Rural Intelligence (Page 576)

Parties

Healthy Competition: Literary Death Match

Amy Krzanik reports from Lenox. Berkshire County's literati packed Edith Wharton's former stables at The Mount on Friday, September 20, as WordFest 2013 brought Literary Death Match to the region for the first time. The reading series/story slam is a high-octane, laugh-out-loud

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Parties

Olanafest: In the Gloaming

Dale Stewart reports from Greenport, NY. The third annual Olanafest, a food-fantasma held on Saturday, September 21 at Frederick Church’s 250-acre artist-designed Olana, the Persian-style manor boasted ten of the Hudson Valley’s esteemed chefs like farm to table pioneer Zak Pelaccio of the recently

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Parties

Good Neighbors: The Hammertown Barn Party and Auction

Jamie Larson reports from Pine Plains. The neighborly bond between Columbia and Dutchess Counties was on display and strengthened Saturday, September 21, at the eighth annual Hammertown Barn Party and Auction. Hosted by the ubiquitous home and design store, and sponsored by the Fund for Columbia County (FFCC), and The

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Arts

Fellowship of the Five-String: Béla Fleck NY Banjo Summit at the Mahaiwe

By Robert Burke Warren The ongoing saga of the banjo is uniquely American: enslaved Africans bring a deceptively humble instrument from their homeland, whites appropriate and Victorianize it, the burgeoning multi-ethnic folk culture seizes it, mid-20th-century protestors wield it, and, finally, an urban kid – Béla Fleck –hears

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Food

Dining: Caught In Charlotte's Web

By Don RosendaleCharlotte’s Restaurant is my “local." It’s two miles up the road from my Millbrook farm, and I've eaten at the site (including three prior restaurants with different names) at least once a week for the last 30 years. That comes to, give or

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Food

Pick Your Own Time: An Apple (Or Plum, Pear, Or Pumpkin) A Day

Photo courtesy of Kwaree Blog By Tim Eustis Having gorged ourselves on the summer fruits and vegetables of our area, it’s time now to explore the autumnal offerings at pick-your-own orchards and farms. Apples galore are everywhere, and you can also find mums, plums, pears, pumpkins, and

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Real Estate

Artful Adirondack

This three-bedroom, two-and-a-half bathroom classic Adirondack Craftsman in Austerlitz has an open floor plan with nearly 3,000 square feet. A massive stone fireplace, hardwood floors, and exposed beams bring in the Craftsman feel — and that's just in the main house. Sited on 70

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Real Estate

Historic Gem

The outside of this Livingston home may look Colonial, but inside it is decidedly Arts and Crafts, with the characteristic stained glass windows, built-in hutches, and perfectly preserved wood trim. There are four bedrooms and a bathroom, living room, dining room with beveled glass French doors, and a huge

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Real Estate

Crafty Getaway

Sit back on the porch and enjoy the surrounding fields and the sounds of the country (silence) in this Spencertown Arts and Crafts-inspired home. (Telltale signs of the style are the overhang on the roof line and bluestone porch.) The sunny, open home has a large dining/family room,

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Real Estate

Master Craft

Located on a private, woodlands-surrounded property in Pawling, this home displays Arts and Crafts details such as exposed rafters and decorative brackets under the eaves. The interior of the home has a living room with wood-burning fireplace, chef's kitchen with rare stone counters and custom cabinetry,

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Food

Surprise Red Pepper Soup

This intense soup combines your local harvest with Eastern seasonings and a touch of butter to round it all out. It's terrific eaten immediately with crusty bread--I couldn't help myself--but radically better the next day. Serve for lunch or as a first course, rather

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Style

Garden: Mum's The Word

The following is a regular column that addresses basic issues facing the ever-inquisitive back- and front-yard toiler, proffered by someone who knows best; one of the fertile master gardeners from the Berkshire Botanical Garden in Stockbridge. This week, Brian Cruey discusses the surprising longevity of a flowering plant

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