Josh Kilmer-Purcell's Blog, page 71

If the Hall Could Talk

 

The “flagship” in naval terms was the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the first, largest, fastest, most heavily armed, or best known and usually carried the admiral’s flag.

The building that is now the home of the flagship Beekman 1802 Mercantile is an integral part of Main Street in Sharon Springs.

Built circa 1850, the Italianate structure was originally located several blocks north near the intersection of Pavilion and Main Streets where it operated as a mercantile. In 1894, the Village purchased the building and moved it to its present location just across the street from The American Hotel.

During the 20th Century many shared the space: the basement was the Village jail until 1915; the community used the upstairs for town hall meetings, dances, and dinners; the Sharon Springs Free Library [the very first library in Schoharie county] moved into the downstairs back room in 1910; and the Fire Department housed its trucks in the front of the building until 1964.  After the fire trucks moved to new quarters, the Library expanded its space and the Village offices took over the rest.  Most recently it was an art gallery.

The building is on the New York State’s Register of Historic Places and the National Register.

At Beekman 1802, understanding history is important to us.  It’s involved in every story we tell and every product we design.  But just as important as understanding history is making history.

When deciding where to invest in creating a flagship store, there was no question that it would be on the same Main Street where we first started, where William Beekman first established his original Mercantile over 200 years ago. The contemporaries that we looked to for inspiration were companies like Kohler, Vermont Country Store, Orvis, LL Bean and Stonewall Kitchen all of whom started in small, out-of-the-way places and even as they grew remained committed to those communities.

Now those stores serve as tourist draws to those communities, and with more tourist traffic comes more resources for every other business in those small towns.

We promise that our flagship will always have something that will delight, that will inspire, and that will enchant.

And as any flagship should, we hope that it will guide you to Sharon Springs time and time again.

 

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Until you can make it to Sharon Springs, you can visit our online shop by clicking here.

 

5 Beautiful Things

 

Advanced Style

At some pint in our lives, we all decide how we’re going to age. Are we the ‘nip-tuck’ variety or the ‘au-naturel’ type? Do we prize the experience that comes with age while maintaining good health, good relationships and a positive outlook, or do we feel betrayed by every wrinkle, every ache and every rotation of the clock’s tireless hands as youth slips through our fingers?

The subject of aging has been very much on my mind lately. With the recent passing of a dear aunt and three of my most beloved relatives now in their 90s, the inevitability of time has been made very apparent to me. Even my parents – both now in their 60s – don’t have the stamina they once had.

I’ve turned to some very inspiring literature and photography lately that celebrates the process of aging and that’s what this week’s post is all about: growing old with vitality, individualism and personality. One of the sources I love most is a blog called Advanced Style. Created by Ari Seth Cohen, a thirtysomething New Yorker, the blog is an archive of the most stylish older women the city showcases on its streets on a daily basis. From socialites to former models, from writers to editors, as well as ordinary women on their way to the flower market, the women here possess a truly individualistic joie-de-vivre that comes through in their fashion choices and, by extension, their confidence. Below are five photos of some exceptionally well-aged beauties. From top to bottom they are Iris Apfel, former model Carmen Dell’orefice, Rita Marcus (an 81 year-old blogger), Anna Piaggi (the recently deceased fashion writer for Italian Vogue) and former model Tziporah Salamon. In a culture obsessed with youth, it is deeply gratifying to know that life doesn’t end after 50. The glint of sharp awareness in the eyes of these women and their uncompromising style prove it.

As a side note, I would also like to recommend the latest book by Martha Stewart. It is called Living The Good Long Life and Dr. Brent was instrumental in its production. (He is featured several times in the book.) I have read the book cover to cover and have taken its timeless advice to heart. Martha has been one of my role models for decades and at age 71 she is even more inspiring to me. You can order the book here.

 

Summer Giveaway!

 

 

Summer makes you want to kick OFF your heels and kick UP your heels, and we wanted to kelp you do both with our first giveaway of the season.

This summer we are trading in our muck boots for a pair of Soludos, and you can too.  It’s as close to walking barefoot that you can get.

Enter your favorite tip for summer entertaining in the comments section below and you could win a pair of Soludos for each member of your household (limit 10)

Winners will be chosen at random on June 11.

Learn more about Soludos by clicking here

 

Tell us your best summer entertaining tip below!

Gartending: The Family Reunion

 

The Family Reunion Cocktail

The Family Reunion cocktail reminds Klaus of a recent trip to the store named Porcsalt.  Porcsalt is a lovely shop in New Jersey that specializes in pork that is cured with, you guessed it, salt.

Klaus is very fond of salt cured pork products.  The remind him of the old country.  Upon his entrance to Porcsalt, Klaus saw a series of his family members from Germany.  They had many stories to tell Klaus about how they missed his unusually strong cocktails.  Uncle Hans and Cousin Franz told Klaus about the vast, iced punch bowls made with certain intoxicating liquors that caused Aunt Hermine to nearly fall down the stone well.  And how there was a historic punch made with vodka as the base that made her giggle and dance while singing, really belting Hank Williams songs out loud.  That is how she almost lost her balance in front of the deep well.   Uncle Hans thought it was very funny how her bloomers came up as she fluttered over the side of the well and how they all sat down afterwards and had several more glasses of this potent punch.

Cousin Franz busied himself with the herb garden while the punch was being assembled.  He took fresh lemon thyme leaf and rolled them into some raw honey syrup, then dipped the sticky leaves into brown sugar.  That’s raw honey mixed with boiling water until a light syrup forms, dipping the tender leaves into dark, caramelized sugar.. mmmm it makes a fabulous garnish he said in his broken English.  He then prepared the punch bowl for the adults by adding a large cube of ice, chilling it to a nice frosty demeanor.  Seizing the opportunity to get everyone in the household smashed for the family reunion, Cousin Franz added a large portion of vodka.  He had a hankering for vodka made in the old German method of using raw honey as the base.  Cousin Franz is very fond of this vodka from his friend Todd Hardie who owns Barr Hill Distillery in Vermont.  He also is very fond of those perfect little strawberries that only seem to pop out of the ground long enough to be warmed ever so slightly by the sunshine before being plucked by his little ceramic hands.  The strawberries are usually eaten before they get to the punch bowl but in this case the watchful eye of Brother Heinz was observing every motion of picking then placing the sweet fruits into a basket where they glistened with the cool morning dew.

Klaus was salivating at the thought of a cool and fizzy punch that he enjoyed today made by Cousin Rebecca while snacking on cured meats from PorcSalt. It was comprised of delicate Blanco Tequila with baby strawberries pureed then added to an ISI seltzer where they underwent a further addition of fizzy to sweet.  Now Cousin Rebecca said that this ISI seltzer charger is good for making a couple cocktails at a time served in small bottles for personal consumption.  Klaus doesn’t usually like small bottles of anything.  He is a punch bowl kind of gnome who likes to drink until he becomes, yes… soused.

The Family Reunion Punch is to getting swilled as darkness is to blissful sleep.  Yes you can drink this punch in large portions, but I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this type of behavior.  Klaus is good at drinking large quantities of intoxicants on a regular basis- but that’s what he is, a drinking gnome.  He rose out of the garden soil to enlighten us with his persuasive nature and wry ceramic smile.  Why does he have that flask in his arms?  What is this supposed to teach us?

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The Family Reunion Punch- will serve as many as you think.. or fewer if you are really thirsty.

Ingredients:

Put a Hank Williams record on the stereo- or click here: http://archive.org/details/HankWilliams-01-188  (in the public domain of course!)

1 bottle Barr Hill Vodka (distilled from raw honey)

2 quarts freshly squeezed orange juice

1 quart freshly squeezed lime juice

2 bottles Cava or Prosecco

1 750 ml. bottle Pomegranite juice

2 pints absolutely fresh organic strawberries (like from Driscoll’s- lightly toasted in a cast iron pan, then pureed

Bottle of Perrier Pink Grapefruit Sparkling Natural Mineral Water

Dashes of Angostura bitters to taste

Lemon Thyme, rolled in sticky honey then dipped in brown sugar for the garnish

 

Preparation:  Get that Hank Williams cranking on the stereo

Place some large cubes of Mavea “Inspired Water” ice cubes in a punch bowl (your ice is essential, use the very best you can make!)

Add a bottle (1 pint size) Frutations Rio Red Grapefruit Syrup- Pretty darned fantastic stuff, it’s a plump, exotic and aromatic grapefruit packed into each sip!

Add 1 750 ml. bottle of Perrier Sparkling Natural Mineral Water in Pink Grapefruit to the punch bowl

Add the freshly squeezed juices

Add the Cava or Prosecco

Add the bitters to taste

Check for sweetness, then….

Add the pureed strawberries and mix!

Garnish each glass with a few sugar coated lemon thyme sprigs

Use a coupe glass for this cocktail.  Sort of like an old fashioned champagne glass in shape!

 

Celebrate the family reunion with Klaus and his kindred family!!! 

Have any funny family reunion stories of your own to share?  Tell them in the comments section below

 

 

 

The Chatter for May

 

We’ve lobbied really hard for Garrison Keillor to give up life in Lake Wobegone and move to Sharon Springs, but thus far he has not answered our letters or returned our calls.

Sharon Springs has beautiful people and above-average children, too, so on to Plan B.

What is a small town village without a small town paper to keep track of what everyone is doing?

Nancy Pfau, the town historian, is now editor of our own little paper.

Each month you can check back here for a new issue and follow the lives of the real village people. If you pay a real visit, you may even want to submit a story idea of your own!

You may not live in small town, but at least you can pretend.

See below for the May 2013 Issue

 

The Chatter for May 2013

5 Beautiful Things

 

 

Amy Friend

Like all photographers, Amy Friend requires the benefits of light to create her art. Photography cannot exist without it. Her series “Dare all Luce” (an Italian phrase used to describe the moment of birth) examines the very literal – but also transcendental – effect of light in photography. By manipulating old photographs with pin holes and then reshooting them in front of a bright light source, Amy reinvents them, giving them new energy and a new life. I love the magical effect her technique creates – the shimmer of a soul in a frozen image. Visit her website to learn more about her work.

All photographs by Amy Friend

 

Andrew Ritchie is the creator of Martha Moments, a blog devoted Martha-Stewart related content and her community of supporters. He lives and works in Toronto, Canada, and has been a longtime friend of Brent & Josh, Beekman 1802 and Sharon Springs. Each week he’ll scour the world (wide web) to find the 5 most beautiful things to inspire you. Follow Andrew on Pinterest.

 

 

 

5 Beautiful Things

 

Decorating Details at The Beekman

I spent this last weekend in beautiful Sharon Springs with some friends of mine and had a chance to catch up with Brent and Josh at their home. On this occasion, I made it a point to really look at some of the details they have used in their decor – and to photograph them for posterity. Ever the busy farmers, Brent and Josh let me explore the house while they tended to their many outdoor chores. It was quiet as I ventured through storied halls of the Beekman, letting my mind wander and my eye fall upon some of the subtle elements that give the rooms their quiet elegance. When you’re decorating your own spaces, always be mindful of the smaller things that can help a room attain its welcoming atmosphere: the pattern of lace against the light, the shine and shadow of damask, the embroidery on an heirloom coverlet or a treasured painting. Below are five of my photographs from my visit to their home.

All photos by Andrew Ritchie

Take a look around your house today and find 5 Beautiful Things you’ve been overlooking.

Gone Fishin’

 

“Why Fly Fishing?” 

Choosing Fly Fishing as a sport and lifestyle

By JP Ross, JP Ross Fly Rods & Co.

 

So what makes fly fishing so fabulous? Is it the mystery and romance? Is it the majesty? Is it the sense of honoring a tradition? Or is it because it’s like joining a secret club? It’s all of these things, yet the simplest answer is the best.  Fly fishing is just really fun to do.  It’s calming, helps you notice things about nature that you never noticed before, and you love to learn, you’ll love to learn how to fly fish.

Royal fishing? Fly fishing actually dates all the way back to the early Egyptians. Feathers and fur were tied to a hook and used to catch fish in the Nile River. It wasn’t until the Europeans started to fish for trout that fly fishing was considered sport. The early fishing in Europe was considered Royal fishing.  Only kings and the highest levels of society could fish for trout. Commoners were only allowed to catch what were called course fish, like perch and white fish.  Of course today, millions of people from all walks of life, embrace this wonderful sport and all the fabulous rewards it brings with it.

People are romantic about fly fishing! Several years ago, the famous Robert Redford movie “A River Runs Through It” sparked an unprecedented influx of novices into the sport and lifestyle of fly fishing. Today, fly fishing is experiencing another renaissance.  The fastest growing devotees to the sport are women.  Women have a knack for casting, plain and simple.  And most of us love what comes naturally to us.  Spending part of your week on a local river or stream, you quickly achieve a sense of self, a oneness with Mother Nature.  It’s a unique relaxation that comes only with immersing yourself in your backyard’s aquatic glory, fly rod in-hand.

What exactly is fly fishing and how does it work?   Fly fishing is the act of casting a fly that’s very light weight. In conventional fishing you cast a lure and it’s the weight of the lure that pulls the line out of the reel. In fly fishing you cast the line and it’s the line that carries the fly through the air and presents it to your dream fish.  The fly’s too light to pull the line like a harpoon.  You have to throw the line instead.  That’s the iconic action, the graceful line through the air you see, that so many of us associate with fly fishing.

Keeping it simple.  The gear that you use for fly fishing doesn’t have to be complicated.  It just has to be balanced. The fly line has to match the rod, and the reel has to balance the rod.  Once you do that everything works out well.  The type of line you choose, “line weight,” correlates to the type of fish you desire to catch that day, just as in traditional fishing.  Little pan fish require a light weight medium line, whereas fishing for trout you’ll want to use a “five weight.”  To catch bass you’ll have to throw a bigger fly… which means you need bigger fly line.  For bass a “six or seven” line weight will carry the day.  Learning and adapting to these nuances of fly fishing is great fun, and one of the most rewarding senses of accomplishment as you grow with the sport!

Not many people realize you can also Fly fish for species like carp, sharks or other saltwater species. Some people even catch Marlin and swordfish on the fly.  Those anglers will use a rod that is custom-made and is usually a 12 weight or higher, with rods that are extremely stiff and strong.

Just add water.  For the area around Beekman 1802, or what’s considered the Mohawk Valley, we mostly have trout, pan fish, and smallmouth bass. Beekman’s Badger Hackle fly rod is specially designed by JP Ross Fly Rods & Co. as an all-around, easy-to-use, great fly rod for all types of fish.  As an eight and a half foot fly rod, the Badger Hackle suits most environments from small streams to ponds, to rivers and lakes… so “Just add water!”

 

Who is Badger Hackle?  Learn more here

 

Gartending: The Early Bird

 

Oh Klaus.  Just the very mention of travel and he’s in got his suitcase packed and the plane tickets ready.  A trip to Florida brings his little terra-cotta mind to all things citrus related.  But what goes best with citrus fruits?  Of course Florida travel where Florida citrus just tastes better than any other place around.

Klaus loves fresh juices in all his cocktails and wouldn’t it be funny if he started requesting fresh juices everywhere he goes?

Well he does.  And it makes some bartenders very nervous, especially the ones who aren’t on a fresh juice program.  There is a big difference in flavor between using fresh juices and reconstituted liquids from a powder.  Klaus says NO WAY and I know he is correct.  There just is no substitute for freshly squeezed.

One of the things that Klaus taught me down in Florida is the importance of the best Tequila.  And what brand does Klaus enjoy over all others?  Well, that is a tough question to be certain.  Some days Klaus loves the USDA Certified Organic Casa Noble.  Others he prefers the crisp and aromatic Tequila Cabeza from the 86 Company.  But this time when Klaus was down in Florida, all Klaus wanted was the extremely expressive Tecnico Anejo Tequila.  This Tequila is 100% pure Agave and it’s Spectacular Tequila Elaborated which means that this Tequila is the very best of its own distinctive style.

 

The Blue Agaves

The elaboration of Rudo and Tecnico tequilas begins with cultivation of blue agaves. Blue agaves, used in production of our tequilas, are grown in the Highlands of Jalisco, the area known as “Los Altos”. Aficionados of the drink believe that Los Altos is the best region for the cultivation of blue agave. Thanks to the high altitudes of Los Altos above sea level, these agave plants take much more time to grow to full maturity than the plants grown in the plains, and since it takes more time these plants consolidate more agave flavors, which they later impart to the final tequila. In addition, blue agave plants, that are grown in the Highlands, often have more sweet fruit flavor and more pronounced vegan notes, which enrich the tequila’s taste.

 

Seven Steps to Victory

Elaboration of tequila is a seven-step process:

Harvesting of Blue Agave hearts
Cooking
Shredding and extracting of juices
Fermenting
Distilling
Aging (Reposado and Anejo types) of tequila in the barrels
Bottling

The results of this long and labor-intensive process depend on a distillery’s closely guarded “know-how” and how closely the producer follows the traditions of tequila-making.

 

The Harvest

Planting, tending and harvesting the agave plant remains a manual effort, unchanged by modern technologies, and stretching back hundreds of years. Agave plants take about 7 to 9 years to be ready for use. At the peak of its maturity, the blue agave consolidates the maximum amount of flavorful sugars. The men who harvest it, the “jimadores”, possess generations of knowledge about the plants. The jimadores cut the stems off with the “coa” knife (similar to a machete, but with the rounded point), and harvest the “heart” of the agave, which looks like a pineapple (that is why we call it “piña”, which means pineapple). An agave “piña” can weigh up to 180 pounds (normally, it weights around 100 to 135 pounds). These hearts of the agave are used to produce tequila.

 

Doing it right the hard way

The elaboration process continues with the cooking and grinding of the agave hearts. The cooking can be performed either in the traditional masonry ovens or in stainless steel autoclaves. The cooking period is longer in masonry ovens (48 hours) than in autoclaves (12 hours). The purpose of this stage is to convert agave nectar into sugars which are easy to ferment. While autoclaves are cheaper and faster, they fail to properly convert nectar into flavorful sugars that causes the tequila to have the harsh taste. We slow-bake our blue agaves according to the traditional method, in stone ovens called “hornos”.  This method ensures that the sugars are properly cooked and not caramelized. Once agaves are cooked to perfection, they are shredded and juices are extracted.

We use the juice from the first pressing of the baked agaves only, and then slowly ferment the “mosto”, a process that requires approximately 72-96 hours, to transform the sugars into alcohol. In an effort to reduce costs and speed up production, many other producers use commercial yeast to jump-start fermentation. No such short cuts are practiced to make Rudo and Tecnico tequilas.

 

Aging Well

The fermented product is double distilled to produce clear tequila called Blanco. While Blanco does not require aging, Reposado and Anejo must mature in casks before consumption. As with other spirits that are aged in casks tequila takes on the flavors of the wood, while the harshness of the alcohol mellows. We age our tequila in white oak barrels, previously used for bourbon production. Reposado takes 4 months to mature at minimum and Anejo -18 months.

The closer a distillery follows traditional artisanal methods of tequila production, the better is the final result – taste and flavor of the beverage. The distillers, or “cooks” carefully preserve the secrets of production, which are passed from generation to generation.

 

Klaus is VERY fond of Rudo Tecnico Tequila and he created a signature cocktail for Beekman 1802 house.

Maybe it will become the house drink for the summer?

Klaus would be honored.  I think he’d like me to cut to the chase and share that cocktail already!

 

The White Room Cocktail uses Tenico Anejo Tequila.  If you cannot get this Tequila, I recommend the Arrogante Anejo. Both are produced by the same distillery.  Both are luscious and spiked with salt air and sweet honey from the Agave fruit.  Both are eminently delicious and very easy to drink.  And yes, both are so pure that hangovers seem to be a thing of the past.

 

The White Room Cocktail

Ingredients:  Klaus tested for purity and strength.   Will serve three comfortably.

 

3 Collins glasses washed with Barr Hill Gin (from the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont)

5 oz. Tecnico Anejo Tequila or your choice of Anejo Tequila

2 oz. Freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

2 oz. Freshly squeezed lime juice

1 oz. Freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 oz. Agave Syrup

3 oz. Perrier Sparkling Natural Mineral Water (Lemon)

Peychaud’s bitters

“Inspired Water” from my Mavea filtration pitcher infused with lime zest and frozen

 

Preparation:

To a Boston Shaker fill ¾ with regular bar ice

Add the Tequila and the juices

Add the Agave Syrup

Close up and shake for 15 seconds

Add the lime zest infused ice cubes to a couple Collins glasses that you washed out with Barr Hill Gin first

Pour the Tequila mixture over the cubes

Shake a couple drops of the Peychaud’s bitters over the top

Finish with a couple ounces of the Perrier Sparkling Natural Mineral Water to finish

Garnish with a grapefruit zest if you can get one for each glass

 

 

 

 

 

 

5 Beautiful Things

 

 

A Mother’s Stories Made Real

When Kirsty Mitchell’s mother died of brain cancer in 2008, the 34 year-old designer and photographer found comfort in the memory of her mother’s elaborate childhood fairytales. The English teacher and writer had dreamed up fantastical tales of forest-dwelling princesses and enchanted nymphs, which she would often recite to young Kirsty before bedtime.

To help channel her grief over the loss of her mother, Kirsty turned to her photography and vowed to bring her mother’s stories to life through her lens. Collaborating with costume designer and make-up artist Elbie Van Eeden, and using locations that were only a short drive from her childhood home in Surrey, UK, Kirsty developed a series of stunning portraits to honor her mother’s memory. Her Wonderland series will soon be an exhibit and there is a book of her prints in the works.

“I just know that the day I see my mother’s name printed on the inside cover of the Wonderland book, it will feel like I have finally fulfilled my promise to myself and her precious memory.”

In celebration of Mother’s Day and the beauty and intangible magic of a mother’s heart, here are five of Kristy’s stunning photographic tributes to her mother’s fairytales.

To see more of Kirsty’s Wonderland series, click here.

 

Do you remember any stories your mom told you?  Share them in the comments section below.