Farm to Table Dinner with Smith Meadows’ Forrest Pritchard

Last night, we attended a “Farm to Table” dinner at Bastille in Old Town, which focused on the amazing meats from Smith Meadows in Berryville, Virginia. Not only were the chicken, pork, beef, and lamb present and accounted for (and quickly filling my belly), but the farmer, Forrest Pritchard, was there to talk about the spirit of his operation. An actual English scholar, Mr. Pritchard had no problem speaking eloquently about what makes his agricultural heart go “pit-pat”. My favorite part was his explanation of how grass-fed meat better reflects “terroir” than corn-fed. This concept of terroir is something we spend a lot of time on at Cheesetique. Sure, everyone knows that wine reflects its environment, but they are often surprised to learn how important an animal’s surroundings, diet, and overall state of mind can be to the milk it produces (and the resulting cheese). Mr. Pritchard did a wonderful job of explaining this in terms of meat as well.

When I got to work this morning, I immediately had to check out the Smith Meadows website and happened upon their blog, which is hysterical – as only pooping goats can be – and also really inspirational. My favorite post so far: “What’s the Dumbest Farm Animal?” Please take a moment to read this – it will make you giggle (and also rethink how you deal with those around you).

In summary, the food was fantastic and the insights were… um… insightful. Hearing Mr. Pritchard talk about how farmers and customers are intrinsically connected was really heart-warming. You can feel this sensation yourself when shopping at our own Del Ray Farmers’ Market, where Smith Meadows just happens to have a booth.