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EDITOR’S NOTE: Lange reports ramps are already being harvested.
“Foraging season is gonna be weird.”
That’s what Jason Lange says. He’s the owner and chef of Market Table Bistro and the grower behind Fairbrook Farm, where he lives with his wife, Rebecca Dudley (who also runs the restaurant).
He’ll be harvesting nettles tomorrow morning to turn the wild plant into a pesto served over sweet potato gnocchi.
Other goings-on from his Lovettsville forest farm: He tapped maple trees last week and will reduce the sap down to a simple syrup for drinks and is using oyster and shiitake mushroom spores to inoculate logs to create a natural, though controlled, mushroom habitat.
But what are we really after here? Ramps. Because of the unusually warm winter, Lange predicts “we’ll probably see ramps in a week and a half.” Spring is here.
Also, Sterling’s Colada Shop debuts happy hour today with Cuban-inspired drinks like the peanut buttery Manicero Negroni, named after peanut street vendors. And for those keeping track of the booming booze business in Virginia, the industry just won a legislative victory: Distilleries (like breweries and wineries) can now sell bottles at festivals and events starting this summer. For more on the newly formed Virginia Distillers Association, check out this interview with its executive director.
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