2010 Slow Food Portland Writers NightMarch 10, 2010, SPACE Gallery,538 Congress Street, Portland, ME.The doors will open at 6:00, the speakers will start at 6:30. Food starts at 6:00. Tickets are $25, $20 for Slow Food members and are available online at SPACE Gallery, and at Rabelais, Aurora Provisions and Rosemont Markets. For more information contact Rabelais at 774-1044.Breaking with tradition, Slow Food Portland moves its Writers Night from January to March to coincide with Maine Restaurant Week. Writers Night is an evening filled with delicious local foods and engaging readings from authors near and far. This year the subjects covered will range from apples to mushrooms, with a trip through American moonshining, landing in Hardwick, Vermont, a town saved by the food business.As in years past there will be a variety of tasty food offerings - the best Maine has to offer from land to sea. This year the menu will highlight ingredients discussed by the speakers. After the program, all authors will be on hand to sign copies of their books, which will be for sale at the event. Below is a list of the authors and their books.
Max Watman, author of Chasing The White Dog,
An Amateur Outlaw’s Adventures in Moonshine. Simon & Schuster.Journalist Watman traces the historical roots and contemporary story of hooch, from George Washington to NASCAR. Along the journey he chronicles his own attempts to distill, discussing ingredients, techniques, and the trials and tribulations of the process. He crisscrosses the country uncovering craft distilleries and the people who are driven to make moonshine. The impact underground alcohol has had on our economy and the political system is laid out for the reader. Watman was awarded a literary fellowship in 2008 from the National Endowment for the Arts. His first book, on horse racing, is titled Race Day and was an editor’s choice in the New York Times Book Review.
Ben Hewitt, author of The Town That Food Saved, How One Community Found Vitality in Local Food.Rodale Books.Hardwick, Vermont was labeled “one of the most important food towns in America” by Gourmet Magazine. In his brand new book, Hewitt chronicles how the home of Jasper Hill Farm, High Mowing Seeds, Vermont Soy, Claire’s Restaurant & Bar and a host of other quality food producers, went from an unemployment rate 30% higher than the rest of the state, to the foodie capital of Vermont. Hewitt is a journalist and a farmer who lives with his family on a diversified 40 acre farm where they produce vegetables, berries, beef, lamb, pork and dairy.
John Bunker, author of Not Farm From the Tree, A Brief History of the Apples and the Orchards of Palermo, 1804-2004.Not Far From the Tree documents Bunker’s years studying the apples and the farmers who raise them in his home town of Palermo, Maine. The book includes maps of orchards and detailed diagrams of the many historical varieties that still grow in Maine.John Bunker is Maine’s resident pomological expert, head of Fedco Trees, orchardist at Super Chilly Farm and creator of the Out On A Limb Apple CSA (the first rare apple CSA in America!). Most anyone who has attended the MOFGA Common Ground fair has had a glimpse of John and his remarkable apple display.
Greg Marley, author of Mushrooms for Health, Medicinal Secrets of Northeastern Fungi,and the forthcomingChanterelle Dreams and Amanita Nightmares.Down East Books.Mushrooming has become even more popular in recent years. Marley covers the health benefits of Northeastern fungi. He details where to find them, and how to pick and prepare them. Marley publishes an internet newsletter called Coastal Maine Mushrooming, and collects and cultivates mushrooms for local chefs. He also consults for the Northern New England Poison Control Center and various local hospitals.
