Pete's Ithaca Farmers' Market Memories

Ithaca Farmers’ Market Memories
From King Ferry Winery’s owner Pete Saltonstall

 

Pete and Tacie Saltonstall have seen a lot in 30 years of wine making! Pete has written a fun, short piece about some of his memories working at the Ithaca Farmers Market. Cheers!

 

 

   This past Sunday after setting up our booth at the Ithaca Farmers Market, I looked across the aisle and noticed that my neighbors that sell Japanese food had four generations of women at their booth. It started me thinking about how long we both had been at Market and how the market has shaped my family and many others at market.

   We started market 23 yrs ago. Believe me it was much harder then when our kids were small. Tacie and I would alternate weekends at market and many times one or more kids would come and work the market with us. While they were not allowed by law to touch the bottles of wine, they were allowed to help sell the wine and run the cash register. Not realizing it at the time, this interaction with the public at an early age helped all three of our kids develop good people skills at a very early age. Public speaking has never been a big challenge for any of them. While the majority of the people attending market are friendly and nice to deal with my kids also learned how to deal with unpleasant people also. This has helped them more than they might know.

   Getting back to our neighbors, one of my favorite memories of them was that of one of the daughters playing violin at market. The young woman that I saw this Sunday was once a very cute 8 yr old with a large violin and a case on the floor beside her with a few dollar bills in it. I will never forget my 8 yr old son’s reaction as he watched her play for approx. 1hr then picking up her case and walking away. She had taken in approx. $ 30.- in that hour. As she walked away my son asked me why he wasn’t making more money working at market. I told him that he was welcome to start taking violin lessons any time he wanted. We both laughed and still talk about that time.

    Both Tacie and I still enjoy working market. Having grown up in Ithaca, we see many friends and regulars at market each weekend. During those 23 yrs we have seen the market grow and change and develop into a farmers market known and admired around the world. Perhaps one of the best kept secrets of the vendors at market is that we love the people watching from our side of the booth. As a friend once told me, “the money’s good and the show is great.”

 

Cheers

Pete Saltonstall

Co-Owner of King Ferry Winery

 

 

The Barrel Room

As we celebrate our thirty-year anniversary we are excited to begin a new chapter of Treleaven Wines in Victor. Since the first vines were planted in 1984, King Ferry Winery’s vision has been to create artisan wine. We are happy to announce the opening of our new location, The Barrel Room, in the Village of Victor. Now open, the Barrel Room will be a unique venue to experience the best of what the Finger Lakes wine region has to offer.

 

  

 

One of the comments we often hear at the winery is how interesting the wine barrels are. We wanted to bring the barrel’s role in wine making to life in the new winery tasting room. From the oak stave themed tasting bar where we will be serving full wine tastings and flights, to the room’s bottle racks made from retired wine barrels, our new tasting room showcases the barrel’s important role in the art of winemaking.The repurposed barrels which decorate our new tasting room are the same barrels which helped make the wine you will drink.

 

  

 

In addition to the tasting bar, there will be a spot for people to sit down and enjoy a glass of wine. We will also be hosting fun music nights and wine classes. For example, one of the events we are looking to bring to Victor is our Library Wine Series. Because wine changes dramatically as it ages in the bottle, these events are a great way to learn about cellared wine.The Barrel Room will also double as a rotating gallery space for local artists to showcase their work. The Barrel Room will feature a gift shop offering wine themed gift ideas and local cheeses.

 

                              

 

For those of you who don’t know us, we are the oldest winery and vineyard on the east side of Cayuga Lake (think twenty minutes north of Ithaca).Starting with hand-tended, selectively picked grapes, we strive to create delicious, local, artisan wines. We specialize in traditional European, vinifera varietal wines. Our two flagship varieties are Riesling and Chardonnay. From crisp, refreshing, fruit-forward Rieslings, to barrel-fermented, buttery Chardonnays,we love our aromatic whites! We are also well-known for our hearty reds, like Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, and Merlot. For sweeter wine drinkers, we make fun, fruit-forward wines. With twenty different vintages currently released, we have something for everyone!

 

We hope you will stop by for a tasting at our new store, The Barrel Room. Now open seven days a week from 11am to 7pm. We are excited to be joining the Victor community!

 

Cheers,

Your Friends at The Barrel Room

Treleaven Wines by King Ferry Winery

72 West Main Street, Victor, NY

Find Us On Facebook   |   585-869-5028

 

Ride for Heart Health June 29

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ride-for-Heart-Health-Finger-Lakes/162006500636798?fref=ts\

Our owner Peter Saltonstall talks about why he and a few caring neighbors got together to start the Ride for Heart Health Fundraiser. All proceeds from the bike-a-thon go to the Cayuga Heart Institute.

 

To Register for the Ride Click Here

For more information on the ride Click Here

For Information the festivities to follow on our Summer Open House Click Here