Taste Buds Get Ready: 1st Annual Fermentation Fest

By Margaret Gilmour

Sweet. Salty. Sour. Bitter.

Ready for some fresh, local and lively (pun-intended) fare?

Because there will be a bountiful supply available for tasting at Friday’s Fermentation Festival at the Kennett Square Farmers’ Market.

You’ll want to attend a little bit hungry and ready to quench your thirst as the featured chefs, artisans and producers all interested in quality over quantity, are preparing a delicious spread just for you. And the farmers, of course, are selling their autumn harvest.

In addition to your favorite seasonal micro-brews and crisp wines, plan on dipping in and sipping on a variety of new-to-you flavors, like some of the featured fermented veggies and non-alcoholic beverages.

Sniff. Swirl. Sip. Repeat.

Then there’s Root, a novel root-beer liqueur, which is also ready for you to sample.

Just out this summer, Root’s successful debut comes from a Philadelphia company uniting slow design and all things handmade: Art in the Mechanical Age of Reproduction. The potent spirit is 100% organic, made from an 18th-century Pennsylvania folk recipe which eventually became birch or root beer.

The alcohol removed during the Temperance Movement has been reunited with the classic ingredients for a rustic and rich root beer flavor (without the sassafras now known for its carcinogenic potential).

Smooth. Complex. Full-bodied. Fresh.

Root isn’t supposed to taste sweet like most liqueurs. Instead the creators say it is “medium dry and exceptionally full-bodied, with aromatic properties of spice.”

We plan on sipping some over the weekend and reviewing Root for you next week. Growing up diving into root beer floats and hand-picking root-beer flavored sweets, I have already opened my taster, drawn a deep breath, and inhaled. 

So check back next week for the results of our taste test.

In the mean time, let us know what you think when you drink in a sip at the festival. Even better, give us an update on all your favorite flavors and textures so we can share your experience with our readers.

See you Friday.

Here’s what you can look forward to:

The First Annual East Coast Fermentation Festival

Friday, October 9, from 2 – 6:00 p.m.

Presented by Harvest Market Natural Foods and the KSQ Farmers Market

Herald the end of one season and the beginning of the next, by celebrating fermentation as a life-giving means of enjoying the season’s bounty after the crops have gone to bed!

Demonstrations, Tastings, Special Vendors & Live Music. Get the full details including a list of all participants by clicking HERE.

CCDwell is a sponsor of the First Annual Fermentation Festival