to the bone. Some people smoke their hams at this point, but not Tom. “They look smoked,” he says, but

BY KARA THORPE

t’s an unusual business owner who admits to talking people out of buying his product, but Tom Calhoun, owner and operator of Calhoun’s Country Hams in Culpeper, is proud of doing exactly that. “We talk a lot of people out of ordering hams,” he tells me in his comfortable office above his store. At first, I think he’s joking. But while Tom is a garrulous storyteller with a deep, rumbling voice who does enjoy a good laugh, he is a man who takes his ham very seriously. The problem, as he sees it, is that many of his would-be customers, especially those who find him around the holidays, believe they are ordering a classic honey ham. Tom, however, doesn’t make honey hams. He makes country hams—and the difference

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FOOD for him the final step in the process is to take the re-rinsed hams and hang them from a rafter for between six months and a year, during which the hams sweat out their remaining moisture. “Then you’ve got yourself a Calhoun country ham,” Tom proclaims. I ask Tom if he can share any information about what’s in his cure. “Well,” he tells me. “Everybody’s cure’s got to have certain things in it. There are deviations in how much salt you use, how much sugar you can use, how much time, and when you’re aging it and at what temperature you can age. They’ve all got to meet a certain standard.” He goes on to explain that most of the country hams in this region, from the Piedmont on down through eastern Georgia, essentially are cured the same way. Most people use a sugar cure, which is somewhat misleading because while the cure may consist of up to 15 percent brown sugar, which helps keep the ham soft and moist as it ages, it’s still salt that does the curing. Tom explains that he does use sugar in his cure, as well as pepper. “For flavoring and aesthetics,” he explains. And, of course, he does it all twice. BEGINNINGS AND GROWTH

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BY KARA THORPE (2)

Calhoun’s Country Hams opened its doors in 1964. Back then, the store was on East Davis Street, right across from Knakal’s Bakery. Tom stayed at that location for about 15 years, a period during which he also became a regular participant in Alexandria’s Old Town Farmers Market—an institution in which he still participates. A deli has been part of the store since its opening, and one of their specialties has always been thin-sliced country ham on biscuits baked by Knakal’s. Tom

actually sold a much wider variety of meats back then, but one day he bought a hundred hams and cured them with the idea of putting them on a special sale, and they were the first things in the store that went. Tom chuckles at the memory. “You don’t have to hit me in the head with a brick bat,” he says. “If people want these, I know about these hams. So I started buying them.” It’s been hams ever since. There have been other businesses over the years, too—a second store in Charlottesville for a few years in the seventies, then a sit-down deli in Staunton that his wife ran for two years. Through it all, though, the core business has always remained family-owned and run. “We only have one employee that’s not family out of seven,” Tom says proudly, although he’s quick to add that since one of his granddaughters just took her bar exam, he’ll likely be losing her soon. “I don’t know how I’m going to replace her,” he says. “I’ve got sons, but the sons aren’t interested.” Today, Tom estimates that he goes through about 5,000 hams a year. While that’s a miniscule number compared to larger operations, Tom is quick to point out that he doesn’t wholesale. “Nobody gets a special price,” he declares. “Everybody pays the same.” And, for Tom, “everybody” includes quite the A-list of clients. He regularly provides his hams to numerous local restaurants, including The Inn at Little Washington, which has been a customer of his since beginning their operations, and to Red Truck Bakery in Marshall and Warrenton. His hams have also made regular appearances at the White House. Bill Clinton was his first presidential customer—

BY PETE PAZMINO

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Clinton’s chef requested a ham during the administration’s first year. “They’re from Arkansas,” Tom says. “Arkansas does country ham.” The deli, too, remains popular, and still serves up country ham on Knakal’s biscuits. While he no longer stocks the range of other meats he once did, Tom still carries a small amount of other offerings such as hamburger patties, pork chops, bacon, and even a handful of other sundries such as local peanuts, honey, jams, and jellies. All of which can be arranged in a variety of hambased gift baskets, which are extremely popular items around the winter holidays. There is a website (www.calhounhams. com), but customers who want to order from it must call an 800 number that dials directly to the store. “If you want to buy a

country ham, we want to talk to you before you but it,” Tom says. And it’s not just to ward off the confused seekers of honey hams, either. “You’d be surprised how many people get [country hams] and stick them in the oven, and it comes out tough and salty,” he explains. “There’s an awful lot of people like my mother used to be, figured she knew how to cook everything, never had to read a recipe.” And if the store isn’t open when a customer calls? “You can leave a message and you can leave an order,” Tom says. “But be sure and leave a number because we’re going to call you back.” ON COOKING, EATING, AND THE FUTURE

So how do you cook a country ham? The key, Tom explains, is to soak it first. He recommends soaking his hams overnight. You

can start them in warm water, but there’s no need for the water to stay warm and it certainly shouldn’t be hot. After the ham is finished soaking, you should give it a good scrubbing to remove any remaining cure from the skin. After scrubbing, it’s time to cook. Start by placing the ham in a stovetop-safe pot and covering it with water. Bring the water to a rolling boil, then bring it back down to a simmer and cook for about two and a half hours. The goal, according to the federal government, is for the ham to reach an internal temperature of 160°. Tom, however, is adamant that this temperature is too hot and makes the meat tough. He recommends 140°. Once the ham is cooked, it should be removed from the water and cooled to

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room temperature. It can be trimmed at this point. This is also the point at which some people choose to apply some sort of brown sugar paste or other flavoring to the ham’s skin. Others choose to place it in a hot oven for another 10 or 15 minutes to get a good sear on the skin. Tom dismisses those practices as mere “prettying up,” cosmetic attempts to make the ham look good for a dinner table. “The taste is all there,” he says. No such prettying is required. If all of this sounds like too much trouble, no worries—Tom does sell precooked hams in the store. If you give him about 15 minutes when you order, he’ll even slice it for you. “Country ham needs to be sliced real thin,” he says. “More country ham is not necessarily better.” This is especially true, he informs me, when it comes to pairing that ham with good country biscuits. Which, of course, raises the next obvious question—what’s the best way to re-

heat country ham for later eating? Tom’s brow furrows when I ask him this. “Well,” he says. “To start off with, you’ve got a misnomer there. Country ham should be eaten at room temperature. Not hot.” He goes on to explain that while country ham can be stored in a refrigerator, it’ll pick up what he describes as “refrigerator taste” after a few days. The best thing to do is figure out what you’re likely to eat within a week or so, put that in a sealed Zip-Loc bag, and refrigerate only that portion. For the rest, his advice is simple: “It freezes real well.” When you take it out of the freezer, Tom suggests letting it thaw to room temperature. He does not recommend using a microwave to defrost it. “Country ham’s just a little bit too lean,” he says. “It gets hard.” And where, one might ask, does Calhoun Country go from here? To start, Tom has no plans for expansion. His daughter has already informed him that when he finally does retire, she has no

interest in running some huge conglomerate—she just wants to run a small business, as he always has. Not that he’s planning on quitting anytime soon. “I don’t know why they worry about me,” he says, chuckling. “I’m only 85. I’ve got another 15 or 20 years here yet.” And, to be sure, he remains hands-on with the business every day. “I don’t do very good with that thing,” he admits, motioning at the computer on his desk. “But I’ve got two granddaughters I’m training on it.” Calhoun Country Hams is open six days a week, Monday through Saturday, from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. The deli closes daily at 3 p.m. The store is located at 211 S. East St., Culpeper, and it’s not going anywhere anytime soon. “I’ll tell you something,” Tom says. “Culpeper’s been good to me. It’s been good to me and it’s been good to my family. And this business has been good to me and good to my family. I wouldn’t change a thing.”

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22 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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| SPRING/SUMMER 2018

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WINE

A Star of the Wine World Shines In Charlottesville Erin Scala shares her knowledge and love for good (local!) wine at Fleurie BY KEITH MILLER

From vine to bottle to glass, Erin Scala lives a life devoted to understanding and interpreting wine.

COURTESY OF ERIN SCALA

he Virginia wine world is not just about people who produce wine, it’s also about the people who help guide us to consume local wines. In that regard, we’re lucky not just to have great Virginia wine producers, but some incredibly knowledgeable people who know how to present Virginia wines to the wider world. Foremost among them is my favorite sommelier on the planet. As Virginians, we are most fortunate that she is working in our Commonwealth. Here’s how I discovered Erin Scala. About four years ago, I came upon a wine podcast for nerds and professionals called I’ll Drink to That. The easy-going, yet vastly-knowledgeable host is a wine guy in New York named Levi Dalton. The segments are in-depth interviews with a stunning list of guests, the wine world equivalent of rock stars. Episodes usually clock in at 60 minutes, so it requires more than a casual interest. There is a large and devoted following, both in the States and across the

pond. Another feature is the engaging educational “warmup” segments by Erin Scala. In a 2013 episode, Levi interviewed Erin, who was then a popular sommelier in New York, garnering lots of press. She was already blogging, and was featured on Wine Enthusiast magazine’s “40 under 40” covers. Late last year, a young sommelier from Charlottesville came into the restaurant where I work. From our conversation, I was thrilled to learn from him that Ms. Scala now resides in the Old Dominion. She is beverage director at Fleurie Restaurant. A visit to Charlottesville became a priority. My first meeting did not disappoint. Erin is the consummate restaurant professional. She exudes genuine warmth, enthusiasm, and hospitality while she uses her breadth and depth of knowledge to produce the best experience for her guests. I was amazed to learn she doesn’t print the wines for her menu pairings! She pairs wines with the food and the guest, an exPIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

| SPRING/SUMMER 2018 23

WINE

Ms. Scala and the author at the launch of Commonwealth Collective, Veritas Vineyards Farmhouse.

| SPRING/SUMMER 2018

COURTESY OF KEITH MILLER

24 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

traordinary concept that illustrates the degree of her expertise. Fluerie’s excellent wine list features many Virginia wines, all of which are in boldface type on the page. On my first visit, she paired the Ankida Ridge Pinot Noir with my mushroom tart. This wine changed my conception of what’s possible for Virginia wine. I’m convinced she knew that would happen. In addition to working at Fleurie and its sister spot, Petit Pois, blogging, and podcasts, she also writes a regular wine column for C’Ville Weekly magazine. She has hosted an entire in-depth episode of I’ll Drink to That with Virginia wine makers. I caught up with Erin on a beautiful late fall afternoon for a roof deck tête-à-tête. We met at Common House in Charlottesville, a membership club just off the downtown mall. She was

a consultant on the wine list. I also was able to meet her husband, Joe, who is the general manager. At the end of our day, I also met their impossibly adorable daughter, Valentina. Erin is delighted her daughter was born in 2015, a stellar vintage. I had previously learned Erin was actually from Virginia, and I was curious about the full circle journey to New York success and return to the Commonwealth. “When did you return to Virginia?” I asked. “We drove down in a March blizzard in 2014, I was following the moving truck in a car,” she replied. She added, “It was the first time I’d driven stick shift. We ended up ditching the car, and I had to climb over boxes to pick the bottles of wine I wanted to save from freezing in the truck.” A uniquely unpleasant sommelier situation, to be sure. Perhaps most interesting was the response about an impetus for the return to Virginia: “We wanted our own business. The entry to market in New York is prohibitive due to rent costs.” She added, “You plan on a four-year run. In Charlottesville, good restaurants are more long-lived, and you can have a really meaningful impact on the community.” She also admits bringing a stroller on the New York subway was less than appealing. I was also curious on what career impact the “40 under 40” cover story from a major wine publication had. “It’s great advertising for the restaurant, and for me it’s all about the wine and the wine list. I’m focused on bringing more people into the restaurant for the wines.” she explained. She is proud of a recent feature on her wine list highlighting Petit Manseng. This is a white grape native to southwest France that is used for wonderful examples of both sweet and dry wines. It has turned heads and won awards in the past few years in our state. We both share the feeling that this varietal has potential to become a major player on the world stage for Virginia wine. The varietal has wide spaces between berries on the cluster, making it naturally resistant to mold and mildew. Even in our moist climate, it requires little to no chemical remedies. Erin has collected dry and sweet versions from France and Virginia on her wine list. It is an effort I certainly applaud. She summed up a general question about Virginia wine with an answer that truly warmed my heart: “Sommeliers in this state have an opportunity to shape this emerging wine region by zeroing in on the numerous high-quality producers and their stories. We present them to a wider audience, especially when the wine lists

are online.” She also informed me that the state’s investment in wine tourism has had great impact on the Monticello region. Erin also blind-judges several county and local competitions. “I take notes on the wines, and then ask the judges who made my favorites. It’s a great opportunity to discover new producers to add to my interest pool.” I saw her present a riveting panel discussion on expanding the market for Virginia wine at the Virginia Wine Summit. “I present when they ask me,” she said. This is a typically modest response from the lovely Ms.Scala. Let me say, she has been invited to present the last three years running, and I hope next year. Asked about the direction of Virginia wine, she shared this: “In my dream world, winemakers would focus on more sustainability in farming and labor (see the aforementioned Petit Manseng). I’d also love to see an integration with local wine and local food.” She again struck a chord with this sheep farmer (me), when she said, “People undervalue local proteins. They’re willing to pay for quality local wine, but reluctant to pay for quality local food.” I can’t argue with that. She would love to see Virginia’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Board and legislature embrace this concept. Is there anyone who disagrees? Winemakers in Europe are able to produce a spirit product from the residue of winemaking. This isn’t legal here. It’s also impossible to have a truly high-end cocktail program in Virginia due to the limiting ABC laws. For evidence of this, just look at the vast selection of craft liquors and amaros available in Washington, D.C., that we can’t get here. While she laments the restrictive liquor laws in our state, Erin informed me, “We do have great access to good wine here. We don’t have to fight for the limited allocations (from abroad).” That prompts the question of why we can’t have both in a supposedly small-government state. I asked Erin about Lovingston vineyard. The Vroomans from Ankida Ridge had mentioned them as a Virginia winery they really like. She echoed the admiration for the producer, who I added to my list of future visits to make. I encourage everyone to visit Fleurie in Charlottesville and experience the talents of Erin Scala in person. Also, follow her blog at www. thinking-drinking.com/. And if you’re a serious wine geek, listen to http://illdrinktothatpod. com/. Hoping you’re drinking well in the new year. Cheers!

UPDATE As of publishing time, Erin Scala has left Fleurie restaurant and opened her own wine shop, In Vino Veritas, in Keswick, Virginia. In Vino Veritas was recently mentioned in the New York Times food section.

UPDATE- As of publishing time , Erin Scala has left Fluerie restaurant and opened her own wine shop In Vino Veritas in Keswick where they feature focused tastings on Friday afternoons. In Vino Veritas was recently mentioned in the New York Times food section.

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POETRY

BY DAVID ANTHONY SAM

REFLECTIONS: RED CLAY SUNRISE This Yankee come-here, Virginian by opportunity and choice, met the mountain singers and the city music-makers, met the unvoiced despair of poor hope in Richmond streets and in shacks along hillside hollers, saw the new ships building in harbors where old ships once brought crazy hoping hungry pioneers up the James River towards Jeffersonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s westward vision, Declaration of rising sunsets, met the patriots who fought their own chains while forging black hands to harsh fields, met the new wayfarers in Reston and Richmond, building business from nothing and hard ideas, remet the American birthplace of Virginian legacies, and found this place of red soil and lost tobacco still ready for the passion of plows, new order in a new land where many hands can still make Good Work with our one Common Weal.

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| SPRING/SUMMER 2018

POETRY

ASSIGNATION One blood red azalea beside a pink rhododendron at the mouth of a pass of the fog-smoked Blue Ridge as a downstream of spring water boils its essence off in a breath-smoked whisper

PANORAMAS My light year times infinity extends behind in a shadow from atop Old Rag– The horizon leans me vertiginous into someone else’s dream– Who is that boy raking the creek with a divining stick until it becomes the Shenandoah? Maybe he was guided by too much sunlight and burns now with so much that is red– There be dragons and a myriad of things squirming at the bottom of that water, rich in a muck that forgetting will still from its roil– I wake to myself like an uplift of rock that suddenly arose from lowlands to find it had become this mountain– Silence echoes my repeating self– as I have used up every snippet from too hard listening in the sunset for the music of the spheres–

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GARDENS

Flowers in the Garden It’ll Take a Miracle, or Maybe Just a Flower Fairy BY CARLA VERGOT

ou know when you go to the dentist for the six-month check up? You’re in the chair, tipped back at a weird angle, wearing a pair of ill-fitting safety glasses. And the hygienist has just finished sand-blasting the plaque off your teeth, so the dentist comes in to inspect. Then, after cross referencing the x-rays with your two rows of what now feel like pretty clean and healthy teeth, the dentist says, “Remember that root canal we talked about?” You don’t have to hear the next sentence to know this conversation is going in a direction that’s A) complicated and B) expensive. If you can picture this experience, then you understand exactly how I feel whenever my loving husband says to me, “I want to try something in the garden.” Translation: “I have an idea that’s both complicated and expensive.” Ricky has battled and survived cancer. While he has pretty much always gotten his way in the garden, it’s safe to say that I’ll never give him a hard time about any of his goofy garden ideas, ever again, because…well…life is short and uncertain. Magic beans? Sure. Donut seeds? Absolutely. Puppy dog tree? Put it right over there. Space-age hovering garden boxes? Where have these been all my life! Needless to say, I sort of had an idea what was coming when he pushed a magazine across the kitchen table and said, “Here’s something to try this year.” It was my favorite kind of weekend morning, sitting at the table, drinking coffee and dunking biscotti. Our thoughts ambled like a drunk sailor trying to get back to the ship. We chewed on the headlines and offered up brilliant solutions to the world’s endless problems. I was enjoying the natural rhythm of our conversation and wasn’t particularly eager to get sucked into his next big idea for the garden. I mean, while I’m open to them, I like to quarantine the ideas to a certain place and a restricted time. The weekend breakfast table wasn’t it. I sighed heavily, finished flipping through my section of The Washington Post, and picked up the magazine he offered. It was a flower catalogue. That’s right. I said flower. His next big idea was for me to try some different flowers in the garden. To understand the magnitude of this gesture, you have to understand Ricky’s ifyou-can’t-eat-it-don’t-plant-it mentality. My standard response is the flowers-are-food-for-my-soul argument. We’ve gone round and round 28 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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GARDENS

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GARDENS on this issue for years. The result is usually the same. He stomps and snorts about taking up precious real estate, while I ignore him and plant something with petals. I looked at the magazine, looked back at him and said, “These are flowers.” I couldn’t disguise the bewilderment in my voice. This was neither expensive nor complicated, but puzzling all the same. He acknowledged that they were, indeed, flowers, and added, “I thought you might want to try some of these native plants. They bloom. I personally couldn’t care less, but you’re in charge of flowers, not me.” I’m certain, in his mind, this idea was way more wacka-doodle than anything else he’d ever put forward, including the propane-powered, flame-throwing weed killer. To be fair, Ricky built me a flower bed a few years ago for the express purpose of getting the flowers out of the vegetable beds. “Working flowers,” like the marigolds that discourage rabbits, were granted permission to stay in place, but everything else had to go. And just so you know, that same year he crowded my designated flower bed with his herbs. Why? Because they obviously produce some very pretty blooms, so they could easily be classified as “flowers.” See how he gets his way? As much as I love flowers, I haven’t been especially successful with them, and I feel like I’ve tried almost every choice out there. The Japanese beetles decimated my dahlias. The daisies, which are my all-time favorite, steadfastly refuse to even come up. Deer nibble my orange daylilies; the same ones that grow en masse, unfenced, and untouched, along the back roads near our

house. And don’t get me started on that persnickety black-eyed Susan. I’ve planted everything from asters to zinnias, with nary a bouquet to EXT:png:END show for it. EXT Now I have pages and pages of native plants to consider. Things EXT:png:END EXT like rose milkweed, downy woodmint, wild bergamot, Joe Pye Ira Hoffman L weed, and violet wood sorrel. Will they work this 16033 year? That’s a question for the flower fairies. Yes, the flower fairies. They exist. 16033VAIra22701 Hoffm Culpeper, And no,EXT:png:END I didn’t make them up, although that sounds like someEXT Culpeper, VA 2 kmlawngardenarbor thing I would do. Hans Christian Andersen wrote about the Rose kmlawngarden (540) 825-8371 Elf, and I’m sure somebody wrote about them way before him. For 16033 Ira Hoffman Lane a more recent overview, check out Ted Andrews’ Enchantment (540)of825-837 Culpeper, VA 22701 the Faerie Realm. The flower fairies are responsible for painting the petals and saturating the air with fragrance. kmlawngardenarborist.com I feel like it wouldn’t hurt to get these flower fairies on board, (540) 825-8371 but I also recognize I can’t lose heart when it comes to growing flowers in the garden. The key is to keep trying. Try. That little three-letter word has more flexibility and forgiveness in the garden than most others. Try. Just try it. Try anything. Give it a try. The really gorgeous part of this word is that it’s not forever. It doesn’t demand the permanence of a word like “commit.” It also doesn’t involve the energy of a word like “succeed.” Try. Simply put a seed or a bulb in the dirt and see if it makes a flower. That’s not really EXT:png:END EXT all that complicated. With Ricky’s blessing and the fairies on my side, I have a feeling 16033 Ira Hoffman Lane this will be the year of the flower in our little vegetable garden. At Culpeper, VA 22701 least I plan to try. kmlawngardenarborist.com (540) 825-8371

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THE LAND

Going Nuts over an Old Favorite

BY GLENDA C. BOOTH

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avid and Kim Bryant considered raising Angora goats, cattle, grapes, apples, peaches, blueberries, and many other farm products. After doing research for several years, they settled on chestnuts, started a company called Virginia Chestnuts, planted chestnut trees. And the numbers worked, sort of. "We wanted to earn enough money to make the mortgage payment," David explained. With a 30-year career in software development, David also runs Oak Tree Systems, Inc., a software business, which, for now, "...financ| SPRING/SUMMER 2018

es my foray into agriculture," he says, noting, "Farming is a romantic notion." But growing chestnut trees wasn't all about economics. David yearned to return to his farming roots in Nelson County and the couple wanted a product they could manage in their senior years in the rustic countryside, a product without boom-and-bust cycles. They had to take the long view. It takes a chestnut tree around seven years to begin producing marketable chestnuts and with upfront costs around $20 just to plant the tree, the return on investment is delayed.

COURTESY OF DAVID AND KIM BRYANT (2)

Chestnuts are making a comeback in the Piedmont

THE LAND

Left: David and his son head out to collect chestnuts with the specially-designed “nut wizard.” Right: Before ripening and opening, chestnuts are encased in a prickly, green husk.

Once through the initial growing period, a tree can produce nuts for 45 years. The Bryants moved to Nelson, near Faber, in 2000, bought the 46-acre Black Oak Farm in 2002, and started planting an American-Chinese hybrid tree in 2008. After enduring some harsh weather and harmful cicadas, in 2015 they had their first significant, marketable crop. They expect to reach production yields of more than 200,000 pounds a year within in 10 years. GROWING

Black Oak Farm is tucked away east of US 29, 10 twisty, up-and-down miles to the top of a sunny knoll where 1,600 Dunstan, windpollinated chestnut trees are everywhere reaching for the sun. Their trees, from Florida, are 95 percent American and five percent Chinese, and believed to be blight resistant. One tree can grow as high as 45 feet. The farm has “23 acres in nuts,” David says. In late May, the trees start to blossom and soon are covered with blooms. In the fall, the trees are laden with prickly, green, tennis-ball-size husks, like big, green gumballs. Inside are the dark brown nuggets, the crème de la crème of the nut world, some maintain. From the end of September through the end of October, the husks half-open and inside usually are three chestnuts per husk. The mature chestnuts, about the size of a quarter or one inch across, fall to the ground. Eighty percent fall within two weeks of ripening, with the last ones coming down around Halloween.

BY GLENDA BOOTH

HARVESTING

"September and October are two killer months," David explains. He, Kim, and one employee collect the chestnuts with a machine and a football-shaped hand tool called the “nut wizard.” Beating the deer and other critters to acres and acres of fallen chestnuts blanketing the ground becomes a frantic, exhausting challenge. The Bryants now harvest about 20 pounds per tree. In 20 years, they expect to get 50 to 100 pounds per tree. "By the end of the season, I feel like a diabetic I've been pricked so many times," David quipped, “but we're big believers in it."

To cure the chestnuts, they do not peel them, but soak them in stainless steel drums in their barn for seven days, a European method. Curing makes them less starchy, converts starches to sugar, and brings out the sweetness, leaving the nuts still firm and crisp. MARKETING

Most Americans have never tasted a chestnut, David points out, so marketing these tasty nuggets is a challenge. Or another way to look at it is, there’s a big market out there. While Asian Americans consume two pounds a year per capita—they’re a staple in the diet in China, Japan, and Korea – chestnuts are a specialty product for Americans. Ninety percent of chestnuts sold in American groceries are from Italy, France, and China. Mostly, the Bryants sell to distributors like the Food Hub in Charlottesville, which services Virginia and Washington, D.C. Imported chestnuts are typically three to four weeks past their peak of freshness, so “buying American” means getting fresher chestnuts. COOKING, EATING

Chestnuts are tasty roasted over an open fire, as Nat King Cole crooned. "They are charming to roast," touts David, in the oven or on an outdoor grill and they get a smoky taste. You should slit the skin first to let the water out so you won’t have an "exploding nut," he cautions. And he adds, they are gluten and cholesterol free. Like a legume, the more you cook the white meat the softer it gets, like a puréed potato. Once PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

“Perhaps the most radical change in the Appalachian forest since European arrival has been the loss of the mountain’s most dominant tree, the American chestnut. Used for everything from fence posts and furniture, to the massive quantities of sweet nuts that were sold in cities at Christmas, this tree was uniquely tied to the natural and cultural history of mountain communities like the Peaks of Otter.” — Panel at the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center, Peaks of Otter

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THE LAND

BY GLENDA BOOTH (3)/COURTESY OF DAVID AND KIM BRYANT (2)

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THE LAND

peeled, they are a creamy white-yellow color akin to a potato. The company’s website offers three ways to cook chestnuts and a recipe for Marron Glacés, candied chestnuts. Chestnuts work well in soups, purées, and stuffings, as additives to other dishes. Creative chefs concoct imaginative dishes. An Internet sampling of recipes includes chestnut ice cream, including Martha Stewart’s chestnut espresso caramel swirl. Epicurious promotes tagliatelle with chestnuts, pancetta, and sage; chestnut risotto with butternut squash; roast pork tenderloin with balsamic-chestnut glaze and various chestnut stuffings. A Richmond brewery made chestnut ale. SUCCEEDING

David is not a novice farmer. His grandfather, Clarence Bryant, grew apples and peaches in Nelson County and David grew up working in a neighbor's apple orchard. After getting his undergraduate degree from James Madison University and a master’s in business administration from George Mason University, he moved into software work in Northern Virginia and Richmond. Kim, originally from Cape May, New Jersey, is a graduate of Longwood College (now Longwood University) and lived in Richmond for a while where she and David met. They have two adult children and a middle school son. When not immersed in chestnuts, they go camping and are regulars at Calvary Baptist Church. The Bryants are clearly sold on chestnut farming and the rural life. Kim says, “I have always wanted to farm. It’s just something that is a part of me. And now that I have the privilege of farming, it’s such a blessing to do what I love, outside where I love, with my family and friends, the people I love.” David echoes this sentiment: "We have fun with chestnuts. Some days the body aches, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. I like the rural life. I’ll never leave." His biggest ambition is to watch a chestnut cookoff on television’s Iron Chef where chefs compete in preparing dishes. “Some day…,” he says wistfully.

“

We have fun with chestnuts. Some days the body aches, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I like the rural life. I’ll never leave.

Aside from beating voracious deer to the fall harvest awaiting collection on the ground, another challenge is a weevil that can get into the husk. But by far, the two major challenges are marketing ones: convincing buyers that there's a demand and familiarizing Americans with chestnuts. After all, because chestnut blight wiped out virtually all chestnut trees in the early 1900s, no one alive today grew up with chestnuts. ENTERPRISING

FARMING

“

The Bryants also grow nursery trees for others interested in getting a start, emphasizing that people can grow chestnut trees on three to five acres. They created the Chestnut Growers Group which encourages others to try, a kind of support group with no dues or officers that meets at a Nelson County farm once a year.

BUYING

Virginia Chestnuts sells cured or uncured chestnuts online at www.virginiachestnuts. com. They ship orders from the end of September to the end of December.

Opposite page, clockwise from top, left: The Bryants have planted 1,600 Dunstan chestnut trees on their Nelson County farm. Kim and David Bryant see chestnut farming as a blessing and a privilege. In early fall, there are usually three chestnuts inside each husk when they open. The Bryants also grow nursery trees for other aspiring chestnut farmers. By rolling it along the ground, the Bryants collect chestnuts with the “nut wizard” before the deer do.

THE TREE A century ago, the American chestnut tree (Castanea dentata) was the most common tree in the eastern United States, growing to nearly 100 feet tall and four feet in diameter. “This tree made America, with log cabins, split rail fences, railroad ties, and food for people, domestic animals and wild game,” says Warren Laws, Vice President, Virginia Chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation. Its nuts fattened up farm animals, especially hogs that foraged in the woods. In the early 1900s, an accidentally-introduced fungus (Cryphonectria parasitica) caused an infection known as blight, making the tree effectively extinct from Maine to Georgia. At Blandy Experimental Farm, the Virginia Arboretum, in Boyce, the American Chestnut Foundation is cross breeding American chestnut trees (Castanea denetata) with Chinese chestnut trees (Castanea mollissima), the latter being naturally resistant to the blight, in hopes of ultimately having genes that can resist the chestnut blight fungus. The Virginia Department of Forestry and Virginia Tech have two projects in Nelson County.

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THE LAND

Farming Yields Its Own Rewards Life at Moutoux Orchard is all about feeding family and community. STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY LISE METZGER

ccording to farmer Mo Moutoux, of Moutoux Orchard in Purcellville, being a farmer “feels like the most honest thing you can do. Feeding yourself and your family and your community is life at its most basic. Everyone has to eat, and being in a position to allow people to eat well feels like the most honest job you can have.” So how did Mo, who grew up a meatand-potatoes kind of girl in Cleveland, know she wanted to be a farmer, and not the cultural anthropologist she was studying to be? She had learned a lot about food rituals and how people grow food, and the theory became reality during a study36 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

abroad experience in Brazil, where she lived with farmers and learned about small-scale farming. She lived with farmers and grew cacao and black pepper, and “I just got hooked.” She came to Washington, D.C., on a teacher’s fellowship and finished her master’s degree at George Washington University in 2010. Even though she liked the challenge of academia, she had discovered that she enjoyed farming and being outside more. She made the decision not to go for her Ph.D, but to dive into farming. She worked at two local farms before crossing paths with Michael Babin, a restauranteur committed to changing the food

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system in D.C. He wanted to start a nonprofit farm that would sell produce to his restaurants, and he needed a farmer who could also write grants. He and Mo hit it off, and together they started Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture. While Mo was running the Arcadia farm, she was asked to be part of Flavor magazine’s “Young Farmer” issue (Winter 2011) with other young farmers in the area. At the photo shoot, she met farmer Rob Moutoux. They dated. Rob’s family farm is in Purcellville, and Mo was in Alexandria. If you know the traffic in the D.C. area, you can understand how the commute to see each other started to wear thin. So despite

Above: The idea of the whole-diet CSA at Moutoux Orchard is that members have access to all that the farm produces. In the height of the summer, CSA members can choose from up to 30 vegetable varieties (and take them all if they want) as well as meats, eggs, yogurt, milk, flours, herbs and flowers. They also have access to sauerkraut, goat cheese, and kombucha from partner farms. Most members are local to Loudoun County, but some come from D.C. or Maryland. Many are young parents concerned about what their kids are eating and who love to bring their little kids out to the farm. All the members love to cook. Facing page: The farm raises about 350 laying hens and 1,200 broilers. The layers provide the eggs, but they also go to work in the orchard to help with insect control. The broilers are processed for meat on the farm about three or four times a season

the fact that Mo loved her job, it’s safe to say she loved Rob more, and she moved out to be with him in 2012. She was excited by the prospect of having the farm be her life. At the time that they met, Rob was actually looking for a vegetable farmer to help on the farm. He liked growing vegetables, but he didn’t like the day-to-day management of vegetable production. How convenient, then, that Mo loves to grow veggies. Not only did he get his farmer, he got his life partner as well. (Now that was a great photo shoot!) Rob, a third-generation farmer, had joined the family farm in 2002 after graduating from UVa with a degree in environmental engineering. At that time, the farm was a conventional peach orchard, and it was doing well. But Rob was motivated to offer more variety and to transition the farm away from pesticide use. He wanted to create a healthy, mineral-rich, microbially active soil. Over time he added vegetables, laying hens, grains, lambs, dairy cows,

pigs, and broiler chickens. That’s what the 60-acre farm looked like when Mo joined Rob in 2012, with some endeavors being stopped (growing their own grains) and some added (growing their own hay for their animals). THE WHOLE-DIET CSA Mo and Rob are among a small number of farmers nationwide who offer what’s known as a whole-diet CSA. Their mission is to serve as the grocery store for their members and provide almost everything they need, year round. In addition to whatever fruits and vegetables are in season, they offer a variety of meat cuts, including chicken, pork, and beef. They have eggs (both chicken and duck), and milk and yogurt from their dairy herd. They also partner with other local farms to be the pickup point for those farms’ goods (goat cheese, kombucha, sauerkraut, grains, for example). When members come on pickup day, nothing is pre-boxed. Mo explains that the

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THE LAND arrangement is like a service agreement. She and Rob agree to grow food for the community, and members take what they need. The biggest complaint of the traditional CSA model is that people get things they don’t want, or don’t know how to use, and oftentimes you hear that it’s too much food. With the open model at Moutoux Orchard, members have a lot of ownership over what they are taking and cooking. “If they only need one onion that week, then they’ll only take one onion and not feel guilty about wasting food,” Mo says. If something is abundant, like tomatoes or cucumbers for example, and you want to take home enough to can, you are welcome to take them. The CSA members feel like they are getting what they need, and they are invested in the farm and want to see it do well. In the past the waiting list to join has been longer than the number of members. But for 2018, Mo and Rob have decided to expand the CSA to 95 members. Sign-up began March 1, and the season runs June–June (moutouxorchard.com. QUALITY OF LIFE A year-round, weekly operation on the scale that the farm offers requires a lot of work, and running a dairy really weds you to the farm. Vegetables can survive without you, but dairy cows can’t. A lot of dairies milk twice a day for production sake, but Mo said they don’t push their 30 cows to produce, and they are milked only once a day. “Our cows are smaller and don’t need twice-a-day milking. Milking once a day gets us less milk, but our quality of life is better and our cows are happier.” Mo and Rob work hard to maintain a healthy work-life balance, now even more so since the birth of their son WesMo cleans udders after the daily milking. As the farm has grown, Mo’s job is primarily focused on vegetable production and less on chores with the animals. But she misses spending time with them, so this new season they are working on getting her back into animal care. 38 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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THE LAND

“Our cows are smaller and don’t need twice-a-day milking. Milking once a day gets us less milk, but our quality of life is better and our cows are happier.”

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THE LAND

“W

e want to instill in Wesley a love for hard work and an appreciation for nature and good food. He already loves helping with farm tasks and feeding the animals, and I can tell he is developing empathy and understanding about the animals and world around him. I don’t know if we have trained him or it is innate, but Wes loves the animals. HIs first words have been ‘moo-moo,’ ‘meh-meh’ (goats), and ‘go-go’ (tractor). He loves giving the baby calves hay, and he helps feed the dogs and cats every day. He would be outside all day, every day, if we would let him, and he is starting to explore the textural world of rocks, dirt, sand, flowers, sticks — it is amazing to watch as he discovers new things. We are so lucky that Rob’s parents still live on the farm, and Wesley loves riding around the farm with Poppa (Grandpa Charles Moutoux). When asked what his favorite thing is, it is always ‘Poppa’.”

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THE LAND ley in 2016. They talk a lot about what they call “martyr farmers,” those who love to complain, “Oh, woe is me…farming is too hard, and too much rain and it’s too hot...” Says Mo, “For us it’s like, ‘If you don't love it, don’t do it.’ At a certain point you have to leave the farm at the farm and have a life. I think that’s our biggest challenge— to figure out how to do that successfully. Because with what we do, it’s impossible. So having staff that we trust and want to be around has saved our lives.” One reason they are expanding the CSA membership is so they can afford to have a full-time, salaried employee. The farm has four staff members in addition to Mo and Rob, but workers are seasonal. Certainly adding a child has made farm work more challenging. “Having a child becomes your whole world,” Mo says. “I remember how easy it used to be to go do something. That was the hardest thing to get used to, because we're so get-up-and-go. And we've got a bad sleeper, so we're not

getting a lot of sleep. It's definitely added a whole level of complexity to our lives, but we're also really lucky because we both technically work from home, so he can be with us for most things. I wasn't raised on a farm, but I think it's a really awesome way to grow up. Wesley's favorite food right now is sauerkraut, and his juice is kombucha." She also has Rob’s parents next door, her mom not far away, and a close-knit community of other farmers nearby. AWESOME FOR THE FARMER, TOO In addition to it being the most honest thing to do, what else does Mo like about her farm life? “I love growing vegetables, so the dead of winter can be tough for me. I do love hoop house production, so there’s at least something green. We try to do lettuce and greens every week. And I love being in the greenhouse; greenhouse production is one of my favorite parts of growing vegetables. So the dead, dead of winter I get a little antsy to get growing again. So,

yeah, that’s when I sit and read my seed catalogues—my farm porn. “My favorite time of day is first thing in the morning: sunrise on the farm with a cup of coffee, when everything is still dewy and looks really beautiful and the cows and all the animals are just waking up. It’s a magical time of day. Everything is really peaceful, and I just love it. “I also love when we cook a really delicious dinner and we comment that we grew every single thing that we are eating. We are lucky that that’s a common occurrence for us. That’s a really good feeling. Even down to the little things, like we sautéed the vegetables in our lard from our pigs, or I made custard for dessert from our yolks and our milk. That’s a really great feeling. “We also really like the CSA pickup days, particularly when the kids come to pick up. We’ve had some pregnant moms come, and now their kids are walking. It’s a cool feeling to see kids grow up on food you’ve grown.”

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GARDENS

Maintaining the Glory of a Natural Beauty Proper pruning will preserve your crepe myrtles’ pulchritude. BY GEORGE SANBORN

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1 The result of correct pruning: a well developed and attractive crepe myrtle in full bloom

COURTESY OF GEORGE SANBORN

repe myrtles are one of the most attractive landscape trees in the Piedmont (Figure 1). Although native to China and Korea, their drought resistance, attractive foliage, and large blooms that can last up to 100 days make them a very desirable landscape tree in the southeastern U.S. Crepe myrtles vary in size from miniatures to trees that grow up to 30 feet tall. The blooms range in color from white, pink, and red to lavender; no matter what the variety, all of them do best in full sun. The bark is also attractive; strips peel off in the summer to show new mottled bark underneath, only to form new bark and peel again the next summer. In the fall, the leaves turn before falling, and depending on the year, that color can range from spectacular hues of vivid yellow to bright orange (Figure 2). Unfortunately, though, crepe myrtles are often pruned incorrectly. In my neighborhood, one of the sounds you hear in late winter is the sound of a chain saw. If you go looking for the source of the sound, you will often find someone across the road on a ladder whacking the top out of a line of crepe myrtles (Figure 3). Essentially, the person is topping these trees, or cutting off all the upper limbs – this drastic, and unnecessary, pruning is often called “crepe murder.” Why are they doing this? Does it have to be done? Is it something people do simply because they see their neighbor doing it? There may be two reasons why people top a crepe myrtle. One is that they think that the large clusters of flowers that emerge from the end of the quick growing shoots of the tree are attractive (Figure 4). I also used to think that the this new growth was attractive, but after attending a Master Gardener course sponsored by the Virginia Cooperative Extension of Virginia Tech, I learned how destructive and unnecessary this pruning is. This unneeded type of pruning is similar to topping a mature tree, or over-pruning a palm tree in the southern and coastal U.S. The foliage and blooms that result from topping are

COURTESY OF GEORGE SANBORN

GARDENS attractive, but they occur at the expense of long term damage to the plant that can reduce its life, not to mention disfigure the tree by destroying its natural shape. The larger blooms are short-lived and grow on thinner and therefore weaker branches. These branches droop, particularly after a rain. The large blooms prevent the tree from developing larger number of smaller flower clusters that will bloom longer. The new growth is also too dense to allow good air movement and sunlight to reach the branches inside. The lack of sunlight and poor air circulation make the tree susceptible to disease and insects, especially aphids. This stress can cause the plant to produce suckers at the base of the trunk. If allowed to continue growing, these suckers not only form unattractive stems at the base of the trunk, but also require the tree to put some of its resources into the base of the tree rather than devote its full resources to the canopy. Trees pruned correctly will have an attractive appearance even after the leaves fall (Figure 6). On the other hand, trees that are repeatedly pruned incorrectly, will have unattractive knobs that persist until the new leaves come out the following spring (Figure 5). The second reason people may top a crepe myrtle is to prevent the tree from growing larger and to keep it contained within a certain space. Depending on the variety, mature crepe myrtles can grow to large trees, and therefore it is far better to buy a smaller variety that is suited to the space where it will be planted than to top it every year. Crepe myrtles usually require minimal pruning in late winter before the new growth starts (Figure 6). The goal is to create a canopy where air circulates freely and allows sunlight to reach the inner branches. Remove any dead branches, branches that are crossing, or branches that are rubbing against each other. Pull off suckers as they develop. Figures 1 and 6 show proper pruning and the result. If it is possible to reach the blooms, remove the old blooms as they start to fade; this may cause a second blooming to occur. If your crepe myrtle has been disfigured by topping there are ways to bring it back to an attractive, healthy tree. The first is to select the strongest two or three branches from each stump as they start to develop in the spring and remove the other branches. The remaining branches will be stronger and over several years will develop a normal healthy canopy. The second way to restore the normal shape of the tree is cut it back to several inches from the ground before growth starts in the spring. When growth does start select the strongest three or four shoots and remove the others. Over several years remove any other new branches as they develop. Crepe myrtles are an attractive and desirable, if not native, part of the Piedmont landscape. Proper care will ensure that your crepe myrtle remains healthy and attractive for years to come.

Spectacular fall foliage

3 Incorrect pruning via chainsaw —“crepe murder”

New foliage and blooms after incorrect pruning

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HERITAGE

A Modern Miller’s Tale Locke’s Mill flourishes after nearly two-and-ahalf centuries. STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY BETSY ARNETT

on Joyce never intended to become an expert on 18th-century grist mills or to spend almost 20 years restoring one. “But then I fell in love with a lady who owned a mill,” he says with a smile. Jon’s wife, Carol, was an avid kayaker and wanted to purchase property with river access. Living in Arlington, she started looking along the Potomac River and worked her way west to the Shenandoah River in Clarke County. When she found Locke’s Mill in late 1991, the property was so overgrown that the mill building wasn’t visible from the road. “I called the number on the dilapidated ‘for sale by owner’ sign,” Carol remembers. “The mill had been on the market for over three years, listed not as a mill, but as an abandoned warehouse. The waterwheel and all of the gears were long gone.” Carol’s original plan was to convert the building into a loft residence, so her first step was to hire a soil scientist to determine if a septic system could be installed. When the soil testing came back with positive results, she called the owner and made an offer,

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HERITAGE

Jon and Carol Joyce spent more than 20 years restoring Locke’s Mill. PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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HERITAGE based on the assessed value and her estimate of how much it would cost to make the building habitable. “I explained to the estate representative how I got to that amount, which was much lower than the asking price. She thought about it for a while, and then told me, ‘You know, Carol, I think you’re the right person to buy the mill, so I’m going to accept your offer.’ That’s how I came to be the proud owner of an old grist mill,” Carol recalls. About a year later, she purchased the adjoining property with an old 1960s fishing cottage, which she used as weekend sleeping quarters. It was one step above camping on the top floor of the mill. After Carol purchased the mill, her father gave her a stack of Old Mill News magazines and told her that his greatgreat-grandfather had been a miller in Jefferson, Md. “Once I knew about the family connection to milling, I began to dream of restoring the mill,” Carol says. A couple of years after buying Locke’s Mill, Carol began dating Jon, whom she met through a mutual friend and co-worker. She invited him to 18th Century Days at the Burwell-Morgan Mill, another 18thcentury grist mill in Clarke County. The Burwell-Morgan Mill was built in 1785 by Nathaniel Burwell and Daniel Morgan on Spout Run, a tributary of the Shenandoah. The village of Millwood grew up around the mill, which operated until the early 1950s. Today, the Burwell-Morgan Mill is a working mill museum, owned and operated by the Clarke County Historical Association. “I thought we were going to 18th Century Days as spectators,” Jon remembers. “But the next thing I knew, I was in a period costume, learning how to grind corn and dress millstones.” HISTORY

A mill was first constructed on the Locke’s Mill site between 1740 and 1751; Robert Carter Nicholas, a grandson of Robert “King” Carter, inherited the property from his grandfather’s estate in 1740, and the survey made by John Mausey in November 1751, when Nicholas sold the property to Colonel Fielding Lewis, shows an operational mill on the site. 46 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

An archaeological study completed in 1997 indicates that the original mill was closer to the river. There may have been two mills operating on the property at the same time. The second, and present, mill was constructed by Fielding Lewis sometime before 1777. A mill ledger from that year references both an upper mill and a lower mill. The property changed hands several times before Joseph Price purchased it in 1876, rebuilt the mill frame and installed new millstones. The mill was known as Price’s Mill until Thomas H. Locke purchased it in 1907. When the mill ceased operations is not certain, but a photograph taken in

Katie Kopsick, pastry chef at Hunter’s Head Tavern and Gentle Harvest

the 1920s shows the wooden waterwheel in disrepair. The same photo also shows the mill’s original fourth level and what appears to be a sawmill attached to the waterwheel. The sawmill would have been an additional source of year-round income. RESTORATION OF THE MILL BUILDING

Jon and Carol married in April 1997 and began the restoration of Locke’s Mill by stabilizing the building, starting with the foundation and working their way up. In addition to the waterwheel and gears, most of the back wall and the ground level floor were missing as well. The gear pit and half of the ground level was filled with dirt, the result of flooding. They hand-dug the dirt out, installed new floor joists and flooring, and then jacked up the entire

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building in order to install new vertical post and summer beam. “We would come out on weekends to work on the mill,” Jon, a retired Navy master chief petty officer, says. “Carol’s plan was still to convert the third level into a miller’s loft and possibly rebuild the fourth level.” However, getting the septic system approved by Clarke County, given the property’s proximity to the Shenandoah River, proved difficult. Carol had three separate systems designed and presented to the Clarke County Planning Commission. After allowing a variance to the county ordinance because the mill is an historic building, the County finally gave the third design a thumbs up. As it turned out, though, the Joyces never installed the system. “Once we decided to restore the mill to working order, in talking with other mill owners, we learned flour dust is a real problem. It gets everywhere and is a fire hazard,” Carol says. Both Carol and Jon were getting ready to retire from the Navy, Carol as an electrical engineer for the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command and Jon, this time as a civilian, from the Naval Sea Systems Command. “We decided that living on the third floor of a mill wasn’t a good long-term option for us as a retirement home,” Jon laughs. The Joyces demolished the fishing cottage and built a new house on the site in 2002. It was then the the Joyces began to restore the building to a operational gristmill, true to its history. RESTORING A WORKING MILL

In 1996, the Joyces hired Derek Ogden, a millwright and mill restoration expert, to draw up plans for a new Hurst frame and gears, patterned after a mill in Pennsylvania. The Hurst frame holds the gears in place and is structurally completely independent of the mill building; otherwise, the vibration from the gears would shake the building apart. The new frame and gears are white oak, which the Joyces purchased green and air-dried in the mill for eight years. “We could have restored the mill more quickly,” Jon explains. “But it would have cost a lot more money.”

HERITAGE

Top: The “new” waterwheel on Locke’s Mill came from a mill in Wren, Virginia. Bottom left: Harry Lewis and Roger Stayaert use the crane to lift the runner stone off the bed stone after milling. Bottom right: Rye grain feeds from the hopper into the eye of the runner stone for grinding.

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HERITAGE

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HERITAGE All of the mill’s gears and machinery on the ground level had to be replaced. Millwright Ben Hassett, based at the time in Lynchburg, constructed the new gears from the air-dried white oak and red maple, using Ogden’s plans. Hassett, now located in Louisville, Ky., has restored grist mills and windmills across the country, including the grist mill at Stratford Hall Plantation, the historic home of the Lee family in Westmoreland County. Jon believes their restoration of Locke’s Mill was guided in part by divine intervention. “Whatever part we needed next, one would come on the market or we would meet someone who knew someone who had one they were trying to get rid of,” he says. The mill’s “new” floor joists came from an old refrigerator plant. In 1997, long before the mill’s new gears were built, Derek Ogden heard about an available waterwheel in southern Virginia. The wheel had come from Clay’s Mill on the Staunton River in Wren. Clay’s Mill burned down in 1926, but water from the sluice had kept the wheel, made of a steel and iron alloy, from warping. In 1954, Jack Poindexter, a local farmer, moved the wheel to his home and mounted it on cement piers in his front yard, simply because he and his wife had fond memories of the old mill. Carol says it looked like a giant hamster wheel. After Jack sold the property, the new owner thought it was a liability and wanted the wheel removed. Hoping the wheel could be installed in a mill again, Jack contacted Derek, who contacted the Joyces. After some negotiation, Carol and Jon bought the wheel and moved Top Left: When not in use, the runner stone is lifted off the bed stone and turned sideways for cleaning and dressing. Bottom left: Jon Joyce stands in the lower level of the mill. The mill’s gears were replaced using authentic period plans. Right: Harry Lewis and Roger Stayaert prepare to lift the runner stone off the bed stone.

it to Locke’s Mill. Manufactured in Hanover, Pa., by the Fitz Water Wheel Company, the water wheel is 23 feet in diameter, three feet wide, and weighs six tons. According to Jon, they spent about $2,300 moving the wheel from southern Virginia and another $1,000 repairing it. A new wheel would have cost upwards of $80,000. “What are the odds of finding a waterwheel of exactly the right dimensions at exactly right time?” Jon asks. “Must be divine intervention!” The Joyces have been as faithful to the mill’s original design as they can. While they had to completely replace the mill machinery on the ground level, the “mill furniture” on the second level where the grinding takes place is mostly original. The millstones are the ones installed by James Price in 1876. Manufactured in Baltimore, the French burrstones (or Burh stones) are comprised of 10 or more pieces of white quartz bound by plaster and a metal band around the outside edge. The original bands were stolen for scrap metal during World War II. There were two changes the Joyces needed to make that varied from what would have been a more exact historical replication. The first change to the mill’s design the Joyces made was to install two stationary cranes made of white oak, one for each set of millstones, to replace the original moveable pine crane. The cranes lift the “runner stones” off the “bed stones” for cleaning and dressing. When grinding, only the top runner stones turn; the bed stones do not move. Over time, the grooves in the millstones get worn down and new grooves must to be cut into the stones by hand, a process known as dressing the stones. Most commercial grist mills in the Shenandoah Valley had two sets of millstones, one for wheat and one with deeper grooves for corn. Because no two sets of millstones are the same, every mill produces a unique texture. The other major change the Joyces made wasn’t to the mill itself, but to

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HERITAGE its power supply. The mill’s head race is fed by a freshwater spring. Originally, there was a mill pond on the mountainside above the mill. The miller would close the gate to the head race at night and let the pond fill up. In the morning, the gate would be opened, allowing water to flow down the head race and into the mill flume, turning the waterwheel. While the remnants of that original pond still exist, there are now houses below it. Instead of restoring the original mill pond and relying on gravity to power the mill, the Joyces built a new mill pond below the waterwheel and pump the water from there up into flume. COMMUNITY

There is a large, well-connected community of grist mill enthusiasts. During their 20-plus-year journey to restore Locke’s Mill, Carol and Jon became very active, joining both the Society for the Preservation of Old Mills (SPOOM) and The International Molinological Society (TIMS). They were instrumental in founding TIMS America and bringing the TIMS International Mill Symposium, held every three or four years, to Virginia in 2000. “Leading up to the symposium, we hosted a series of workshops here at Locke’s Mill,” Carol recalls. “One workshop was on how to put iron bands on millstones, since our millstones were missing their bands. We built a fire in front of the mill and heated the bands to red hot, and then carried them into the mill to put them on the millstones. The heated metal bands shrank as they cooled to fit tightly around the millstones.” Jon Joyce uses a mill pick to roughen the surface of the bed stone which has been worn smooth by grinding, part of the process known as “dressing” the millstones.

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GRINDING AT THE OPERATIONAL MILL

In 2012, 20 years after Carol purchased the mill, the restoration was complete and they were ready to start grinding. Their first customer was Trent Tebbe, owner of Three Monkeys Farm in Loudoun County. Trent was looking for someone to grind organic rye for Silverback Distillery in Afton, Va. Through word of mouth, Trent heard about the Joyces and Locke’s

HERITAGE Mill. On their first grinding run, they ground seven tons of rye and delivered it to Silverback and another distillery in Culpeper. Word spread and today, the Joyces grind mostly rye, almost exclusively for distilleries. Depending on demand, they can grind about two and a half tons of grain in one day. “Once a distillery tries us, they always come back,” Jon says with pride. One reason for their customers’ loyalty is Jon’s willingness to customize the grinding. As Jon explains, there are three variables that determine grinding texture: first, the speed of the waterwheel; second, the gap between the millstones; and finally, how fast the grain is fed into the millstones. Jon will experiment, making adjustments to all three factors in order to get the specific texture his customers want. Another advantage to small-batch grinding is that the millstones don’t heat up. “If the stones get too hot, they’ll toast the grain,” Jon explains. Toasting

the grain changes its texture and taste. The Joyces no longer own Locke’s Mill, but Jon continues to operate the mill for the new owner, Sandy Lerner. An advocate of sustainable, humane, and organic farming, Sandy owns Ayrshire Farm in Loudoun County, Hunter’s Head Tavern in Upperville, and Gentle Harvest, an organic grocery and café in Marshall. At Sandy’s request, Jon had one set of millstones certified organic by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The certification process focused on demonstrating how they will keep the organic and non-organic grains separate throughout the grinding process. “We’re the only historic stone grist mill on the east coast that is USDA certified organic,” Jon says. “And maybe the only one the United States.” This past summer, Jon began grinding rye for Katie Kopsick, the pastry chef at Hunter’s Head and Gentle Harvest. Currently, Katie used the rye

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flour only to bake cranberry walnut sourdough bread. Now that the mill is certified organic, she wants to obtain most, if not all, of her ground grains from Locke’s Mill. Jon is actively looking for sources of other organic grains. One Sunday afternoon last August, Jon and two other millers, Roger Stayaert and Harry Lewis, ground 100 pounds of rye into flour for Katie. The whole job, from start to clean up, took about two and a half hours. Jon was pleased with the result and said that it was the finest flour they’d ground so far. When asked how long he intends to continue operating Locke’s Mill, Jon shrugs and shakes his head. “As long as Sandy wants me to, I guess,” he says. After putting 20 years of love into restoring the mill, Jon and Carol are relieved the mill’s new owner plans to maintain and operate it long into the future. For now, they’re happy to continue to be a part of Locke’s Mill.

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BY ROB TUCHER, COURTESY LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

Stringer and beam system underneath, view North Waterloo Bridge, Spanning Rappahannock River at State Route 613, Waterloo, Fauquier County

HERITAGE

With love,

T H E WA T E R L O O B R I D G E T H E S PA N O F F E R S A N E M O T I O NA L CO N N E C T I O N B E T W E E N T H E P R E S E N T A N D T H E PA S T.

BY PAULA COMBS, PEC

.HERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT DRIVING OVER A HISTORIC BRIDGE WITH ONE L ANE AND THE

CLICKET Y-CL ACK OF WOODEN BOARDS. THE KIND OF BRIDGE THAT CARRIES OLD SPOOKY STORIES PASSED DOWN FROM ONE GENERATION TO THE NEXT.

The Waterloo Bridge, also known as the “Ghost Bridge,” on Route 613 offers this type of experience. Or rather, it used to, and hopefully will again soon. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Waterloo Bridge has spanned the Rappahannock River, which connects Fauquier and Culpeper Counties, since 1878. Built by the Pittsburgh Bridge Company, the Pratt through-truss structure is an example of late 19thcentury ingenuity and the oldest remaining metal truss in the Virginia Department of Transportation's road system. VDOT shut down the bridge on Jan. 15, 2014, due to safety concerns. Just prior to the closure, The Piedmont Environmental Council reached out to preservation groups and individuals about the the potential loss of the historic structure. "The response was an outpouring of support for saving the bridge that grew exponentially after VDOT closed it,” said Julie Bolthouse, PEC’s Fauquier County field representative. “Students of Kettle Run High School’s history teacher, Richard Deardoff, who encouraged them to take action to spread the word to save the historic structure, created the ‘Save the Waterloo Bridge’ Facebook page, which now has over 2,850 followers. PEC created a petition that has over a thousand signatures, and elected officials at the state and local level have received hundreds of letters of support.”

In September, 2014, Fauquier County and PEC commissioned a study of the structure, and discovered it was a great candidate for rehabilitation and that VDOT’s estimate was inflated by soft costs, according to Bolthouse. In response, VDOT commissioned their own study, which resulted in a 25 percent decrease to their original cost estimate. “I see the value in historic bridges similar to the value of historic downtowns versus new shopping centers. They both satisfy the use needed, but one is pretty cookie-cutter and commonplace and the other is unique in design and construction, filled with background history and built in an era when things were meant to be repaired rather than replaced,” said Bolthouse. Until this past year, there had been little movement or financial support for rehabilitation. “It hasn’t been easy to secure funding, since the state doesn’t have dedicated funding sources for rehabilitations of historic bridges. The project had to compete in categories of congestion mitigation and safety improvement, which it scores poorly on,” said Bolthouse. In early 2017, local residents Russell and Joan Hitt made a pledge of $1 million toward the project. With the pledge, VDOT indicated it might be possible to move forward without a contribution of funds from either Fauquier or Culpeper county. However, a resolution of PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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HERITAGE

Top: West elevation oblique, view Northeast - Waterloo Bridge, Spanning Rappahannock River at State Route 613, Waterloo, Fauquier County, VA BY ROB TUCHER, COURTESY LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

Bottom: The Waterloo Bridge remains closed and undisturbed. Photo taken in the summer of 2015 COURTESY PIEDMONT ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL

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support from one of the counties was still needed to push efforts forward. On Nov. 9, 2017, the Fauquier Board of Supervisors held a public hearing to decide whether to adopt a resolution supporting an application for a cost-sharing project with VDOT. The hearing had close to 100 attendees, many of whom wore bright yellow “Save Waterloo Bridge” stickers. PEC, Scenic Virginia and a number of residents gave public testimony, including Russell Hitt, who offered a touching account of his family's history with Waterloo Bridge. “I guess this bridge is very important to me because my family goes back a long ways. Albert Hilleary Hitt, my great great grandfather -- we have his land -- he had to go down this road, the Waterloo Bridge, to take their grain and so forth to be ground at the mill that was there. And all of our family has had to do the same since the 1800s, because we’ve been here since the 1800’s. So, it’s a long family tradition of going down this road. I miss going up and down the road and across the bridge and hearing the tires rumble on the boards, it’s kinda nice. Don’t have many of those today,” said Hitt, as he stood with his son-in-law before the Board of Supervisors. A resolution of support was passed that night. The proposed cost-sharing agreement will now move forward to the Commonwealth Transportation Board, and they will decide to approve it or not by next June. “It’s been a four-year fight, but it’s becoming more and more likely the Waterloo Bridge will be rehabilitated for vehicular traffic in 2018,” said Bolthouse. “We are hopeful that the application will score high in the process and the CTB will decide to ultimately approve it for funding, which would allow the rehabilitation to begin.” Since the 1970’s, half a dozen metal truss bridges in Fauquier have been removed, including the bridges over the Rappahannock River at Kelly’s Ford, Springs Road, and Tapp’s Ford. “Some have asked me why the Waterloo Bridge is so special, and I usually respond by saying ‘It’s the oldest metal truss, and one of only a couple dozen that remain in Virginia.’ However, that isn’t what has brought about this outpouring of support to save the bridge. Although residents are interested in the history, I think what brings out their passion is the sentimental connection they have to it. The bridge holds a special place in their childhood memories and is a distinct and special landmark of where they live, which visitors also get to enjoy and remember.”

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Nol Putnam:

Metal Muse

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ART

From the National Cathedral to a Rockefeller estate, his work is renowned. But Oliver Montalant Putnam is more than a great artist. Meet the Philosopher Blacksmith BY VERONIKA BENSON

ix feet tall and wiry, 83-year-old Nol Putnam still boasts a full head of hair. In 2004, he posed as Mr. May in Rappahannock County’s risque men’s calendar. More recently, he was featured in a provocative photography exhibit. Despite his ease in front of a camera, there’s not a shred of evidence that Putnam could be mistaken for the superficial model-type. His thoughts and opinions run deep and his talent as a blacksmith even deeper. And his reputation in the world’s second-oldest trade reaches far beyond the Piedmont. Among Putnam’s more notable works are three gates that hang in the columbarium of the National Cathedral. The Folger Gate took 1,200 hours to complete; there are 250 intricate leaves in its design. He also designed and crafted a gate for the Rockefeller Plantation in Tarrytown, N.Y. But it wasn’t until 1972 that one of the region’s most celebrated blacksmiths began to labor in his trade. “The first time I handled the tools, I knew working with iron was my calling,” he recollects. “When it was hot, I could manipulate the iron — could learn to change its shape, its dimension into an idea — tools became an extension of my mind.” Ironically, several years later he learned this affinity was genetic; two of his ancestors had been smiths. Although blacksmithing remains popular, according to Nol, “it will never reach the heyday of the 1920s.” It troubles him that society is doing less work with their hands. 58 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

Hammering molten metal at his White Oak Forge in Huntly, Nol Putnam compares the process to using a “rolling pin and dough.”

WHITE OAK FORGE His White Oak Forge is the first thing you encounter when approaching Putnam’s five-acre property in Huntly. With its timber-frame and pitched roof, his smithy resembles a weathered New England cottage. Frayed Tibetan peace flags wave in the breeze above the enormous poplar doors leading into the forge. Various samples of his iron work hang on the walls, immediately drawing the eye upward. To the left is a huge metal table, which functions as both a drawing surface and finishing area. Several intimidating machines stand at the rear of the building, and the forge itself is nestled back in the right-hand corner. At first glance, it could be mistaken for a pizza oven, but this hearth burns coal, and exceeds temperatures of 2,500 degrees. “My favorite tools,” he confides, “are a reworked hammer, two pair of tongs that

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magically appear when needed, and a sixfoot folding, stainless steel ruler.” His movements within the forge are fluid, and clearly second-nature. He stokes the fire-breathing beast of a hearth with coal, then waits for it to heat up before feeding it virgin iron. The heated metal emerges from the forge red-gold and malleable. He’s then able to shape this molten version by pressure of some kind, often hammering. Putnam displays an earthy, sinewy grit as he hammers the hot metal, demonstrating his work. There’s especially an art to the hammering when, for example, he does so at a slight angle and the veins in a leaf emerge. He likens this manual process to that of using a “rolling pin and dough,” but somehow this seems far more technical and physically demanding than baking. The forging of iron into the rods of

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a gate, for example, requires a twisting of the metal while it’s hot. When asked if the iron ever breaks when in this superheated state, Putnam replies, “Never.” And that is not the only surprising aspect of his work. There is rarely any arc welding involved in his creations, except the occasional tack here or there to join two large pieces together. A stunning example of one of his larger works can be viewed in Rappahannock County, an ornate gate. Henri Julien Rousseau’s “The Dream” was the inspiration for the work. Putnam reads as many myths as possible, in order to inform his work.

When it was hot, I could manipulate the iron — could learn to change its shape, its dimension into an idea — tools became an extension of my mind.” “Myths should still guide us,” he says. “They remain potent forces. We ignore them at our peril, for they have much to teach us. Even though we may not know them, their stories are all around us — we are still subject to them.”

He feels we have forgotten about myths, partly because of our busyness with the internet, social media, and “futile distractions like reality TV.” Many of his designs first come to him in dreams; REM sleep provides him with ideas from which he harvests a more detailed and tangible vision. The name of each sculpture evolves as he designs and crafts the work. It is Putnam’s belief that “artists do things with images to better understand the world. And they have an obligation to ask questions, enhance awareness, raise consciousness, and elevate the mind.” In his opinion, “the public needs things to

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Putnam created the Folger Gate, left, for the Washington National Cathedral’s main columbarium. Installed in 1994, the 8.5-feet-tall gate weighs 1,200 pounds and took 1,200 hours to fabricate from mild steel. Above, one of Putnam’s journals.

experience that are beyond voyeuristic, especially now.” For Putnam, blacksmithing is “an ancient, nostalgic trade,” and he considers its fire “mesmerizing.” He continues at his age to evolve through painting, writing, yoga, and even peace-making. Through creative endeavors, and his interaction with others, Putnam hopes he can make a larger difference. “When I’m engaged in a conversation with someone, I want to pay full attention to what that person is saying, how they are saying it, and what matters to them,” Nol says. If he disagrees, he does so respectfully by providing his viewpoint in a thoughtful and nonthreatening manner. “I consider myself an elder now,” he explains, “and we are all like stones in the water. Everything we do sends a ripple effect outward into the universe.” This listening with rapt attention, and responding in kind, is yet another of Putnam’s valuable contributions to a fractured world.

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He also wrote and gave anti-war speeches during that period. “I conducted these strictly off-campus,” he says, “because I didn’t want my views to interfere with those of the students, or distort my teaching.” Some of Putnam’s students remain in touch with him, often expressing their gratitude for his nurturing and inspiration. “When a student is struggling, you lend them a hand,” he says. “And when things are just too difficult, you hold them in your arms, guiltlessly.” MUSINGS AND HEALING There’s a path leading away from his forge, which crosses a meandering stream. It opens onto a glen where the house and outbuildings are located. The setting is one of a tiny hamlet, a place where artists like Shakespeare might have sought respite. Putnam helped design and complete the finishing touches on his home. The exterior façade is rustic, while its interior is more contemporary, boasting thick beams and soaring ceilings. Broad panels of light slant inward from an expansive meadow beyond. The sharper angles of the architecture are softened by many of his own hand-forged details. Shapely candlesticks don bookshelves, while a dragon’s head perches at the end of a curved iron stair rail. Larger works

GATE PHOTO BY HENRY EASTWOOD

BEFORE THE FORGE He began life’s journey in Boston in May of 1934. Born Oliver de Montalant Putnam, Nol lived just across Beacon Street from the Public Garden. His memories of that era, like his art, are precise and captivating. He recalls the strict formalities of his family’s up-

per middle class Brahmin existence — a thick rule book with “more don’ts to abide by than dos.” Eventually Putnam rebelled, developing a roguish persona still apparent in his casual, gentleman-farmer style, oft accented with a scarf about his neck. Merely four when his parents divorced, Putnam moved with his mother to a farm in rural Connecticut. “I think that move saved me from growing up to become a fiduciary attorney,” he jokes. Thanks to his mother, Anne, there was early, frequent exposure to the arts and literature. Their home, like Gertrude Stein’s, welcomed many an artist. Perhaps this is why Putnam preferred to spend time working with his hands, not studying. In an effort to curb these industrial tendencies, his mother enrolled him in the Lenox School for Boys in the Berkshires. After successfully completing his secondary education, Nol was uncertain about which path to choose. Ultimately, his mother encouraged him to join the military. “This,” he says, “was the best advice I’ve ever received. The army taught me that I could have control over my life.” After serving his country, he attended Trinity College in Hartford — remaining in academics, it turns out, for 23 years, including teaching Russian history at the height of the Cold War.

ART are scattered about the house and yard. These artistic touches conjure up a feeling of enchantment. The kitchen, with huntergreen cabinets and a worn farmhouse table, adjoins the light-filled living room. There cathedral-sized windows peer out over a deck, where on a clear day, the dusky, rolling hills appear to be lording over the pasture. The atmosphere of his home is charged with the energy of books, nature, and dramatic artwork. It is a place of warmth and genuine truths. A room just off the kitchen has a plaque above the door that reads, “Nol’s Musings & Words.” Here is where he keeps his journals, large leather-bound books; the pages of his current volume left open for all to read. Given his mastery of conversation, the ‘Musings’ room is likely a space where words flow as easily as the stream on his property. There are sketches in his journals as well, which are sometimes transferred to the drawing table in his forge. While en route, “these designs often change,” Putnam declares. They do so inexplicably. There’s another sort of diagram on a nearby bulletin board. He created this one to help him focus on the inner work his therapist recommended. His ex-wives’ names loom large on the board. “Now,” he confides, “is the period in my life for reflection, and acknowledgement of past mistakes.” Putnam takes responsibility for his actions, while still choosing to celebrate being alive. He appreciates those who are in his life now, and speaks with kindness and deference of those who are not. A staircase in his foyer leads down to a stunning library filled with books of every imaginable genre, and more of Putnam’s iron work. A photo of his maternal grandfather in full military regalia peers down from a high shelf. On the windowed side of the room, a bright display of red poppies steals the show. They are metal, of course, and crafted as a tribute to his five relatives who served in the Great War (two uncles, a grandfather, his father, and stepfather). On the opposite side of the room sits a slender, chest-high sculpture called “Three Broken Hearts.” Tall, grassy tendrils reaching upward provide a sharp contrast to its dangling, copper hearts. The piece’s name raises the question of its true meaning, but Putnam resists inquiry, saying “some

Putnam, top pointing to his Alexander Calder mobile, crafted a display of red poppies (metal, of course) as a tribute to his five relatives who served in the Great War.

things are better left to interpretation.” The hearts, diminutive and vulnerable, flutter at the slightest movement. These two fantastic pieces — the poppies, the hearts — rest across from one another, echoing each other’s sentiment. There’s no doubt Putnam will leave behind an incredible legacy in his metal works, yet it is another work he now cherishes, and hopes will have the most powerful influence. This work is motivated by his concern for the spiritual and economic suffering of fellow humans. “There is a troublesome divide in our culture,” he says, “but as an optimist, I feel we can and should begin healing this fissure at the community level.” Putnam believes

politics, religion, art, science, industry, and wealth are all superfluous without relationships, without community, and without kindred spirits that make us feel we are a part of something larger than ourselves. “We should come together and talk with one another, about things that are difficult to discuss,” he says, a look of concern casting a shadow over his face. “We ought to celebrate our differences, and respect one another in spite of them.” Perhaps his struggles as an artist fostered such a wealth of compassion. There was one year in New England when he had three mouths to feed, and only $2,000 to his name. “We bought a few chickens, some pigs, a cow, and planted a garden, which carried us through the winter,” he explains. And this is the kind of perseverance his art speaks to, by way of both its tensile strength and its universal truths. From the National Cathedral to the Piedmont and beyond, his legacy will abide. Most artists would likely be content with this measure of success, perhaps even retire. Not Oliver Montalant Putnam; no, indeed. Forever the educator, who still wants to inspire, Nol has a schedule he jokingly refers to as warranting a “private secretary.” Alas he marches on, searching for opportunities to provide others, and his beloved community with hope, and maybe even a dream or two.

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ART

‘Live an

artful life!’

Tom Neel celebrates 30 years of creativity BY TOM NEEL

t was 1988, the movie Rain Man was a hit, the Dow Jones Industrial hovered around 2,000, and George Herbert Walker Bush was elected president. Oh, and I became an artist, moved to Fauquier County, and started selling my paintings. Becoming a working artist was my second career. I was in my early 30s and had recently moved back east from California, where I had been the national sales manager for a large automotive suspension company. This was after more than ten years in the performance automotive industry which, quite frankly, had begun draining my soul. It wasn’t the business, it was me. I needed a change. I yearned for something more… creative. While I’m a self-taught artist, art and creativity had been a principle hobby throughout my youth into adulthood. I’ve actually called it my salvation. A pencil, camera, scale model building, and design have never been far from reach.

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Making Hay, oil on canvas panel, 18” X 36”

Thirty years later, I look back at this milestone with a pat on my old back. So happy that I had the foresight as a younger man to go for it. To remind myself that this is the actual play, not the rehearsal. Perhaps the reminder had been my father, who passed away in 1979, when we were both 64 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

too young, and who had already been gone almost a decade. I was left to learn on my own that life may bring you opportunity, but you must bring to that life the actions, decisions, and intentions it needs to make your life whole. So, I decided to become an artist. I took action and intended on being

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successful. It wasn’t easy, but it was satisfying because I had re-entered an inspiring life of self-expression and creativity, where my brain and hands would work as a team. Speaking of a team, I believe in the law of attraction. Your intentions are a very powerful tool, and it seems no sooner than

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I put my mind to this artistic task, serendipity brought me a teammate in the way of my wife-to-be, Linda. On her own journey for happiness, Linda had, too, left her first career in IT, moved east from Colorado and opened Leesburg’s first art gallery, Leesburg Gallery of Art. Living in Maryland, I

met her while visiting Leesburg and we hit it off instantly. The gallery was much like a launching pad: Linda the fuel, and me the rocket--3-2-1-blast off we did! Soon, I found myself moving to Rectortown and becoming a resident of Fauquier County. Smack dab in the middle of land known

for horses and hounds, the Piedmont was a Godsend for these eyes. It’s scenic beauty still delivers the same sense of place it did all those years ago. There’s a timelessness about the Piedmont that continues to captivate and excite me artistically. Fiery sunrises and sunsets, verdant greens of ev-

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ART ery value and hue, reflective streams and brooks, and mountains so blue. The wildlife here is amazing as well. When you can see a red fox, a bald eagle, a red tailed hawk, a purple finch, and a white tailed deer, all in the same day, hey, life as an artist is pretty good. So, while 1988 and 1989 were very good years for our economy, 1990 was not. The gallery was doing great, as was my blossoming art career. But 1990 brought a massive construction project in the way of a new parking garage to Leesburg that, ironically, wiped out downtown parking in the process. In July, we entered a recession, then we entered the Gulf War in August, and, the final nail, a government shutdown in October. Things were not looking good. Ah, remember, good intentions are powerful medicine. Almost simultaneously, Linda and I were eagerly asked to come work for the country’s then-largest fine art publishing company, directing their nearly $2-million gallery and becoming part of the company’s management team. Within months, not only did this happen, but in a blissful twist, our best gallery customer in Virginia decided to buy Leesburg Gallery.

King of the Coop, oil on panel, 18” x 24”

You have to understand now, we would be spending a lot of time in Connecticut, but while I was employed, I was still encouraged to paint. But now my day-to-day interactions were with some of the best nationally known and most successful artists in

Beginning of a Good Day oil on panel 24” x 36”

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the country. A big part of my job was to visit with them, be in their studios, take them to dinner, and help them with business. We became friends and understood each other. As an artist, it was like being in an airport and hitting the people mover. Suddenly, things were moving much faster with far less effort, respectively. The best advice was at my fingertips. My art started gaining national exposure, and the company gallery we were also directing was doing great. So, of course, it made perfect sense to do what we did — quit. In May of 1994, we both walked away from our six-figure salaries to pursue my full-time career as an artist. Of course, there’s more to this story. But in short, we had a home in Virginia and it was time to go home and be a full-time, selfemployed artist. That was 24 years, several additional wars, shutdowns, and recessions — including the big one--ago, and fortunately, my artistic self is still intact. Thirty years has its summits, peaks that give you a more favorable perspective of the valleys one must experience with any career and business covering three decades. One of the most rewarding parts of my business was choosing to be commissioned as an art-

ist, to focus on customer service and allow my clients to take me onto paths I might not otherwise explore. This also allowed me to experience the celebratory feelings of others. When I paint a painting celebrating a person’s retirement after 50 years, or a couple’s 45th wedding anniversary, I am, quite frankly, honored. Then there are also those wonderful relationships and friendships that blossom out of such requests. As an example, not only was I commissioned by renowned Chef Patrick O’Connell to create the celebratory painting for the 30th Anniversary of The Inn at Little Washington (10 years ago), I was asked to do so again last year for the upcoming 40th anniversary this year. I cherish our relationship, as we have shared numerous creative collaborations over the years, including the treat box given to each dinner guest, and so many more. Other relationships are born of philanthropy. As an example, working with golf legend Jack Nicklaus and his lovely wife Barbara over the years has allowed my art to raise tens of thousands of much needed dollars for their Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation. But most of the paintings I paint are simply a celebration of life in the Piedmont. My paintings are of country life, the polar opposite of the six o’clock news. Peace and quiet. So quiet you can actually hear yourself think, or more importantly, hear what urban life drowns out. The distant bird calling, the first sound of peepers in the spring, a babbling brook, or the sound of the wings of geese flying overhead. I’m always tickled when one of my paintings of this beautiful region makes its way to far away states like Oklahoma, or even far away countries like Greece. These are life-enriching experiences, valuable in ways beyond normal compensation for one’s talents. Fortunately, there have been wonderful lessons learned along the way. Allow me to share a few. An investment counselor once asked me, “When do you see yourself retiring?” My answer, “Retire? I already do what people when they retire.” In short, find something you love. And it won’t be work. Also, you know that old expression, “starving artist”? We never have. Art has been our passion, but for Linda and me, it has also been our business. We treat it and our collectors with respect. In that light, customer service and establishing meaningful relation-

Evening Flight, oil on canvas panel, 24” X 36”

ships have been as important as any movement of my paint brush on canvas. So, the past 30 years have been magical ones of creative expression, low stress, and happiness. It’s not too much to ask of your life, and to every young person I say just three things: don’t smoke, it will ruin your life; be passionate with your intentions, and let happiness guide you. That doesn’t mean you don’t have to apply yourself to your goals. It just means find goals worth pursuing passionately. Oh yes, and live in a region like this, one that fuels your soul, one that beckons you to do as much for it as it does for you, Live an artful life!

For more information about Tom and Linda Neel please visit ThomasNeel.com or their inspirational website, LiveAnArtfulLife.com

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GARDENS

Historic Garden Week in Watercolors BY BETH MARCHANT

have loved to draw and paint all of my life. Nothing gives me more pleasure than to sign a work of art that Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m happy with. My main interest is in architecture, and that is why I love illustrating the featured homes in the Guidebook for Historic Garden Week in Virginia. I started in 1997 doing ink drawings, and in 2012 we changed the look of the Guidebook by switching to watercolor paintings. The 2018 Guidebook will feature 28 watercolors. I am a representational painter. I am inspired by the beauty of nature and the way light can change color and define structure. I believe a successful painting must have both an accurate drawing and also correct values (meaning the lightness or darkness of an object). The pursuit to achieve this goal is what motivates me. The completion of a work of art that I think is successful gives me the satisfaction and delight that make me want to go back and do it all over again. I paint full time in my studio, and when I can, I paint en plein air. Other subjects that I enjoy are animals, especially cows, horses, and dogs, and both rural and urban landscapes. www.bethmarchant.com instagram.com/b.marchant_art facebook.com/Watercolors-and-Oils-by-Beth-Marchant The Cliff, Winchester | 2018 Garden Tour 68â&#x20AC;&#x192; PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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Midway, Albemarle | 2017 Garden Tour

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GARDENS

Innsbruck Avenue, McLean | 2018 Garden Tour

Huntley Hall, Warrenton | 2017 Garden Tour

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GARDENS

Peace and Plenty, Middleburg | 2018 Garden Tour 2018

THE GARDEN CLUB OF VIRGINIA HISTORIC GARDEN WEEK APRIL 21-28, 2018 Each spring visitors are welcomed to more than 250 of Virginia’s most beautiful gardens, homes, and historic landmarks during “America’s Largest Open House.” This eight-day statewide event provides visitors a unique opportunity to see unforgettable gardens at the peak of Virginia’s springtime color, as well as beautiful houses sparkling with more than 2,300 flower arrangements created by Garden Club of Virginia members. www.vagardenweek.org Monteith, Orange | 2017 Garden Tour 72 PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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GARDENS

The Meadows, Town of Washington | 2017 Garden Tour

“I am inspired by the beauty of nature and the way light can change color and define structure”.

North Club Drive, Fredericksburg | 2018 Garden Tour PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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STEEPLECHASE

Zanclus A Piedmont homebred steeplechase champion BY PAM KAMPHUIS

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STEEPLECHASE

way, he’s big and it’s just like whatever you put in front of him, he just springs over. There’s no question about his clearing it and it looks like he puts forth no effort.” Zanclus’ stride, once he settles in, makes him an excellent contender in longer races. He’s very comfortable in the three-mile races, says Morris. He ran first in flat races and hurdles, but didn’t seem to be especially promising. Collette says, “We first tried him over hurdles [which are the smaller jumps] and he wasn’t interested. He did it but if anyone wanted to pass him he thought that was quite alright. Now he is a competitive horse, he wants to win. It’s hard to restrain him… Neil hunted him and there he’s always in front and he decided he likes it, which is where you want him to be at the end.” After a year off when they looked into selling him as a threeday event horse, Morris says, “We started running him over timber, and that’s when he really started to shine and show his greatness. He just needed a little maturity is all, he’s a great big horse but he was a late bloomer. Over timber is his forte and it came at a good time in his life because he was ready and mature enough. Foxhunting with me in the off-season really turned him around. It matured him, and another birthday helped him as well. He just needed a little more time. He’s a big striding horse and it really didn’t help him over hurdles at all. He has a very long elas-

BY JACKI DYRHOLM (2)

any horses run in Piedmont steeplechases, but how many are true Piedmonters—bred from local sire and dam, born, raised, trained, and then raced in the Piedmont? Meet Zanclus, an eye-catching 17.1-hand chestnut Thoroughbred gelding (by Xenodon out of Jordani by Two Smart) owned and bred by Sara E. Collette of Pageland Farm in Casanova. Foaled on May 16, 2010, and raised by Collette and Cheryl Depriest at Pageland, he was put in training with Neil Morris, who is also Master of Orange County Hounds, at Hickory Tree Farm in Middleburg at the age of three and started racing at the age of four. Depriest describes him as a big horse, lanky and leggy, who was slow maturing, but a wonderfully athletic horse who always knows where to place his feet when he runs. “He’s very striking, and he was always a sweet, sweet horse. I’ve never known him to pin his ears or kick at anybody. I just love him to death, I still cry every time I see him race. He’s such a good boy.” Morris echoes Depriest’s words: “He’s just beautiful. He’s such an eyeful, just a beautiful-moving horse, very soft and elastic.” Depriest adds, “Once he gets going … he has this incredibly long stride, so once he finds his rhythm, you know, the other horses are taking about a stride and a half to his one. He just covers an enormous amount of ground. He kind of jumps the same

Facing Page: Sara Collete’s Zanclus went wire to wire in the $40,000 Steeplethon 3-mile timber race at Great Meadow, The Plains on Oct. 22,2016. Trained by Neil Morris and ridden by Kieran Norris, Zanclus was on the lead through the entire race, drawing off by 15 lengths at the wire. Above: Winners’ Circle and presentation with Sara Collette, Neil R. Morris, Bruce Collette, and Kieran Norris. PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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STEEPLECHASE

Zanclus with jockey Kieran Norris and trainer Neil Morris.

“We started running him over timber, and that’s when he really started to shine and show his greatness”

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STEEPLECHASE

BY DOUG LEES (3)

tic stride. That really stopped him being quick and efficient as a hurdle horse when he was younger. As a timber horse, it proves an advantage for him; just the way of his going getting across the country is very easy. He’s just a relentless horse, with a relentless gallop, and he’s very efficient getting over the jumps. He’s been extremely successful over timber. Extremely successful. He’s always a live horse in a race. He’s just a pleasure to take to the races; it’s nice to have that level of horse to enter a race with. He’s got a lot of talent.” Zanclus started winning races in 2016, culminating in the Steeplethon Timber Steeplechase at the Great Meadow International Gold Cup. Zanclus can be difficult, Collette explains. He has raced under a few good jockeys, but just didn’t get along with them. He races now under jockey Kieran Norris. She says, “Zanclus has firm opinions on some things, and is a little naughty in the paddock. He needs tact, and he and Kieran Norris have a real bond. A lot of riders are a little bit frightened of something this big. And when they start to pull their little tricks like rooting and moving sideways and things like that they get worried. Kieran thinks he’s funny. And its worked out very well and he’s improved. I don’t know if this year he will behave like a perfect gentleman or not.” Morris speaks highly of Sara Colette’s breeding program. He says, “Bless Sara and Bruce for their patience in breeding these late maturing but long distance grass horses. They are particularly good at it.” Zanclus’ full brother, Erycx, is a promising four

year old also in training with Morris. “We’re pretty excited about him,” he says. “He’s had two wins on three starts in flat races. We are very fond of him too and hopefully he has a bright future.” Collette has owned the dam for generations, and also bred the sire. All the resulting horses from that breeding combination have the same distinguishing characteristics. According to Collette, “They’re all large, good jumpers, have pleasant dispositions, and are sometimes a little scatterbrained. Their distinguishing thing is stride, enormous strides. It seems they are born knowing how to jump. But since they are such big horses [Zanclus was about 11 hands when he was born], they don’t fully mature physically until they’re about seven.” Collette’s horses run under jockeys wearing green silks with white circling dolphins. Her husband is a fish zoologist and, he says, since he is funding the breeding program, he gets to name the horses. Hence, the horses are all named after fish. What’s in the future for Zanclus? After taking a year off due to an injury, his 2018 starts will include Orange County Hounds point to point, My Lady’s Manor, and Great Meadow, either as a Steeplethon or Gold Cup contender, depending on how his preliminary races go. According to Morris, “We want to make sure he’s back to where he was.” He concludes, “He’s a fine racehorse with a bright future, and hopefully he has plenty of years of racing ahead.” Look for him at the races this year, and cheer on our local homebred!

Blue Ridge Hunt Point to Point, March 12, 2016. Above: Trainer Neil Morris and owner Sara Collette celebrating after Zanclus’ first victory in his first start since 2014. Right: Zanclus over timber. PIEDMONTVIRGINIAN.COM |

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STEEPLECHASE At the Oatlands Point-to-Point in 2016, Zanclus was the winner of the 3.5mile William Corcoran Eustis Cup open timber race.

Above: The Orange County Hounds Cup, 3 miles over timber, was Zanclus’ second timber race in just two Virginia starts. He was the winner.

BY JACLYN DYRHOLM

BY DOUG LEES

Below: Zanclus leads through the water at the International Gold Cup Steeplethon Timber Race, October 2016

BY TOD MARKS PHOTOGRAPHY

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LIFE IN THE PIEDMONT

The Perils of a Country Wedding Unexpected, fuzzy wedding crashers at a picture-perfect Piedmont ceremony BY TONY VANDERWARKER

t seemed like a good idea. Stage the late afternoon wedding in the classic stone barn on the bride’s family farm. A handsome building of greenish-hued stones gathered from the property, stately and nicely nestled into the landscape, it was the perfect location for a Ralph Lauren ad. Though it was a beautiful summer day, being August in the Piedmont, the temperature had climbed to over a hundred and the humidity you could cut with a knife. So the wedding planner had placed two six-foothigh fans at each end of the barn to keep air circulating. Virginians are used to the sweltering heat, everyone knows to wear light and loose clothing and avoid moving around too much. The ceremony and cocktails are outside to avoid going inside until dinner. Everyone stands around chit-chatting with their cocktails, listening to the string ensemble, then watching the wedding, oohing and ahhing over the bride’s stunning dress. Despite the heat, it’s a picture-perfect event— country-swanky, nothing flashy, just quietly elegant. And when it’s announced that the food is served, everyone moseys inside. Though the tables are beautifully decorated with fancy plates, fine silverware, and elaborate flower arrangements, as appetizing as the food looked, even with the fans, I decide

the heat is unbearable. So I prevail on my wife to gather up our silverware and plates and eat outside. While we’re chowing down, I notice something out of the corner of my eye. At first I passed it off as a floater, one of those gossamer dribs that drifts across your eye. But no, when I saw a second, I turned to look inside and noticed an object dropping from the barn ceiling. Then another and another. I see a couple plop onto the nearest table. A couple inches long, they are furry little critters. “Oh, my God,” I say to my wife, “Look, it’s raining bats.” “Bats!” someone screams and bedlam takes over. Pretty soon the little bodies are carpet-bombing the diners, dropping dead into wine glasses, down bodices, all over the plates of food. Screams ring out, then shrieks followed by screeching and yelping as the panicked guests stampede out

the door, tossing dead bats off their shoulders and yanking them out of their hair. Turns out there are hundreds of baby bats clinging to the ceiling and the heat is causing them to faint and plummet down onto the diners and the tables below. Guests reassembled outside the barn, some heading for the bar to refresh their cocktails, everyone standing around jabbering about the bat attack. I noticed a couple of people still shaking bats out of their collars and cuffs. “Can you believe it? I was about to take a fork full of my chicken tetrazzini when a bat dropped smack into it,” one of my friends said. “I tell you, it was right out of a horror movie.” Another, “That was one of the most terrifying experiences I’ve ever had.” “What a thing to have happen right in the middle of a wedding dinner.” That pretty much wrapped up the event. Some people hung around the bar but most retreated to the air conditioning of their cars and hustled home to grab a bite to eat. Needless to say, no one went back into the barn and soon the community was buzzing about the wedding ruined by the dive-bombing bats. My wife and I drove home feeling sorry for the bride and her family but cracking up about the stories the couple will have. “Let us tell you about our wedding…”; they’ll be telling that one for years.

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