Category Archives: local business

Winery Wordless Wednesday

I’m really liking the idea of Wordless Wednesday, although I am probably one of the least wordless people on the planet.  I mean, I’ll be honest, I LOVE words!  I love to talk!  I love to write!  But today, I just want to post something quickly and and go to bed early.  So this is kind of a Preview of Coming Attractions about the blog post I intend to write about Prospect Falls Winery.  I’ll post the pictures today and the words… subsequently (I can’t promise tomorrow; I have the read-through for Steel Magnolias!)

 

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It was easy to get a space at the tasting bar the day we were there.

Oh, I can’t just put the pictures, can I?  I have to have some words.  Anyways, Steven and I were at Prospect Falls Winery last Wednesday with my sister Cheryl and our friend Penny.  Steven and I tasted a few wines, and we spent some time walking around looking at the wines and other things for sale.

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I wish I had gotten a better shot of the wall hanging.

 

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Love the Adirondack lamps!

 

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The bundles are vintage Readers Digests.

Prospect Falls Winery is located at 400 Academy St., Prospect Falls, NY,  (315) 205-4045.  They are open Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m.to 6 p.m., Sunday from noon to six.  For more information, you can visit their website at http://www.prospectfallswinery.com/.  You can also Like them on Facebook.

 

 

I Got My Drugs

Wednesday I did some Christmas shopping after work .  Only I don’t want to write about it, because I don’t want anybody guessing what I got them for Christmas or — even worse — getting their hopes up for something I didn’t get them.  However, I can mention one stop I made:  the Medicine Shoppe in Ilion, NY.

I had two prescriptions to pick up.  My doctor had sent one over after a telephone consultation.  The other was a refill I had called in this morning, using their handy automated service.  I shan’t say anything more about them, though, because, you know, HIPPA.

Since the new prescription had been the result of a phone thing, I still had a couple of questions (even when it’s not over the phone, I still don’t think of all my questions at the time).  When the lady checking me out asked if I had questions for the pharmacist, I said yes.  The pharmacist was extremely helpful and very nice.  They have a discreet little area to sit for consultations, so I did not have to worry about anybody hearing my business (they are probably not interested anyways, but you never know).

I was, as always, pleased with my transaction.  I heartily recommend the Medicine Shoppe in Ilion to anyone in the area in need of a pharmacist’s services.  I don’t think I am losing my Mohawk Valley Girl cred to say so, either, because Medicine Shoppe is a franchise. This one is locally owned and operated.  They are located at 10 Central Ave., Ilion, phone number 315-894-7283.

 

I Did NOT Get a Christmas Present!

Today after leaving work, I stopped by the Ilion Farmer’s Market at Clapsaddle Farm on Otsego Street, in Ilion, NY.   I was looking for… well, never mind what I was looking for.  It was NOT a Christmas present.  All I purchased was… never mind.  It’s not important.  It was NOT a Christmas present.

Folk artist Jim Parker, who owns Clapsaddle Farm and runs the farmers’ market, was the only one there.  He said he sent the vendors home, because it was too cold for them.  He was sticking close to the wood stove himself.  I did not take too look with my shopping.

I looked over the display of prints from postcards made by Ellen Clapsaddle many years ago.  I also looked over the Jim Parker prints.  I discovered a new one, of the back of a couple of buildings overlooking the canal.  I know exactly where that building is.  I love it!  I complimented Jim on it.

He said he had enjoyed painting it and there was a story behind it.  He painted the buildings in hopes that somebody would see the picture, get inspired, and restore the buildings.  Both buildings have been purchased and are being fully restored.  Jim confessed that he didn’t know if it was the painting that had inspired it, but…

“It didn’t hurt,” I said.

I love that little farmers’ market, and I love Jim Parkers’ art.  They are open Fridays and Saturdays year round at 437 Otsego St., Rt. 51 South, in Ilion.  For more information, you can visit their Facebook page, Parker’s Historic Cider Mill and Farmers Market.

 

Hurry In Fast!

You know what’s a real bummer?  Finding a fun new shop, then finding out they are closing soon!  I guess to write a blog post about this is not totally fun, as my subhead promises, but since local readers still have a chance to check out The Rose Quartz Stand, I thought I would go ahead and write it.

The Rose Quartz Stand is a gem and mineral store located at 105 Mohawk St. in Herkimer, NY.  I only recently stopped by, and I liked it a lot.  They have all kinds of stones, rocks and gems.  Some are polished, some are carved, some are just there, all kinds of colors, shapes and sizes.  There is also a nice selection of jewelry, stuffed toys and other items.

I was particularly fascinated by some fossils.  I asked if they were real fossils or if somebody had carved the fish skeletons on the rocks.  I thought it was marvelous that they were real fossils, although I guess it would have been some highly skilled carving if they were fakes.

The proprietors, George and Sandra Drobot, also go around to gem and mineral shows.  I said I preferred a store, because I can’t always make up my mind what to purchase right way.

I wanted to write an article about the place for Mohawk Valley Living magazine.  With that in mind, I stopped back this afternoon.  As I was chatting with Mrs. Drobot, she mentioned they were closing soon.  I felt so bad!  They will continue to do shows, and they have a website and Facebook page.  I encourage any local readers who likes this sort of thing to check out the Rose Quartz Stand while they are still here.  They should be around till Christmas Eve, so you can get a Christmas present for the gem-loving person on your list.

Their website is www.therosequartzstand.com. You can also Like them on Facebook.

 

My Cheesy Saturday Stop

One of my favorite stops on Shop Small Saturday was Original Herkimer Cheese in Ilion, NY.  I had first tried Herkimer Cheese at a wine tasting at Ilion Wine and Spirits (just to plug another local business).  I was delighted to discover another local cheese maker.  I went home and Liked them on Facebook.  Fast forward to November 2016, when I learned they were having a Holiday Open House.

It was not hard to find the place, out Otsego Street a little beyond Ilion Farmer’s Market (another favorite destination).  I walked in to find several people enjoying free samples and chatting.  I happily tried some Chutter and Cheddar as well as two kinds of cheese dip.

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Everybody enjoyed the samples.

One of the ladies working (I foolishly did not ask their names) said she would be happy to open anything else people wanted to try.  After looking in the cooler, I asked to sample the Asiago Bacon Horseradish dip.  Yummy!  I got some of that and some Buffalo Bleu Cheese dip. Just before turning away from the cooler, I noticed some garlic and herb cheese and grabbed that too.  I was sure I would like something called “garlic and herb” without sampling it first.

I looked around the room at some of the other wares for sale, especially noticing some mustard and crackers that looked good.

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I was very interested in the t-shirts that read “Keepin’ it Cheesy since 1949.”  I mentioned that I like to eat cheese and watch cheesy movies.  Everybody appreciated the double meaning.

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Maybe Steven will get me one for Christmas!

I was happy with my purchases and happy I discovered another good place to buy cheese. Original Herkimer Cheese is located at 2745 State Route 51, Ilion, NY 13357, phone number 315-895-7428.  For more information you can visit their website at www.OriginalHerkimerCheese.com.  Or you can stop by.  I saw on Facebook that they are hosting another open house on Saturday Dec. 3 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.  I might go there again myself!

Short Post on Shop Small Saturday

I pause in my Saturday festivities to make a blog post on Small Business Saturday, which follows the more flashy Black Friday.  Quite frankly, I am not inclined to shop on any Big Day, because I prefer to avoid crowds.  However, being Mohawk Valley Girl, as I am, I felt it would behoove me to get out and support a few of our wonderful Mohawk Valley entrepreneurs.

The sticky wicket was that I had a headache and was in kind of a poopy mood (not literally; don’t go yelling TMI at me).  Additionally, it was pouring rain.  I usually try not to let the weather bother me, but today I felt… dampened.   However, I got myself out the door shortly after 10 a.m. and headed to Little Falls.  There was a lot going on in Little Falls, because Little Falls is really good at these things, in addition to having many excellent local businesses.  My ambition to shop took a nosedive when as I got to Little Falls I remembered I had not taken the postcards and letter I wrote to the post office before I left Herkimer.  Damn!

I hate to admit it, but I only made it to the Community Co-op in Little Falls.   Sorry, Little Falls!  I’ll make it back one day soon, shop at lots of places and write a better blog post.

Driving back through Herkimer, I remembered that Original Herkimer Cheese in Ilion was having a Holiday Open House.  I managed to find it.  I sampled and purchased some cheese.  I must write a fuller blog post about that place.  Next I went to one of my all-time favorite places, Ilion Farmer’s Market at Clapsaddle Farm.  I had a great conversation with folk artist Jim Parker and bought some pickles and tomatoes.

By now I was in kind of a better mood, and it had stopped raining.  Driving back through Ilion I checked out Honey Brook Hobbies and Sweet Temptations, another place I must make a complete blog post about.  Then I made a stop at Ilion Wine & Spirits, another of my favorite places.  Heading back to Herkimer, I made one more stop at T & J’s Fruits and Vegetables.

So I did a lot, but I guess I’m not up for writing a lot about it.  In my defense, I spent some time working on the murder mystery I’m writing for Herkimer County Historical Society, so I’m not a complete bum.  Call me a partial bum, and have a nice Saturday.

Thankful No One Was Hurt

Oh dear!  Well, I had meant to write something quite different for a blog post, in fact had started something earlier.  However, I came home to find that something terribly upsetting had happened.  A local business burned down.

Ramar Liquor, which we have patronized numerous times, caught fire this afternoon.  Steven found out about it while it was happening, because he works at a nearby business.  Their parking lot was filled with smoke; you could even smell it in the store.  Customers told him they could see flames shooting up into the air.

Ramar was the first liquor store we knew about in Herkimer.  When we moved into the village, we realized our house was a comfortable walking distance from the store.  I believe I wrote a blog post about Walking with a Nefarious Purpose.  As recently as last month we took a stroll there on a Sunday afternoon.  It was a nice little family-run business.  I do spread my liquor dollar around (and try to give shout-outs to other stores as well), but Ramar’s was one I was always glad to patronize.

It was a great shock, therefore, when I arrived home this evening after a lovely Thanksgiving with family, and Steven asked had I heard about it. I had not.  I was surprised I had not, because I had looked at Facebook and I would expect people to post about such a thing.  After some looking, I found the WKTV video.

So I guess this is an odd post to make on Thanksgiving Day.  Then again, I did threaten a Non-Sequitur Thursday.  However, in the spirit of the day (Thanksgiving, I mean, not Non-Sequitur Thursday), I can think of one thing to be thankful for.  Hence, the headline.  Happy Thanksgiving, folks.

 

Wine on a Friday

It’s a late, lame post on Lame Post Friday.  Too bad I’ve already used that as a headline (or similar words; I can’t be bothered to look back through past posts).  In lieu of my usual random observations and half-baked philosophy, I shall give a brief shout-out to two businesses, one local one not too far away.  I went to a wine tasting of Thousand Islands Winery at Valley Wine and Liquor in Herkimer, NY.

Thousand Islands Winery is located in Alexandria Bay, NY.  I have been there a few times, and I love it.  I have also sampled their wines at various venues in this area, farmers markets, craft fairs and wine tasting events.  They are extremely popular and with good reason.  They offer a variety of wines to please different palates.  Additionally, the people pouring are always knowledgeable, friendly and helpful.  I enjoyed a great conversation with a very nice young man as I waiting for my friend, Kim, who was also coming to taste wine.

I tried waiting for Kim to sample something, but at last I succumbed to temptation and tried the Gewurztraminer (there should be two dots over the u).  It was tasty, but I like drier wines better, so I asked for a little Merlot.  Yum!  Then Kim showed up.  She forgave me for starting without her.  She likes sweet wines and greatly enjoyed the Niagara.  We both liked the Cocoa Island, a dessert wine that combines their Cabernet Sauvignon with chocolate.

We decided we would really like to visit the winery, which Kim has never been to.  I said there were several other wineries in the area that we could visit, so perhaps we should get rooms somewhere.  The young man doing the tasting said Thousand Islands Winery had cabins for rent.  We said, “Let’s go!!!”  I’ll write a blog post about it if we do.

Valley Wine and Liquor has tastings almost every week.  For a complete listing, you can visit their Facebook page.

Farmers in Little Falls

Last Saturday I took a drive into Little Falls to check out the Winter Farmers Market on its first weekend for the season.  I checked the Facebook page and noted that it was at 20 Albany St.  Now, regular reader may recall that I am not especially adept at getting around in Little Falls.  Local readers will understand why.  It is a hilly place with lots of one-way streets, some of which do not come out where I expect them to.  However, after a little driving back and forth, I saw the sign for the market in the parking lot of the Travellodge Inn and Suites.

Unfortunately, I did not get a picture of that sign, which might have been nice right there.  In my defense, I had not yet written that paragraph when I was there taking pictures.  Instead, I offer a picture of the Bull Moose Produce sign.

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The Bull Moose people were at the only outside table.  We’ve been having a pretty comfortable week, but Saturday was COLD (yes, it rates capital letters when you take into account that we are not all acclimated yet).

“We’re taking one for the team to let people know we’re here,” the man at the table told me.  I had to appreciate the dedication.  I was delighted to purchase some sweet peppers, their last of the season.

I went inside to find one other vendor, MAWS Farm of Newport.  I did not get a picture of their sign (my bad), but I took two photos of their table:

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I got some enormous onions, one of which I used in a yummy dish I cooked the next day.

The Little Falls Winter Farmers Market runs on the second and fourth Saturday of the month.  I intend to go back next Saturday when I hope there will be more vendors.  In the meantime, here is a brief shout-out with pictures.  For more information, you can visit their Facebook page.

 

Some Saturday Stuff

We can call this a Scattered Saturday or a Slacker Saturday, but I am composing this at the keyboard while I sip red wine, half look at a Vincent Price movie I DVR’d last month, and wait for Steven to get home.

I am paying very slack attention to this movie, because it is not one of his best.  It was made in the ’70s, when horror movies were becoming more gross, nasty and, well, mean.  They were more about dispatching as many victims as possible in the most disgusting fashions that could be devised.  Soon after came the slasher flicks, with more blood and less imagination. Oh, I know, many people adore such things. I live for the cheese factor and try to avoid anything that will turn my stomach.  I may watch this one again sometime and write about it, though, so I shall say no more at present.

In my quest to return to normalcy  (as normal as I can get, at any rate), I wanted to go running this morning.  It was some 30 degrees out, so I ran in place on the mini-tramp, while watching Phantom of the Opera,  the original, silent version.  For me, this is the best way to watch a silent movie.  When I’m sitting crocheting or knitting, I take my eyes off the screen too often.  I did not get through the entire movie, but I hope to run again tomorrow.

Later in the morning, I took a drive to Little Falls.  I went to the Winter Farmer’s Market, which is not yet in full swing.  Still, I chatted up the vendors that were there and took a few pictures, so perhaps I can do a full post on that tomorrow, in lieu of Wrist to Forehead Sunday.  I also walked through Paca Gardens. I would really like to purchase some of their socks, among other things.  I wanted to stop at Fall Hill Bead and Gems, but they were not yet open.

Coming back to Herkimer, I hung out at my house till Steven came home from lunch.  I like to have even a short visit with my honey.  I did not mention that I had taken Spunky for a walk before heading to Little Falls. Well, I did, and I took him out again shortly after Steven returned.  Then I drove to Ilion.  Before leaving Herkimer, I stopped in at Valley Wine and Liquors, because I thought they were having a wine tasting.  After sampling three red wines, I bought a dry blend.

In Ilion, I visited Earthly Matters, where I bought myself a pair of earrings.  I just couldn’t resist them.  Then I went to Cornerstone Consignments, where I chatted with the clerk about how some of the books were categorized “Male.”  From there, I stopped in at New 2 You Consignments, where I found two Taylor Caldwell paperbacks.  Score!  At least, I think it’s a score.  I know my mom used to read Taylor Caldwell.  I can’t remember if I read anything by her or if I liked it if I did.  I’ll soon find out.

I made a quick stop at Ilion Wine & Spirits before heading home.  After some indecision I got a bottle of champagne.  It is an inexpensive but tasty brand I have had before.  I put it in the refrigerator to chill when I got home.

And now I am sipping a glass of the red I got at Valley and have only a vague idea of what is happening in this movie.  I think it is the dramatic conclusion. Ooh, yeah, that was pretty dramatic.  I won’t tell you about it, though, because I did not include a spoiler alert.  I hope you are all having a grand Saturday.