January 11, 2012 | 7:26 a.m. | Starting my ski-patrol day — I’ve got the best commute!

Alpenglow behind the Inn at the Mountain, Stowe Mountain Resort

January 11, 2012 | 1:20 p.m.

Mt. Mansfield

January 18, 2012 | 4:21 p.m.

Spruce Peak after Sweep at Stowe Mountain Resort

January 18, 2012 | 4:23 p.m.

Spruce Peak after Sweep at Stowe Mountaint Resort

January 18, 2012 | 4:27 p.m.

Mt. Mansfield after Sweep

January 18, 2012 | 4:30 p.m.

Mt. Mansfield after Sweep

January 25, 2012 | 8:17 a.m.

Mt. Mansfield Panorama

All active, full-time, Vermont Military Personnel, Guard and Reserve Members along with their families (spouse & dependent children), will receive complimentary single-day lift tickets at Stowe Mountain Resort on three select Sundays this winter.

Stowe Mountain Resort International Sales Manager Chris Belanger, an active Sergeant with the VT National Guard states, “Stowe’s VT Military Days are a wonderful opportunity for many families to discover the East’s most exciting winter resort and share memorable lifelong experiences together.”

The Three VT Military Sundays at Stowe include January 29, February 26 and March 25. Eligible participants are invited to attend all events.

Each military member will need to show their ID and declare family members at the Spruce Camp, Mansfield or Midway Base Lodge Guest Service Desks. For additional information please call the Stowe Mountain Resort information center at 802-253-3000 . Resort information is also available at www.stowe.com

More About Military Patronage at Stowe Mountain Resort
Active Military can also receive a free Stowe Points Card. Good for discounted skiing, snowboarding and golf, the Stowe Points Card allows guests to earn points for every dollar spent around the resort, towards free lift tickets and golf rounds. Points never expire and every 450 points can be redeemed for a complimentary lift ticket, golf round with cart or summer attractions package.

Virgin America's "Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish" Airbus A320

.

Whether or not you’re already a Tour de Snow regular, you should plan to be here next Sunday, the 15th, for the 2nd annual Tour! It’s a wonderful opportunity to tour Stowe’s Mountain Road, and the Village, via the rec path, and have an exhilarating outdoor adventure. You’ll start your adventure at the Nordic Barn, at the top of the rec path, and finish in Stowe Village.

Along the way, you’ll visit seven large stations that include a combination of warm up exercises, paintball target shooting, yoga intro sessions, Nordic terrain park, Learn to ski and snowshoe clinic, kick-sled races, hockey puck shooting, Hammersled-pulling contest, slalom course competition, disc golf, food and drinks, environmentally friendly arts&crafts, costume relays, and other games and contests on skis and snowshoes.

As you begin your finish-line celebrations, be sure to drop in to the Coldwell Banker Carlson Real Estate office on Main Street, across the street from the Green Mountain Inn. We’ll be serving cider and donuts!

Learn more about the Tour de Snow and its Mission here.

Alice just wrote this article with her list of 10 dishes from new restaurants that captured her fancy in 2011 above all others. Of the 10, 1 is in Stowe; the other, in Waterbury — here are those 2; discover all of Alice’s favorites here, in blurt, the Seven Days Staff Blog.

The Rusty Nail Bar & Grille

1190 Mountain Rd., Stowe 802-253-6245

With the Bluebird Tavern’s charcuterie now available only à la carte, what’s a girl to do when she wants a meaty surprise? Hightail it to Stowe.

Though the Rusty Nail has long been a local favorite, it got some new blood with the 2011 addition of chef Michael Werneke. His butcher block is ever changing, but reliably showcases some of the best fleshy treats in Vermont.

Be on the lookout for the smoky, Southern-inflected headcheese and creamy, salty rillettes, studded with tender chunks of meat.

Juniper’s Fare

23 Commercial Dr., Waterbury 802-496-5504

Juniper’s Fare, on the border of Moretown and Waterbury, is more a restaurant reborn than a new restaurant. It was more than a year old when Tropical Storm Irene gutted it. Less than a month later, the Church of the Crucified One’s café was remodeled, and is better than ever.

Three cheers to that, and to the “famous” chicken club. The name is honestly earned with juicy, citrus-marinated chicken, gloriously crisp bacon, fresh veggies and pungent garlic mayonnaise.

The crusty Kaiser roll that holds the whole thing is noteworthy on its own; so are the onion rings, which are some of the best and sweetest I’ve ever had.

The Art on Burton: by Kevin Cyr

The Art on Burton examines the profound role of art and design on the culture of snowboarding by exhibiting work from artists who have contributed to the design and image of Vermont’s own Burton Snowboards. Snowboarding’s imagery and products have consistently re-enforced its position as a counter-culture lifestyle.

Because of this counter-culture lifestyle, snowboarding companies like Burton have been able to visually push the envelope, inviting artists to collaborate with product design, thus simultaneously supporting the artist by increasing their visibility and positively impacting the experience of the rider. There are few other examples where fine artists’ work reaches the public so directly and prolifically.

This exhibition focuses on artists who have contributed to the design and image of Burton, highlighting significant moments and innovations. It includes original artwork, boards, board graphics, and videos, representing both individual artists and the process of design.

Public Programs & Education in conjunction with this exhibit include:

The Art on Burton: by Kinsey

• Panel discussion by Burton Creative Team and JDK Designers
• “History of Burton and Snowboarding” evening featuring Burton archivist, Todd Kohlman
• Video Class:  a local professional video artist instructs youth how to make, edit, and upload their own snowboard or outdoor-inspired video.
• Design Workshop: Taught by Burton’s Creative Manager of Graphics, Dennis Healy. A one-day event teaching the process of designing a board. Students will design their own boards in class and learn about aspects of design and marketing.
• Design Contest: Pick up an outline of a snowboard at Helen Day Art Center or download online and drop off a design for a chance to win a Burton Snowboard.  A total  of twelve prizes will be awarded during an award ceremony to three different age groups.  Prizes include Burton snowboards and gift certificates

Curated by Rachel Moore.

Please visit helenday.com for details.

Public Programs
January 20, 2012
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm Opening Reception

January 20 – February 24, 2012 Board Design Competition

Three age groups compete for a chance to win prizes – 12 in total.

First place in each category: a Burton Snowboard; Runner-up: a $100 gift certificate for a class at Helen Day Art Center; Second & Third Prizes: $50 and $25 gift certificates to either Burton or Helen Day Art Center.
Snowboard templates available January 20th online and in paper form at Helen Day Art Center.

• Ages 5-10
• Ages 11-17
• Ages 18 +

January 26, 2012
6:00 pm Public Talk: A History of Snowboarding and Burton: Todd Kohlman

March 15, 2012
5:00 – 6:00 pm Design Competition Award Ceremony
Selected board designs on display. Prizes will be presented over hot chocolate, mulled wine and cookies.

6:00 pm Panel Discussion: The Image of Snowboarding: Burton  Creative Team and JDK Designers

April 15, 2012 Exhibition Closes

Education

The Art on Burton: by Greg Gossel

Fridays, February 3 – March 16 (no class 3/2), 2:45-4:45 pm
Snowboard Video Production with James Tomlinson
Teens & Young Adults
Shoot and edit your own snowboard video! The first three classes will be held at Stowe Mountain learning to shoot your own video of snowboarding. You will then learn how to edit your video at HDAC.

February 18, 2012
9:30 am -12:30 pm Design Workshop with Burton’s Creative Manager of Graphics, Dennis Healy

Helen Day Art Center
90 Pond Street
PO Box 411
Stowe, VT 05672
www.helenday.com
802.253.8358
F: 802.253.2703

…to enhance the human experience through the visual arts

Gallery hours: Wednesday – Sunday, 12:00 – 5:00 pm

BY CORIN HIRSCH [12.20.11] — Seven Days

Tom Bivins

There will still be a cozy pub, a spacious bistro serving unfussy fare and a brewery. But inside the footprint of the restaurant formerly known as the Shed, the new eatery set to open in a few weeks is altogether reimagined.

Inside Stowe’s Crop Bistro & Brewery, at 1859 Mountain Road, the rooms are full of the smells and noises of renovation. Its scale speaks to the vision of the collaboration between Tom Bivins, former executive chef at New England Culinary Institute, and Steven Schimoler, longtime restaurateur and food scientist. Schimoler is the former chef-owner of Waterbury’s renowned Mist Grill, which closed in 2005.

Many new elements, from the menu to the décor, will draw on the template of a namesake Cleveland restaurant, the 16,000-square-foot Crop Bistro & Bar. Schimoler founded it four years ago, in part as a food lab. It has since won national recognition for its inventive approach to farm-fresh food.

“We’ll capture signature stuff from Crop in Cleveland,” says Schimoler, who is on his third restaurant launch of 2011 and his 11th overall. Beyond assurance that diners will find locally grown and wildcrafted morsels, he and Bivins are enigmatic on the specifics of the food. They’ll definitely introduce Crop’s signature popcorns (with such flavorings as sun-dried tomatoes and balsamic reduction) and develop a Crop beef jerky using local supplies, such as beef from Vermont Highland Cattle Company.

Schimoler opened Mist in 1999, long before farm-to-table was hot. “Crop is about food that is local, and that has become a given,” he says. “That’s what we were doing 15 years ago.”

“The goal is for Crop Stowe to have its own food identity,” adds Bivins. Diners can choose from a pub menu or a bistro menu served in one of the more spacious dining rooms, or occasionally a “Tour de Crop,” or seven-course tasting menu.

As they finalize the fare, the pair have gutted the kitchen. Workers have peeled away the pub floor to reveal wide pine planks. A curved bar adorned with gnarled cypress boughs creates an Adirondack Great Camp feel in the middle of the former dining space, and Vermont photographer Peter Miller’s iconic images will hang throughout. Glass will expose the brewery, anchoring a corner of the pub.

A new copper-clad brewery is on order from Germany, and Bivins and Schimoler have already hired their head brewer: Mark Ewald, formerly of Long Trail Brewing Company. Ewald is formulating recipes on his home brewing system, where Schimoler says he sampled “one of the best beers I ever had. I like to think he’s an 11 on a scale of 10. He’s very accomplished.”

Beers will work in tandem with the food rather than overwhelm it — nothing “over the top” or too high in alcohol, Schimoler says. “We’ll have traditional Old World styles, such as Kölsch and lagers. We’d like to honor tradition.”

Cocktails will draw on the kitchen’s culinary prowess. In Cleveland, Crop’s libations have such ingredients as rhubarb bitters, coconut foam and fig reduction. “We find ways to get our kitchen philosophy into the bar. I look at it as an extension of the kitchen,” says Schimoler, whose son, Steve, will oversee the bar program.

Crop will eventually get a water-conditioning system similar to that of its cousin in Cleveland, which will enable the staff to improve on their well water and possibly replicate the subtle flavor profiles of other waters around the world. That can be a building block for dough and beer, says Schimoler.

Schimoler is confident that Stowe’s diverse clientele can support the new establishment, but “You have to earn that trust,” he says, and notes that Crop will offer food at various price points. “You can eat for $15 or $50. Local food doesn’t have to be expensive.”