The Last Green Valley Announces “Best of Tastes of the Valley” Winners

The Last Green Valley, Inc. (TLGV) held its 11^th Annual Tastes of the Valley feast and fundraiser on Sunday, September 18, at The Mansion at Bald Hill in Woodstock, CT. The event celebrates locally-grown foods while raising funds for the National Heritage Corridor. Each year, local restaurants prepare tasting portions of delicious menu items using food and beverages grown and produced in The Last Green Valley.

For the fourth year in a row, participants voted for Bella’s Bistro from Putnam, CT, as the “Best Cuisine of the 2016 Tastes of the Valley,” for its Rustic Italian Meatball made using products from 18th-Century Purity Farm, Bigelow Brook Farm, Chase Road Growers, Couet Farm & Fromagerie, Ekonk Hill Turkey Farm, Good Bug Gardens, Hart’s Greenhouse & Florist,  Lapsley Orchard, New Boston Beef, Taylor Brooke Winery, Turtle Ledge Farm, and UConn Spring Valley Student Farm.

The “Best Beverage” competition was won by Ben’s Beans of Putnam, CT. Ben’s Beans served Sumatra Dark Roast, Guatemala Light Roast, and Peru Decaf and used products from the Farmer’s Cow.

New this year, Chefs Allen and Carolyn Granberg of Bella’s Bistro were given the honor of choosing a “Chef’s Choice” winner and picked 85 Main from Putnam, CT for its Ginger Five-Spiced Beef with Steamed Buns, Bok Choy Slaw, and Apple & Currant Hoisin. 85 Main incorporated products from Devon Point Farm, Lapsley Orchard, and Maple Lane Farm.

Thank you to all of the other fine restaurants, beverage providers, and farms that contributed to this event, including:  Baffoni’s Poultry Farm/The Chicken Lady, Beltane Farm, Black Pond Brews, Blackmer Farm, Buell’s Orchard, Cafemantic, Cloverleigh Farm, Creamery Brook Bison, Grill 37, Hosmer Mountain Soda, Marty’s of Dudley, Mountain Dairy, Palazzi Orchard, Publick House Historic Inn, Roots Down, Sharpe Hill Vineyard, Simply Fresh Solutions, The Inn at Woodstock Hill, The Mansion at Bald Hill, These Guys Brewing Company, The Vanilla Bean Café, The Vienna Restaurant, Wayne’s Organic Garden, We-Li-Kit Farm, Westford Hill Distillers, Willimantic Brewing Company, Woodstock Farms, and Woodstock Sustainable Farms.

TLGV raised more than $25,000 to support its programs and new endowment funds, in large part due to its generous sponsors:  Platinum Level – Fiberoptics Technology Inc., Rebecca Harvey, Savers Bank, and UNFI Helping Hands; Gold Level – Keith & Elaine Knowlton, Putnam Bank, and Savings Institute; Silver Level – Sara DiIorio, Southbridge Savings Bank, and Titan Energy; Bronze Level – CNB a division of bank ESB, Gerardi Insurance, Hull Forest Products, Jewett City Savings Bank, Village Electric, and Weiss & Hale Financial.

The Last Green Valley is a National Heritage Corridor – the last stretch of dark night sky in the coastal sprawl between Boston and Washington, D.C.  A dynamic nonprofit organization, TLGV works for you in the National Heritage Corridor.  We help you to care for it, enjoy it, and pass it on!