Blog – Page 3

Village Cheeseworks Making Local Cheese Work!

July 26, 2021 by Kate Zurschmeide

If you’re planning your next outing to Bluemont, leave room for cheese! We are excited to feature Loudoun’s newest local, natural, (and delicious) cheese from Village Cheesworks in our Farm Market and at Henway Hard Cider on their local menu. Their products are a perfect compliment to your favorite summer beverage on the porch, charcuterie board for a night in, or grilled cheese dinner for the kids.

Why do we love them?

When Eric Hilgartener walked into our Farm Market this spring with a small cooler and a cutting board, we were blown away by his passion and energy for the newly formed Village Cheeseworks. We have known this Loudoun Family for years as Eric’s dad used to coach our boys in wrestling and Eric was an amazing wrestler at Loudoun Valley in his day. Now that discipline and energy is focused on making fine cheese and actively engaged in supporting and preserving family farms. Their attitude is that it “takes a village,” and we couldn’t agree more! All of their milk comes from the last Loudoun Dairy Family Farm, Potts Dairy, outside of Purcellville. The dairy has been in operation for 5 generations and produces some of the highest quality milk for cheesemaking (think butterfat) found on the east coast.

Another way that this cheese is uniquely local is that the Blue Cheese, aptly named, Bluemont, is washed with our own cider from Henway Hard Cider Company. This washing process keeps the blue marbling inside the cheese rind rather and is a natural approach to creating this blue cheese rather than using a chemical wash.

What are the different cheese varieties?

Bluemont

The Bluemont is tried and true to its name! This blue cheese pairs well with red or sparkling wine. It also pairs well with dried fruits, pears, figs, and whole grain crackers. When it comes to meat, this flavor tastes best with beef, especially steak. Uniquely cider washed with our own Henway Hard Cider.

Round Hill

The Round Hill is a beautiful example of the Brie/Camembert style of cheeses. It makes a great compliment to farm fresh plums or sweet jams and crackers. When choosing food with this cheese, think of a rich brie style flavoring.

Zulla

The Zulla is a French Muenster inspired washed rind cheese with a little bit of complex ripening for the real cheese lovers. Due to its slightly salty nature, Zulla is great on sandwiches and has excellent melting properties. This cheese is rich and designed for the true connoisseur.

How can I try their products ?

At Great Country Farms, we carry Village Cheeseworks in our farm market for purchase. Village Cheeseworks strives to create strong relationships with the local community by offering their products at local farmer’s markets and events. They are passionate about making their products available to customers in the area. To find out more about where to try their cheese, give them a follow on Instagram!

Instagram: @villagecheeseworks

5 Steps for Peach Picking Perfection

July 14, 2021 by Kate Zurschmeide

Peach Picking Perfection

We’re starting to feel the heat this summer which means one thing- it’s finally peach season at Great Country Farms! Our peach trees are loaded with some of the biggest, juiciest peaches we’ve seen in years at the farm. We want our guests to have the best peach picking experience, so we sat down with Orchard Manager, Andrew Taylor, to get the inside scoop on all things peach as we approach our Peach Fuzztival Weekend July 31- August 1, 7 & 8!

5 Steps to Picking the Perfect Peach

Determine the plan for your peaches.

Peaches can be used in a variety of different ways! Determining your plan for the peaches you pick before you pick them will help you decide how ripe you’ll need them to be. If you plan on enjoying them as soon as you leave the parking lot, you will want to search for a riper, softer, peach. If you’d like to use your peaches further in the future choosing a firmer peach will be a better option for you.

2. Choose your variety.

Once you arrive in the orchards, decide which peaches you’d like to try. Will you pick both white and yellow or will you only stick to one variety? We’ve got the rest covered! Simply check in with a GCF employee and they will be happy to help guide you!

Yellow vs. White Peaches

At Great Country Farms, we are proud to grow 20 different varieties of peaches. It’s almost hard to believe that there are so many different peaches out there! It might seem overwhelming, When you are picking your perfect peaches, you will see that there are both white and yellow peaches to choose from. People have preferences on which they think could be sweeter based on their palette, but the sweetness is actually more determined by how long they hang on the tree. We agree that both are equally delicious.

Donut Peaches

If you have little ones in your picking crew or are looking for a less messy peach, a donut peach may be the way to go! Donut peaches are small in size, sweet, and they make an easy, healthy snack! Donut peaches are great for the whole family to enjoy because of their small size and sweet taste. These peaches will be available for u-pick in the coming weeks. Be sure to sign up for our U-pick alerts on our website and to follow it on social media to be notified when these delicious treats are available for picking.

3. Give the perfect twist & pull.

Once you’ve spotted the perfect peach (yay!), gently grab it and pull down, removing it from the tree. Keep it safe in a bag or box from home or provided to you at the U-pick station. Now that you’ve got the hang of it, have fun and pick as many as your heart desires!

4. Store gently to prevent bruising.

We recommend picking peaches toward the end of your visit to avoid adding extra weight to your farm visit if you plan on roaming the play area and visiting our adorable animals. On a hot summer day, it is best to avoid leaving them in your car for a prolonged period of time.

5. Take home and enjoy!

If you can resist eating them all on your drive home, peaches are best stored at room temperature on your counter top until they reach your desired ripeness. If you are looking to keep your peaches longer, you may want to learn how to can or freeze them for later use. If you can’t make it to our orchards this year, visit our farm market from 9AM-5PM daily to purchase fresh picked peaches at your convenience. You don’t want to miss this harvest!

Bonus Tip: Plan your visit for extra family for on the farm and mark your calendar for our Peach Fuzztival (July 31-August 1,7 & 8, 2021). It’s going to be peachy!

Top 5 Reasons to Buy a GCF Farm CSA Produce Box This Season

February 18, 2021 by Kate Zurschmeide

You care about your local community & how your food is grown

We believe change must start on the farm and in the soil. It is our mission to steward this land and sustain it so it can sustain future generations.

2 boys struggle to carry their CSA produce Box from Great Country Farms.

CSA pick up helps families know their food & farmer.

Great Country Farms (GCF) is a regenerative agriculture farm and we grow our Community Support Agriculture (CSA) veggies without synthetic chemicals and use regenerative growing practices. What is regenerative farming and why do we farm this way? In 2018, Farmer Kate was diagnosed with colon cancer and although her oncologist said it was, “just bad luck,” we knew there was more to the story. Her healing journey led us to the work of Dr. Zach Bush, Triple Board Certified Physician, who found that treating one cancer patient at a time would never stem the tidal wave of patients coming to his clinic in central VA. He draws the connection between our soil health and our own microbiome “inner garden” so clearly in his film, Regeneration: The Beginning.

This journey has caused us to double down on our efforts to employ regenerative farming techniques such as no-till planting, crop rotations, compost tea fertilizer, cover crop cocktails, mulching and more. The quality of our soils has improved tremendously in the 3 years since Kate’s diagnosis and we are more excited about farming for your family now than ever before.

2) You want the healthiest most nutrient-dense food you can find to feed your family & build immunity.

In these pandemic times, building our immune systems is a top priority. With each GCF Harvest Produce Box, you will experience truly fresh fruits & vegetables picked within a day or two and packed with flavor & vitality when arriving at your table. This is simply not available at the grocery or other “fresh” food delivery services. By purchasing a CSA Harvest Box, you are taking a stand to support food grown in ways you prefer. By encouraging your friends to do the same, you take action to increase the kind of farming you’d like to see. Based on this Rodale Institute white paper, “The Power of the Plate: The Case for Regenerative Organic Agriculture in Improving Human Health”, regenerative growing practices are essential to producing the most healthy, nutrient-dense food you can feed your family.

3) It’s time to get outside and connect with nature through On Farm Experiences & Pick Your Own

Each GCF Harvest Produce Box includes the opportunity to go beyond eating flavorful nutrient dense produce and offers farm experiences as part of the bounty. Your CSA Harvest Box comes with unlimited farm admission for your immediate family and pick your own bonus fruits and veggies. With our 12 acre farm play area and acres of pick your own orchards, you can ensure your family has time outside to breathe fresh air and connect with the land that nurtures us body & soul. There are a myriad of Health Benefits to being Outside cited on WebMD, from better sleep, increased focus, Vitamin D absorption and the article goes on to note, “Many plants put substances, including organic compounds called phytoncides, into the air that seem to boost immune function.” This access to the great outdoors simply cannot be found in any other produce box subscription.

4) You want to be able to answer the question, “Who’s Your Farmer?”

Farmer Mark Dewey waters plant starts in the Green House.

It feels great to buy from real people in your community rather than a faceless corporation. CSA is a unique way to support your farmers. With partial payment in advance of the season, you are helping our farm to purchase seeds, trim orchards in the winter, mend equipment and prepare for a bountiful harvest. Once the season starts, you can engage with your farmers when you visit and stay abreast of farm happenings through our Crop Talk Newsletter. You’re invited to share your ideas and recipes and help guide what we grow with your preferences to shape our Produce Growing List.. Know that your voice will be heard when you email Farmer Bill with a question. Chat with Farmer Mark as he packs produce in our farm market and share ideas on what to cook. Wave at Farmer Andrew and his toddler, Brodie, as they scout the orchards and decide which peaches & apples to open for pick your own. Marvel at the multicolored eggs, Farmer Kate gathers and packs daily. We are real people doing the real work of farming and building relationships and trust with you and our community.

Fond Farewell ~ From Mark Dewey~ July 26, 2021

On Thursday, July 29, 2021, I will bid farewell to the fields I’ve been walking for the last 8 years and head south to Charlottesville, where I’ll be serving as a chaplain at the University of Virginia Hospital. Leaving this place and this life is hard to do because I’ve come to think of growing food for all of you as an answer to both the hunger of the body and the hunger of the soul. Feeding you has fed me in ways I couldn’t have foreseen, and the nourishment of my time here will strengthen me for years to come. Thanks for eating with me. Thanks for growing with me. May the Lord bless you and keep you close to the soil. So long.

Mark Dewey

5) You want to know your food will be there without supply chain interruption.

In 2020, we all experienced empty store shelves and many items that took months to reappear due to supply chain challenges. Our system of supply suddenly seemed vulnerable and we all were wondering, “What Happened to all the Toilet Paper?” as explained in the article from University of Southern Florida. The article goes on to state that The U.S. imports approximately 50 percent of fruit sold (in groceries), with 20 percent of our vegetables imported from Mexico. Our farm is located right here in Loudoun County, VA so you know the source of your fruits and vegetables, eggs, and honey is readily available and right here in your backyard. Additionally, we source local meats and cheeses from other local Virginia farms so when you add on these items you are sending your hard earned dollars right into our own Virginia economy. There is no middle man. Our fruits and veggies come straight from the field to your family. We have been farming here in Bluemont, VA for 28 years and are so excited to grow for your family this season.

For more Information on Buying a CSA produce Share, produce lists and program details, visit our website CSA Harvest Box Page.

4 Generations fo Zurschmeides Welcome you to our Farm Community

The Zurschmeide Family & Farmhand look forward to welcoming you to our community this season.

Whole-life Nutrition for Life-long Wellness

December 1, 2020 by Kate Zurschmeide

As the Holiday eating season gets underway, Zach Bush, a great explorer of the microbiome, reaches out to remind us that well-being involves every aspect of our person. In the video linked below, he reminds us that nourishment is not merely a matter of consuming the necessary vitamins and minerals; it requires full engagement of our senses — sight, smell, touch, and taste. Each of those sensory systems processes information in ways that make our bodies more ready and able to use the food we eat, and those systems are most engaged when food is close to its own life source: the soil it grows in. Dr. Bush explains that as soon as a food item is detached from the mother plant, its nourishing properties begin to degenerate. The best way to eat a tomato, he suggests, is to take it off the vine with your teeth. And the best way to eat a meal is to sit at a table suffused with the spirit of gratitude toward the source of all nourishment, in the company of people you love, for the disposition of your body cannot be separated from the disposition of your soul.

Enjoy this holiday invitation to wellness.

Knowledge: Nutrition

Your Vote Matters More than Ever!

November 3, 2020 by Kate Zurschmeide

Today is a BIG DAY! I woke up excited to vote and to be part of shaping the future of our great nation. If you are able to vote today, (or have already cast your ballot),we salute and thank you for exercising your hard won right to vote.

Think your vote doesn’t matter? You make choices and vote with your time, presence and dollars everyday and those “votes” impact the lives of your friends, family and community.

We want to thank you for all the “voting visits” to our family farm this season and encourage you to continue to Vote Local. When you visit Great Country Farms, you are not only helping us keep farming alive in western Loudoun Country, VA, you are also supporting:

3 generations of Zurschmeides who live and work on the farm
Countless teenagers working their first jobs and learning the importance of hospitality and good customer service
Our core team of managers and farmhands who work hard to bake the pies, make the donuts, welcome the guests, press the fresh cider, plant the crops, bring in the harvest and pack our CSA boxes
Countless local businesses who help us keep the tractors running, maintain the delivery vans, provide animal feed and building supplies, paint our educational signs, print our cards & provide packaging and boxes for fruit picking.

We are excited to have the farm open for your enjoyment through November 22nd and look forward to welcoming your family to enjoy this farm we love. The Knead It! Bakery will be open through Dec 23rd for all your holiday treats and gift boxes.

So as you vote today, we salute you and encourage you to continue to vote daily with your time and money to support local businesses and small family farms that give our community it’s special character and flavor.

The Zurschmeide Family & Farmhands of Great Country Farms

Farm Market & Play Area

Opening March 2022