Vermont
Experience Farm-Fresh Flavor in Vermont
Program No. 8934RJ
Taste the flavors of Vermont on an appetizing adventure with cooking demonstrations from local chefs, visits to local farms and discoveries of the state’s impressive history with food.
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Protecting the Environment
We offset a portion of the emissions created by your travel. Learn more
6 days
5 nights
13 meals
5B 4L 4D
1
Check-in, Registration, Welcome Dinner, Orientation
Middlebury, VT
2
Maple Candy, Cooking Demonstrations
Middlebury, VT
3
Champlain Orchards, Shelburne Vineyard, Dakin Farm
Middlebury, VT
4
Goat Milking Demo, Cooking Demo, Apiary and Dairy Farm
Middlebury, VT
5
Mom & Pop's Maple, Cafe Provence, Brewery
Middlebury, VT
6
Program Concludes
Middlebury, VT
At a Glance
Learning in Vermont can be delicious! With local chefs, small-scale cheese makers, maple tappers and entrepreneurs, experience firsthand the Vermont farm-to-plate way of life during hands-on classes and field trips to working farms. From a lesson in scone baking at the Middlebury Inn, to an expert-led demonstration on the process of creating maple candy, you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at how some of your favorite New England fare is made. Sip and savor at Shelburne Vineyard as you learn about vitis Vinifera and vitis Riparia, hearty grapes which grow well in winter conditions. Journey through some of Vermont’s culinary wonders on this immersive learning adventure.
Activity Level
On Your Feet
Minimal walking and standing; some stairs.
Small Group
Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 13 to 24 participants.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Discover the various varieties of apples at Champlain Orchards and learn about wines at Shelburne Vineyard.
- Delight in a presentation from the owner (and her goats) from High Pond Goat Farm and learn milking and goat cheese-making techniques followed by an expert-led tasting.
- Enjoy a hands-on cooking demonstration at the Cafe Provence.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Robert Barral
Robert Barral is the executive chef and owner of Café Provence in Brandon, Vermont. He attended culinary school in Montpellier in the Languedoc region of France, then continued his training as a chef at some of the finest establishments in Europe. He crossed the ocean in 1976, cooking in Montreal, Edmonton, Chicago, and Boston. Formerly a faculty member at the New England Culinary Institute, Chef Barral is known as a great teacher of classic French techniques as well as for his award-winning Chocolate Bombe.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Robert Barral
View biography
Robert Barral is the executive chef and owner of Café Provence in Brandon, Vermont. He attended culinary school in Montpellier in the Languedoc region of France, then continued his training as a chef at some of the finest establishments in Europe. He crossed the ocean in 1976, cooking in Montreal, Edmonton, Chicago, and Boston. Formerly a faculty member at the New England Culinary Institute, Chef Barral is known as a great teacher of classic French techniques as well as for his award-winning Chocolate Bombe.
Wendy Cijka
View biography
Wendy Cijka is the owner of High Pond Goat Farm in the town of Brandon, Vermont. High Pond Goat Farm is a small, family run farm creating and selling raw goat milk, fresh chevre, and yogurt.
Lilian Sheren
View biography
Lilian Sheren has led groups for 30 years. She moved to Vermont more than two decades ago and has been a Road Scholar Group Leader for the past five years. Lilian began her experience while living in New York state, leading groups to New York City, through the Hudson Valley, the Finger Lakes, New England, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington DC as well as Montreal and Quebec City, Canada. Lilian embraces her Scottish heritage and loves meeting Road Scholar participants from all over the country.
Suggested Reading List
(5 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Experience Farm-Fresh Flavor in Vermont
Program Number: 8934
Maple Sugarin' In Vermont: A Sweet History
Come along for a trip through maple time in Vermont, from the 1600s to the mid-twentieth century. Betty Ann Lockhart introduces the origins of the 'Flavor of Vermont', the tools of the sugaring trade and the personalities who launched maple sugar to world fame. The Abenakis were discoverers of the sweet sap that flowed from Vermont's trees, and Thomas Jefferson was an early promoter of it. During the Civil War, maple sugar was cheered as the moral alternative to cane sugar- the latter having been produced by slave labor- and in subsequent wars, it was shipped to U.S. troops around the world. Enriched with maple-inspired songs, recipes and legends, Maple Sugarin' in Vermont illuminates not just the industry, but also the culture of maple sugar in the Green Mountain State.
Sweet Days and Beyond: The Morse Family - Eight Generations of Maple Sugaring
In his charming account of growing up in a maple sugaring operation in Northern Vermont, Burr Morse, a seventh generation maple sugar farmer, shares wonderful stories and folk tales that offer a deeper understanding of the hard work and dedication it takes to live such a lifestyle. Delightful images bring to life the four seasons, animals, and other characters who share his world. The result is a five season Vermont experience full of sweet and sometimes bittersweet tales.
The Land of Milk and Honey: A History of Beekeeping in Vermont
Land of Milk and Honey: A History of Vermont Beekeeping follows the trials and tribulations of beekeepers in Vermont. This dramatic history begins in the early 1800’s following the life and times of inspired beekeepers that are the advance guard of a line of notable beekeepers that is to stretch through the centuries into modern times. Readers will discover a beekeeping lineage born and raised within a single Vermont county, and establishes a continuity of beekeeping knowledge and skill spanning more than a century. The lineage of beekeeping concludes in the present day as apiculturists throughout the world face some of the most challenging times in over 200 years with the possibility of honey bee extinction rearing its ugly head. Is it possible that by reflecting on the history of Vermont’s beekeepers we can find clues about what is needed to help the honey bee thrive today and well into the future? Land of Milk and Honey will also explore the relationship between the people of Vermont and the countryside they inhabit: a land and people that shift and change through the centuries in ways that directly impact the health and well-being of bees and its beekeepers.
Seasons in a Vermont Vineyard: The Shelburne Vineyard Cookbook
Vermont is a food lover's paradise. From its verdant and fertile farmland, regional specialties are emerging. We have an abundant selection of locally raised meats, poultry, produce and fruits, as well as world-class artisanal cheeses, award-winning spirits, ciders, beers and, of course, wine. Shelburne Vineyard is recognized as a pioneer in cold-climate winemaking, producing expertly crafted wines from Vermont and regionally grown hybrid grapes. With original mouthwatering recipes crafted especially for this new edition, this book celebrates a generation of outstanding wines and the affinity of food and wine produced from the same northern terroir.
Sugar Words: Musings from an Old Vermonter
Sugar Words nicely blends Burr’s most recent tales with a look at the Vermont “vesta”.