UNH operating organic dairy farm
The University of New Hampshire has established an organic dairy farm for research, education and outreach, making it the nation’s first land-grant university to have an organic dairy farm.

The farm is located on a 200-acre parcel of certified-organic land in Lee. This past December the farm acquired about 50 Jersey heifers, which they’re feeding organic hay and baleage.

Construction of a barn and milking center, as well as acquisition of equipment and installation of fencing, will occur this summer. As a result of the ambitious timeline, certified organic milk production is scheduled to begin by December 2006. 

The farm will serve as both an applied research center for integrated organic production and management, and as an education center for organic dairy farmers, farmers undergoing or considering transition to organic farming, and students of sustainable agriculture.

Researchers will be advised by a 20-person board, which includes eight dairy farmers from New England, New York and Pennsylvania. Veterinarians, grazing consultants and a nutritionist also sit on the board, which will play a key role in setting the research agenda of the farm.

While the new farm is a welcome addition to a farming industry that is reportedly in desperate need of science-based research to support organic dairy efforts, University spokesperson Beth Potier says the school “will maintain our strong commitment to researching conventional dairy farming, which is still a mainstay in the industry.”

restaurant week, again
Diners who enjoyed this past summer’s Boston Restaurant Week, or more importantly, those who missed it, will have a second chance from Monday, March 6 through Saturday, March 10. Sponsored by the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, the event affords diners-on-a-budget the opportunity to partake in a prix fixe, three-course lunch for $20.06, or a prix fixe, three-course dinner for $30.06 at more than 90 participating restaurants throughout Boston, Cambridge and beyond. For a complete list of restaurants, go to www.BostonUSA.com/restaurantweek.

drink wine, eat chocolate, save cats
The Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society is holding its fourth annual Valentine’s Fine Wine and Chocolate Tasting on Friday, Feb. 10, from 6 to 10 p.m. at City Hall in Newburyport, Mass. More than 16 Newburyport and Portsmouth area restaurants and wine merchants will each donate bottles of their favorite wines for guests to sample, while a generous selection of chocolates will be donated by Harbor Candy Shop of Ogunquit, Maine, Pralines Bake Shop of Newburyport, Mass., and others. In addition to fine wine and chocolates, the menu also includes a selection of other desserts and passed hors d’oeuvres. The evening is a casual format and guests are free to come and go spending as much time as they care sampling the fare. Proceeds from the event help fund various programs at MRFRS.

MRFRS, a nonprofit volunteer organization, operates one of Massachusetts’ largest no-kill shelters and feral feeding programs to help abused, abandoned, surrendered and homeless cats and kittens. Tickets are $50. For more information, or to buy tickets, call 978-462-0760, or e-mail This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

drink wine, eat hors d’oeuvres, help the arts
The Bell Center For the Arts, in Dover, presents An Evening of Wine Tasting and Song on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. Vintner’s Cellars, a make-your-own-wine store in Portsmouth, will provide wines for tasting. There will be hot and cold hors d’ouevres, desserts, a variety of musical entertainers and, for guests who either bring in a photo or have their photo taken, the opportunity to create a custom-labeled bottle of wine. Tickets are $35. For more information and reservations, call 603-742-2355, ext. 0, or visit www.bellcenter.org.

SoBo lives
Phil Hughes and Elizabeth Williams, owners of The Black Bean Cafe in Rollinsford, New Hampshire, will take over SoBo Bookstore and Cafe in South Berwick, Maine.

Current owner Amy Miller announced this past summer that she was looking for new owners to take over the lease when it ends in May 2006, and says she has chatted about it with Hughes and Williams on and off since then.

Hughes says the basic concept of the bookstore/cafe will stay the same, with only minor changes, such as a switch to Java Tree coffee, which he and Williams currently serve at The Black Bean.

Also, Hughes will offer a selection of his popular homemade baked goods, including sticky buns, brioche, brownies, cheesecake, and the Main Street cookie, first introduced when Hughes was the baker at Flynn’s on Main Street. Full of dark and white chocolate chunks, oats, pecans and coconut, the rather famous cookie became known as the Front Street cookie after Flynn’s closed and The Black Bean opened on Front Street in Rollinsford.  The cookie will now have two homes and two names, as Hughes and Williams will continue to operate The Black Bean when they assume ownership of SoBo later this month.

Starbucks comes to Dover
A drive-through Starbucks is slated to open on March 24 on Central Avenue in Dover. There are currently 10 Starbucks locations in New Hampshire, including the store in Market Square in Portsmouth, which opened in 1999, and a cafe in the newly opened Stop & Shop superstore in Exeter. A Concord location will also be opening in April.

Starbucks recently lost the highly publicized lawsuit it filed against Jim Clark, owner of Black Bear Micro Roastery, in Tuftonboro (and former owner of The Den coffee shop in Portsmouth). In the suit, Starbucks claimed that Clark’s use of the term “Charbucks” to market his dark roasted coffee resulted in trademark infringement, unfair competition and dilution of the Starbucks trademark. All claims were rejected in a U.S. District Court ruling in December 2005.

At Home, At Sea
Anne Mahle, author of “At Home, At Sea: Recipes from the Maine Windjammer J. & E. Riggin” will hold a book signing at Barnes and Noble in Newington on Saturday, Feb.11 at 1 p.m. In her book, Mahle compiles recipes cooked aboard the 76-foot wooden-hulled schooner she owns with her husband, captain Jon Finger. For seven years,  the pair have chartered tours on the vessel, carrying up to 24 passengers for six-day cruises up the Maine coast. While Finger captains the boat, Mahle tends to the galley’s woodstove, cooking three meals a day, plus snacks, for passengers and crew. Recipes like Beef Ragu with Fennel and Oranges or Butterscotch-topped Gingerbread with Sauteed Apple reflect both Mahle’s homestyle approach and her professional culinary training.
For more information, go to www.AtHomeAtSea.com or call 800-869-0604.