This past Sunday, we had the chance to visit the Very Berry Country Fair in Fort Langley, B.C. This is the same place where I did some recording for the last episode of the podcast. I realize that the quality of that audio wasn’t the greatest, but the Griffin stereo lapel mic is proving to not provide the greatest quality. At least I haven’t discovered the best way to record with it yet, but my hope was to provide some sounds of the experience as well as doing a post about it, which you’re reading right now.
It was an incredible day for the fair, and there were plenty of people heading out to check out what was there. There was plenty for the kids to check out, but the best part for the adults, in my opinion, was inside the winery itself. Free wine tasting is always a quick way to make me happy.
The one element of the fair that I have a major complaint about is those pastries in the picture above. Don’t they look good? Yeah, I thought so, too. If you wanted one, then you had to enter the eating contest to be the first one to stuff your face without using your hands. I just wanted to buy one and savor its taste, granted they were as good as they looked. Krause Bros. Farms aren’t stupid though. Their place was just a short drive away where you could purchase some, so we left there with some fresh blueberries, which filled that void somewhat.
About that wine tasting though, go check out the Fort Wine Co. if you ever get the chance, especially if you are a fan of the drink. Walking into the winery, there was a strong smell of berries, and that’s what they make most of their wine out of. We sampled the cranberry, white cranberry, and blueberry wines, picking the last as our purchased bottle of choice.
In the podcast, you’ll hear our helper guy (with the super cool handle-bar mustache) talk about what the wines go well with, as is usual in most wineries where you get samples. However, the cranberry wine and his suggestion of making crantinis by simply adding vodka almost had me push for the cranberry wine. That’s a lot of alcohol, and that cranberry wine went down far too smooth. We opted for the blueberry instead.
There was plenty of other good stuff in this tiny, but entertaining, fair. Mini-golf, crafts for sale, other berry related goodies, and meats on a bun. It was well worth the trek.
My feet and legs are sore, but the adventure that we took today was well worth any pain that might come out of the nearly fifteen miles that we walked today. From the west end to Commercial Drive via Chinatown, I saw more sights of the city that I’ve been wanting to explore some more since the day I got here.
I guess it was the smells and sounds that take me back. The abundance of the language, combined with that smell. It’s hard to explain it, but if you’ve experienced it, you know what I mean. Baked goods, fish, squid, seaweed, prawns, steamed buns, and what not, all in the open air on a hot, sunny day. It had me craving yakisoba from a corner stand much like you can grab a hot dog or gyro on a Manhattan street corner.
There’s more to be explored, found, and exploited in the future. In fact, our venture up to Commercial Drive[
I know I’m late to the mark on this, but the only excuse I can give is the fact that yes, I am an American. I’ve heard of Canada Day[
Being a hot, sunny, holiday in July, our thoughts went to enjoying frosty, Canadian beverages. And let me tell you, if you ever plan to do such things in B.C., make sure to plan ahead. We searched the West End into Yaletown before we found some place that we could stock up. After lots of walking and sweating, success.
Still, I’ve come into contact with many authors during my days in college and public radio. Among all of those experiences, this guy ranks up there with some of the best. And by best, I mean some one who is cool. That goes a long way with me.