Events / Fire Cider

There has been a nasty cold going around the Berkshires, and one by one it has taken us out. First Dan, then Sean, Amy, and Dana. I blame Dan's kids for being cute but efficient plague carriers. Anyway, we've been hitting the amped up virgin Fire Cider hot toddys pretty hard over the last week- and I'm happy to say we've been feeling much better! Ingredients: -1 -2 Tablespoons of Fire Cider -Juice of 1/4 - 1/2 lemon -1 T honey, raw, local honey is best. -A healthy dose of ginger (We use 1T frozen ginger juice. A 1/2 tsp ginger powder or 1T diced fresh ginger works too) -Hot water or tea to fill your favorite mug [caption id="attachment_764" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Warming and soothing.[/caption] Our full arsenal of anti-ick fighting home remedies includes Osha tincture, Echinacea tincture, oil of oregano (rub it on the bottom of your feet or get capsules), raw honey, Fire Cider, ginger juice, lemons, neti pot and of course, some Berkshire Bourbon for when you finally start to feel better!   This Sunday is the last SoWa Market in Boston for the season so make sure to stop by and see Sean for your free Fire Cider sample!  He'll also be handing out samples on Friday, 10/24 at Foster's Supermarket in Greenfield, MA, 3-6 pm  and on Saturday, 10/25 at the Fruit Center Marketplace in Hingham, MA 11 am-4 pm Cheers!

September is our busiest month of the year and this year was no exception.  We spent 8 days at the Big E in Springfield MA and during that time we gave out over 25 gallons in samples alone, holy wow, that's a new record! Twenty five gallons translates to about 17,500 Fire Cider samples - in home compostable sample cups of course!  We are so thankful to everyone who came out and gave our strange tonic a try. [caption id="attachment_742" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Sheri and Dan taking their daily shots of Fire Cider at the Big E.[/caption] While the Big E was going on, four of us went to Baltimore Maryland for Natural Products Expo East, second only to Expo West which we will be attending in March.   We were lucky to have Daniel Esko, formerly of the Berkshire Coop Market join Team Fire Cider on September 2nd.   Daniel, Brain, Dana and I drove 6 hours to Baltimore, in two cars packed to the gills with Fire Cider for the Expo. [caption id="attachment_746" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Arriving at Expo East in the Baltimore Convention Center.[/caption] We had an awesome time at the Expo- we met a whole bunch of our retail partners, whom we have known for years via email and phone.  It was so nice to finally meet them in person!  We also connected with a lot of people who were excited to try Fire Cider for the first time as well as some super fans who went home with free bottles, t-shirts and shot glasses. [caption id="attachment_747" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Having fun at the Expo! Daniel, Brian and Dana with the backdrop I made.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_749" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Fire Cider was nominated for the NEXT award given out by New Hope Media who runs Expo East and Expo West, what an honor![/caption] It was certainly not all work for the three days we were at the Expo in Baltimore.  Mom's Organic Market, one of our retail partner's held a party at Alewife, a local bar with 40 beers on tap, at the end of the first day of the Expo.  We had a blast, thanks guys! [caption id="attachment_743" align="aligncenter" width="538"] The Mom's Organic Market party was the place to unwind after the first day![/caption] And we got a recommendation to try out a Butcher Shop and Restaurant called Parts and Labor that sources local and humanely raised, free range animals which they butcher and cook on site, using the whole animal.  This place was so similar to Fore Street in Portland Maine it's almost as if the idea of nose to tail local butchers working closely with near by farms is catching on! [caption id="attachment_754" align="aligncenter" width="538"] This Wendell Berry quote on the menu really captures the whole knowing your food and your farmer idea.[/caption] And on that note we ate about half the menu, our dinner ended with a recommendation from our server Issac who we will all remember forever for his insights: [caption id="attachment_752" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Best ham ever, it was truly a divine experience.[/caption] Thanks Baltimore, it was fun, it was exciting and we are already planning for Expo West in L.A. this coming March 2015! [caption id="attachment_750" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Sheri had more than a TON of shipping to do after the Expo, 4 pallets plus the cart, all in one day![/caption]

Our little pallet garden has been growing strong, we've picked a bunch of cilantro and made a few salads with all the greens.  The radishes never make it into the house, got to have something to eat while I'm picking food for a meal! [caption id="attachment_718" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Baby lettuces are delicious![/caption] Meanwhile, our garden in Richmond has turned into a Comfrey field.  And while Comfery is an amazing medicinal plant, it can not be eaten and it choked out all the rest of our plants! [caption id="attachment_719" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Dana whacking back the Comfrey, perhaps next year we'll grow vegetables?![/caption] We covered the whole garden up and will see if we can get a fresh start next spring.  What our garden at Green Means Farm lacked in vegetables this year, it made up for in hops, four different varieties, although the Cascades are doing the best by far! [caption id="attachment_720" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Picking hops really makes me want to drink a beer, they smell so good![/caption] Dana dried them out and has already brewed a 5 gallon batch with some of what we picked.   The brew should be ready by Friday, and we'll certainly enjoy it after our first day at the Big E!  Dana, Sean, Brian and I hope to see you there, we'll be on the Rhode Island side of the Massachusetts building all weekend!

[caption id="attachment_688" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Dana and Sean with our other new addition![/caption] We are getting ready for our biggest fall yet and so we have hired our first full-time employee, welcome to team Fire Cider Mr. Callaghan!   Sean's actually been helping us out, officially and unofficially, for years.  Sean and Benny 'Fingers' Kohn wrote and recorded a rock n roll theme song for Fire Cider in 2012.  Sean has helped us in the kitchen making Fire Cider, and has personally hand washed many, many pounds of horseradish roots.  Sean is now offering in store Fire Cider tastings and attends the SoWa Farmer's Market in Boston every Sunday. [caption id="attachment_687" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Ready to rock at the SoWa Market in Boston. Nice T-shirt![/caption] Now that he's officially, finally, part of Team Fire Cider, you'll see Sean all over New England offering free samples of Fire Cider at festivals, shops and cafes.  Sean will be working closely with our retail partners too.  Want to see Fire Cider for sale somewhere?  Feel the need for an in store demo aka free samples?  Sean can be emailed directly at, you guessed it: [email protected] The Big E is held in Springfield MA every year.  Sean, Dana, Brian, Sheri and I will be there, next to the Massachusetts building on the weekends, Friday September 12 through Sunday the 14th, the weekend of the 20th and 21st and Friday the 26th to Sunday the 28th.  Last year we gave out about 15,500 samples of Fire Cider (in biodegradable cups!) over the course of the event.   Let's see if we can't beat that record this year! [caption id="attachment_686" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Sean and Dana having a laugh in the warehouse.  DIY Halloween costume![/caption]

Last weekend Dana and I spent just 45 minutes - plus gathering materials- to build this sweet little pallet garden!  We have a lot of pallets at our warehouse in Pittsfield, so, if you like this idea and want to make your own, please email me: [email protected] and we'll hook you up with as many pallets as you'd like.  Someone mentioned to me they were concerned about the pallet wood being treated with chemicals.  That is a worry for international shipping pallets, as those are treated, but the ones we get are used for shipping only in the U.S. and are made from the cheapest (it costs money to chemically treat wood!) scrap wood available.  We picked a pallet that was sturdy and unpainted, made of plain, raw wood.  I can't wait to pick lettuce in a few weeks! [caption id="attachment_664" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Dana filling the pallet garden with organic dirt, yum![/caption] First, gather your materials: one pallet weed cloth thin board to cover the back of your pallet powerful staple gun, tacker or some small nails and a hammer enough organic dirt to fill the pallet, about 5-6 bags should do seeds!  choose smaller foods with little roots like lettuce, herbs, flowers, nothing too big, like corn or too deep like root veggies. How To: Use the top of the pallet, with the most boards/small spaces for the front.  Tack weed cloth all around the back, bottom and sides, this will help keep the dirt inside the pallet. Leave the top open so you can grow taller plants/flowers in that space. [caption id="attachment_665" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Using a tacker to cover the back, bottom and sides with weed cloth.[/caption] Now tack a thin board over the back of the pallet to keep it stable so the dirt doesn't fall out. [caption id="attachment_666" align="aligncenter" width="538"] So, can you tell Dana was taking these photos?! We used a thin board leftover from packing material to cover the back of our pallet.[/caption] Lean your pallet against a fence or building at an angle and fill it with organic dirt.  Pack it in well so that it's filled up and won't wash out when it rains. [caption id="attachment_667" align="aligncenter" width="538"] About 5 bags of dirt should do.[/caption] Now plant each row, in the spaces between the front slats. [caption id="attachment_668" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Planting herbs, flowers, lettuces and more![/caption] Water regularly and enjoy your little garden!  I'll be sure to post updated photos of our pallet garden on our Facebook page once things get growing.  Here's how it looked five days after we planted the seeds: [caption id="attachment_672" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Radishes are taking off with herbs, lettuce and flowers not far behind.[/caption]

Show us your best Fire Cider face!   Or your Fire Cider tattoo (no, seriously, we heard this was a real thing!), your friends trying Fire Cider for the first time, the funniest, weirdest, coolest way you use Fire Cider.  Get creative and you could win one of four $25 gift certificates to your favorite Fire Cider retail shop.  Sound like fun?  Here's how to enter the contest: Send us one photo OR one 60 second or shorter video along with your favorite place to buy Fire Cider.  We'll let our Facebook fans pick two photo winners and two video winners and each will receive a $25 gift certificate to the shop of your choice. [caption id="attachment_635" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Amy and Dana say: Beware The Underdose![/caption] Email your photo or video with the subject line "Fire Cider Contest" to [email protected] by Monday July 14th at midnight est.  We will post your photos and videos on our Facebook and Twitter during and after the contest.  Brian, Dana, Sheri and Amy will narrow down the entries to our top favorite picks and let people vote on our Facebook page starting on Tuesday July 15th. [caption id="attachment_636" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Our daily doses, down the hatch![/caption] Like us on Facebook if you haven't already!  The four winners will be emailed directly with how to redeem their gift certificates.  You can send in as many submissions as you like, one per email please.  Here's Amy and Dana's Fire Cider faces, show us yours!! [caption id="attachment_637" align="aligncenter" width="538"] Hurts so good![/caption]