Edible Manchester CulinaryTour: Every Weekend 10 AM - 1PM

Manchester is home to the finest hand-crafted food purveyors. Discover the history and the artisan food that makes this area unique.

Small group tours are available weekends, and weekdays by special request. Starting at the historic Equinox Hotel in Manchester village, we'll travel to Hildene to taste farmstead goat cheese, then into town to sample Turkish specialties, piping hot from the brick oven. Savor fresh hand made Mozzarella, local apples and enjoy a walking tour of an old tavern built in the 1790's. You'll enjoy behind the scenes tour of a chocolate factory, to discover how to make delicious butter crunch and other sweets, and then travel to a premier kitchen store to watch maple transformed into cutting boards and wine racks. Each tour covers 5-7 stops, and includes tasting samples.


Travel in a small-personalized van, or in a private car depending on the size of the group. Advance reservations required.

$55. per person / $25. under 12. Limited to 8 guests.
Call: 802. 362. 3931

The Vermont Cheese Trail

Is there anything better than eating Vermont cheese? (Is there anything more Vermont than eating cheese!) There are close to 40 cheese makers in Vermont, each making a unique cheese that matches the geography of the farm, the herd; goat, sheep or cow, and the farmers talent.

Tasting cheese at the farm is vastly different than standing at your kitchen counter. There is the view of the herd from the windows, the slightly acid sweet smell of the barnyard that permeates everything, (including your clothes when you get back in your car) and if you are lucky enough to arrive at the farm on cheese making day, you will see how the warm milk curdles, and then turns into curds that are pressed into cheese molds to drain. The cheese is aged in the caves for three months, before it is brought out to the farm store for sale.

Join me on a Vermont culinary caper to discover the story behind the Gouda cheese at Taylor Farm, Woodcock Farm, Consider Bardwell Farm and Hildene and to savor award winning Vermont cheese fresh from the farm. Meet the farmers and cheese makers and learn what makes Vermont cheese so unique.

Vermont Cheese Tours are scheduled for spring and summer 2010. Travel with Ellen Ecker Ogden, author of The Vermont Cheese Book in a small group for a personalized behind the scenes tour of four local Vermont cheese makers. At the end of the day, you'll be an expert and know the difference between artisan and farmstead cheese, soft ripened verses aged, and why raw milk cheese tastes better and is healthier for you.

Travel in comfortable van or in your own car. $55. per person / Limited to 8. Call 802. 362. 3931