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upstatecreative

SAVE THE DATE FOR THE FIRST 2022 ACE CREATIVE NETWORKING EVENT!

April 5, 2022 By upstatecreative

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POST EVENT EDITORS NOTE: Thanks to all who attended. We had a great showing and a vibrant evening of networking, play and best practice sharing. So fun in fact we ran over until around 8:30! Make sure you on the newsletter for announcements of upcoming ACE! Creative Networking Events.

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We are excited to announce the first ACE Creative Networking Event of 2022 will be held at miSci in conjunction with the NEMA 2022 Creative Placemaking Leadership Summit.

DATE: Thursday, April 21 | 4:30-7:00

Regional food, drink, entertainment and some excellent networking are all in the works. Get your creativity on while exploring the DESIGN ZONE. Learn the secrets behind how video game developers, music producers, roller coaster designers, and other creative problem solvers do what they do.

Additionally, there will be a group discussion to discuss removing barriers to better foster a collaborative approach for engaging area artists and creatives in exhibition projects both conceptually, as well as in the design and fabrication process.


SPECIAL BONUS: miSci President, Gina C. Gould is planning on making a special announcement regarding a new national program that miSci will be instituting that will create commission opportunities for regional designers, makers and artists so make sure to be there for that!


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Food by: TAKE 2 CAFE | Environmentally Conscious, Mission Driven and Plant Based Delights. Check out our recent review by food writer / critique Susie Davidson Powell.

Beverages by: RARE FORM BREWING and NINE PIN CIDERY

Entertainment: DJ Nate the Great! Bringing on that chill vibe we have come to respect and love.

Advance RSVP though not required is recommended and appreciated. As always, the event is FREE and open to the public.

NOTE: To RSVP select the NUMBER OF TICKETS (they are free) and then follow the simple registration prompts.

yES! pLEASE RSVP ME NOW!

ACE Downloadable Apple Picking List

September 29, 2021 By upstatecreative

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ACE’s Ultimate Capital Region Apple Picking List

September 29, 2021 By upstatecreative

Want apples? We got em! With 25 places to pick your favorite type, there’s no better place to be in autumn than New York’s Capital Region. Lots of these places also have pumpkins, freshly made cider donuts, local products and more, so you can really get your Fall on.

Want a downloadable version? Click here.

Tag #upstatecreative when you post on social. Don’t see your favorite? Write us and we’ll get yours on ours!

CountyCompany Name
AlbanyAltamont Orchards
AlbanyIndian Ladder Farms
AlbanyStanton’s Feura Farm & Markets
ColumbiaFix Bros Fruit Farm
ColumbiaGolden Harvest Farms
ColumbiaHopedale Farm
ColumbiaLove Apple Farm
ColumbiaMead Orchards
ColumbiaPhilip Orchards
ColumbiaSamascott Orchards
ColumbiaSmith Farms
ColumbiaYonder Fruit Farms
GreeneBoehm Farm
RensselaerBest Berry Farm
RensselaerLakeview Orchards
RensselaerWindy Hill Orchard East
SaratogaBowman Orchards
SaratogaDe Voe’s Rainbow Orchard
SaratogaRiverview Orchards
SaratogaSaratoga Apple
WashingtonApple Hill Orchards
WashingtonBilly Bob’s Orchard
WashingtonHicks Orchard
WashingtonMcWhorter’s Orchard
WashingtonSbardella Orchards

Six Capital Region Rural Farm Brewery Road Trips

September 28, 2021 By upstatecreative

Want to drink beer in a pastoral field, amidst trees ablaze in orange and red? These rural brewery road trips are adventures. Some of them are quite rural — you’ll see corners of the region that you’ve never ventured to before. We checked our GPS on almost every trip, because we were sure we’d gotten lost. Some have limited (weekends only) hours, and yes, one even has an outhouse.

Old Klaverack’s hops field

What you’ll also get to see is the ecosystem that’s resulted in the Capital Region’s craft brewing explosion. Brewers are making their hobbies into businesses, and setting up barns, yards and garages as tap rooms amidst rustic fields.

To make it a full day, we’ve added nearby stops for food, hiking and exploring along the way to the breweries. Your stunning fall road trip will take you through farmland and rural landscapes. And, you’ll taste local brews on the farms where they’re made, while seeing where your hops come from.

R.S. Taylor Brewing

R S Taylor & Sons Brewery has been called “the most beautiful farm brewery in America,” and that sounds about right to me. It’s is a destination farm brewery founded by Richard and Kelley Taylor, located on 50 acres of waterfalls and rolling hills at the head waters of Black Creek in Salem, New York.

All of the ingredients used in every beer at this brewery are grown on the farm or locally, and tours and tastings are on tap for individuals or groups visiting the rustic brewery year-round. They’re a hands-on operation — you can tour the grounds and take part in the harvesting process for hemp and hops.

While you’re in Hebron, in rural Washington County:

  • Get amazing local foods (and pick berries, in season) at Gardenworks, a century-old, third generation family farm in Salem
  • Wander through the 119-acre Cary Hill Sculpture Park sculpture at Salem Art Works
  • Have lunch and get homemade chocolates at Steinengers in Salem
  • Walk the Carter’s Pond Nature Trail in Salem

R S Taylor & Sons Brewery, 3602 County Route 30, Hebron, NY. Hours: Thursdays and Fridays 4 – 9 pm, Saturday 12 – 9 pm, Sunday 12 – 6 pm.

Old Klaverack Brewing

Old Klaverack Brewery sign

This one is definitely for adventurous types! OKB is situated in a remote, woodsy backyard, with a brewing shed, a small tent, and picnic tables, all in a hops field – with an outhouse. The beer is excellent (we recommend the deep Dunbar Stout and the hazy, hoppy Spookrock IPA). Owner Eric is now hard at work building a second, in-town location in Hudson, which should open this winter or spring.

OKB works really well as a quirky stop on a multi-venue Columbia County road trip:

  • Downtown Hudson is nearby, as are the beautiful, small towns of Kinderhook and Valatie (try the excellent Mexican food at Magdelena’s).
  • Art Omi, a vast, outdoor sculpture park, is about 9 miles away.
  • Hike the trails next to the Martin Van Buren Historic Site.
  • Pick apples at Love Apple Farm.

Old Klaverack Brewing, 150 Thielman Rd, Hudson NY, 12534. Hours: Friday 5pm – 9pm, Saturday 1pm – 9pm.

S & S Farm Brewing

s and s farm brewery

S&S Brewery is operated on a 6th generation family farm located in Nassau, NY. The location is RURAL – some portions of our route were on dirt roads! – and the scenery is fantastic. Thankfully, so is the beer. S & S has 10 signature ales, half of which are  ABV 5.0 or under. And, there are two very good local wines. (Sure, I was skeptical when I saw two kinds – “the red” and “the white” – but I happy report that both are really good.)

Many nights, there are bands and some pretty awesome food trucks on hand. The crowds are surprisingly large and super friendly. In cooler weather, there are fire pits, in addition to limited indoor seating.

Nearby are lots of outdoor activities, including:

  • Hiking, kayaking or fishing (by permit) at Ooms Conservation Area.
  • Birding and hiking at Wilson M. Powell Wildlife Sanctuary.
  • Hiking the four trails of the Albert Family Community Forest.
  • And, the gorgeous towns of Valatie, Chatham, Kinderhook (see an exhibit at Jack Shainman Gallery: The School) and Averil Park are all within a short drive.

S & S Farm Brewery, 174 Middle Road, Nassau, NY 12123, (518) 336-0766. Hours: Friday and Saturday, 5pm – 9pm

Indian Ladder Farm Cidery and Brewery

Indian Ladder brewery

The granddaddy of farm breweries, Indian Ladder Farms Cidery and Brewery makes beer and hard cider on their 100-year-old family farm located in Altamont, beneath the dramatic cliffs of the Helderberg Escarpment. Their beer and cider are made using ingredients grown on Indian Ladder Farms as well as other New York State farms and is dedicated to the farm to table movement. Owners Laura Ten Eyck and Dietrich Gehring even co-authored a book on hops growing.

Thatcher State Park in autumn!

Do note that ILF is a HUGE local attraction on fall weekends, when families from near and far come to pick apples. Try a weeknight for a calmer, quieter visit. And, the food here is fantastic, as are the apples, of course!

While you’re here:

  • Pick apples and pet the animals at Indian Ladder Farms
  • Don’t miss a hike or drive to see the fall foliage at Thatcher State Park.
  • If you’ve got kids — or are a kid at heart — there’s Wildplay zipline and adventure course, located inside of Thatcher Park.

Tasting Room
Monday – Tuesday 12-6, Wednesday 12-8 (Teacher Night), Thursday – 12-8, Friday – 12-9, Saturday – 11-9, Sunday – 11-6

Food Service
Thursday/Friday: 4-8, Saturday: 11-8, Sunday: 11-5

Brewery LaHoff

brewery lahoff

Andre Latour was an art director in NYC, and moved to Catskill (from Brooklyn) to go pro as a brewer. He spent four years transforming an old dairy barn into a tasting room, and now has a slew of great Brewery LaHoff beers on tap. The setting is gorgeous, with fields to while away an autumn afternoon.

Try the cider/ale mashup called Orchard House Ale, and the Wildflower Wheat, brewed with honey from their neighbors at Twin Spruce Apiary. Plus, they rolled out a Imperial Farmtoberfest Grand Cru, just in time for fall..

Owner Andre Latour

When you’re at Brewery LaHoff:

  • Visit the town of Coxsackie (about 10 minutes), Athens (15 minutes), or Catskill (20 minutes)
  • Take a hike on Cohotate Preserve or Willows at Brandow Point trail
  • Visit Honey Hollow Brewery (see below) — it’s right down the road from Brewery LaHoff

Brewery LaHoff, 50 Vedder Rd, Coxsackie NY 12051. Hours: Friday 4 – 8pm, Saturday 12 – 8pm, Sunday 12 – 4pm

Honey Hollow Brewery

honey hollow brewery

You might wonder if you’ve taken a wrong turn while you’re on the way to Honey Hollow – it’s pretty remote. My advice is to check your GPS, and then stick to the route. Honey Hollow is worth the drive. There are gardens, fields, fire pits, and a bacci court. Live music is often on tap, and Nervosity9 is grilling pizza on the outdoor oven in summertime. The beer is great, too — terrific ales, stouts and porters are all on tap.

The road trip tips for Honey Hollow Brewing are similar to Brewery LaHoff (but they’ll take more time to get to from Honey Hollow):

honey hollow brewing
Honey Hollow’s garden
  • Visit the town of Coxsackie (about 15 minutes), Athens (20 minutes), or Catskill (25 minutes)
  • Take a hike on Cohotate Preserve or Willows at Brandow Point trail
  • Visit Brewery LaHoff (see above) — it’s right down the road from Honey Hollow
  • Daniel Baehrel, a highly acclaimed destination restaurant based on completely self-derived, sustainable, living off the land cuisine called Native Harvest, is nearby. It’s SUPER hard to get a reservation, and the meal lasts over 5 hours, but I thought I’d mention it, because there are some unusual characters in the Catskills.

Honey Hollow Brewery, 376 E Honey Hollow Rd, Earlton, NY 12058. Hours: Friday 4-8pm, Saturday 1-8pm

Maureen Sager
The Honey Hollow garden

Maureen Sager is the Executive Director of ACE. This article was researched with the help of many willing and adventurous friends, and her boyfriend named Tom who enjoys a good beer and didn’t mind heading out into the Capital Region wilderness.

Want to Run a General Store Rennselaerville? Here’s Your Chance! Rent? $1/Month!

September 22, 2021 By upstatecreative

Medusa General Store

I am looking for someone that wants to run a small town grocery store, rent free! I have searched for 5 years to fill the local General store and my hope and the communities would be to find someone willing to take the risk, rent free! The fact is nothing has worked up to this point so this is a last chance at filling the space. The potential proprietor would need to run it as a store/cafe.

To start with some building specifications: Medusa General Store is a 2200 square foot block building built in 1938 by Ernest and Ruth Bell, in the historic hamlet of Medusa, in the town of Rensselaerville, in southwestern Albany County. The property is roughly 1.3 acres. At one point, the store covered all of the general merchandise needs of the surrounding township!

Medusa Sign

The store has a large deli area with all equipment. As well as shelving and counters. We installed a nine-door walk-in cooler in 2014 both to provide additional space for a large produce and beverage inventory, as well as to reduce the use of inefficient stand-alone coolers.

If you are interested in putting your hard work into this store, we would also put some skin in the game with super low rent and great support from the local community and owners.

This really is an amazing adventure – and we would love to discuss it with you further! If you have specific questions, please call or text.

Beginners and experienced welcome, but serious inquiry only.

Many thanks,
Jason
518-248-8884

This article is reprinted from a post from Listings Project, with permission of the lister.

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