WAKEFIELD — First, a big thank you to all who helped make our opening day a resounding success with record-breaking attendance! With good weather expected, two new vendors, and some really great live music, the 2nd market day of our season is shaping up to be another wonderful event. The Wakefield Farmers Market takes place at Hall Park on the shores of Lake Quannapowitt each Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. from June 20 through October 17, 2015.
Be sure to give a warm welcome to new vendors Aaronap Cellars and Hiller’s Silver Studio. Aaronap Cellars is a micro-winery located in Westford, MA that focuses on producing small volume, innovative, artisanal wines from the best vineyards and orchards in New England and beyond. From Chardonnay to Malbec, to their unique Forest Gold Maple Wine, this local winery is quite a find. Tasting is available.
Hailing from right here in Wakefield, we welcome Greg Hiller of Hiller’s Silver Studio, who transforms silver sheets and wire and hand cut & polished stones, rocks & minerals into fine jewelry. Click the vendor name on the About Our Vendor page on our website for pictures.
For live music, we are excited to have the Los Sugar Kings Duo featuring Patino Vazquez and Dan Abreu, the latter a new resident of Wakefield. The two are part of Los Sugar Kings, a Boston-based Cuban Roots, Rock & Reggae Fusion quartet who write, record, and perform across the North-East United States and are 2015 New England Music Award Winners. This should be quite a treat!
We will be reviving our “Music and Arts in Wakefield” bulletin board this week, and have some events ready to post, but feel free to stop by the Market Manager Tent with brochures, or email an electronic version to wakefieldfarmersmarket@gmail.com.
As always, we will have Yarrow twisting balloons, and we sure hope that magician Derek Dubois will be back. Both were quite busy last week bringing many smiles of wonder. We will of course also have hula hoops, sidewalk chalk, and jump ropes on hand for kids of all ages. If you are interested in organizing a chalk drawing or hula hoop contest or exhibition, let us know!
Three Important Farmer Notes:
1) We are expecting Flats Mentor Farm, with their superb Asian greens and herbs, to start this week. Once totally confirmed it will be posted on Facebook, and Twitter and will be included in the Friday email newsletter and blog post.
2) Due to some positive growth challenges, Lilac Hedge Farm will be coming every other week this year. They will NOT be here THIS week but will be back on July 4. They hope to be back on a weekly basis next season.
3) Kelly’s Farm is with us, but Mary and Greg of Kelly’s Farm have retired from doing farmers markets. They send a big thank you to all of us for being so nice! Be sure to give a kind welcome to the new Kelly’s Farm folks.
Now, here’s what you’ve been waiting for – this week’s vendors!
As the season progresses, Farmer Dave’s, Kelly’s Farm, and Charlton Orchards will have a growing assortment of freshly picked vegetables and berries, with Charlton Orchards also offering pasture-raised beef, eggs, and wine made from their orchard fruits. Note: the Market Manager would like to give a special shout-out to the Charlton’s fruit wines – they are luscious!
Copicut Farms will have fresh chicken and eggs, pasture-raised on their farm in Dartmouth, and West River Creamery will have a lovely assortment of excellent cow and goat cheeses made from milk from pasture-raised herds.
Swiss Bakers will be on hand – look for them in their new spot along the lakeside part of the market. At least, that is the plan as of press time. In any case, they will be with us! The Popover Lady will be here, most likely with co-baker JayMacNevin manning the tent, and Goodies Homeade will have the best cookies around. Also on board are Mamadou’s Artisan Bakery, Fior D’Italia, The Fish Lady, Vermont Gourmet Candy Dish, and The Roasted Granola, who also sells locally made yogurt – perfect for breakfast by the lake. And, Coutt’s Specialty Foods (Mother’s Pure Preserves) will be here for their first biweekly visit.
As noted above, we are welcoming Aaronap Cellers this Saturday for their first biweekly visit, and, as always, Pour Man’s Coffee will have the finest of hot and cold beverages, including Fair Trade coffee, teas, concoctions from fresh in-season fruits, and unique and totally delicious baked treats. You can also buy their special blend of Fair Trade coffee beans from Dean’s Beans at their tent.
All About Corks is here this week, with really unique and lovely decorations, Kittredge Candles (always a favorite!) will be here, and, as noted, Hiller’s Silver Studio will be part of the artisan lineup this week. Kaleidoscope Soap and Wicked Good Soap will be on hand, as well. Be sure to check out Wick Good Soap’s scented and unscented Lotion Bars. This new product puts soothing lotion in a handy applicator so you can just apply the moisturizer without getting your hands all messy.
To round things off, local authors Doug Heath and Alison Simcox are back this year to sell the books they have authored about local landmarks, including Lake Quannapowitt, Breakheart Reservation, and their newest about Middlesex Fells.
Don’t forget: Our market accepts both SNAP/EBT and credit/debit cards in exchange for Market Bucks, and will again be matching SNAP purchases up to $10 in Market Bucks per visit so that everyone can afford to get fresh and healthy foods at our market. WIC and Senior Farmers Market Coupons, coming out in August, are also accepted directly by our farmers.
WE ARE HERE ON JULY 4th! We will be sure to put back any parade placeholder chairs that we may need to temporarily move a bit during the market day. Also – all children’s parade contestants are invited to stop by the market before or after their event to show us their creations and get entered into a drawing for $25 in Market Bucks to share with their family.
Miss Holly will be back next week (YAY!) with the first of her creative cooking demonstrations and we will have singer-songwriter Amy Spillert providing live music to shop by.
Stay tuned for news and updates every Friday in this spot throughout the market season. There is much more to come!
The Wakefield Farmers Market runs RAIN OR SHINE (except in dangerous weather, e.g. lightening or hurricane conditions). The market opens at 9:00 a.m. and closes at 1:00 p.m. every Saturday starting June 20 through October 17, 2015. Please visit www.wakefieldfarmersmarket.org for a current listing of vendors and upcoming events and to sign up for our email newsletter. You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter. See you at the Market!
Published in the June 26, 2015 edition.
