Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2016)
FARMERS MARKETS SYMPOSIUM. Page A5 Enterprise, Oregon Wallowa.com Issue No. 52 M Crow owner eyes unique brewery April 13, 2016 $1 A kitchen staffer at Veritable Quandary of Portland pours out a mountain of freshly cooked quinoa to be served in a dish with duck. It is a dish that will be served with Wallowa County quinoa in the future. Tyler Hays envisions brewing, woodworking and ceramics business By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain See BREWERY, Page A7 Ellen Morris Bishop/For The Chieftain IN WALLOWA COUNTY, THE POPULAR GRAIN IS ‘A THING’ By Kathleen Ellyn Wallowa County Chieftain allRZa &RXnty RI¿ FLally LV Ln the TXLnRa EXVLneVV It’s been a couple of years coming but last year second-generation quinoa seed was plant- ed on the Daggett Ranch property on the East Moraine where Patrick Thiel grows his organic crops — and they’re liking what they see. “They” in this case is not just Patrick Thiel and his marketing partner Ted Golder of Enterprise. It also refers to Washington State 8niYersity, which has a seed trial for quinoa underway, ¿ nanced by Lundberg Family Farms. The Idaho branch of Paci¿ c 1W Grain and Feed Association also is looking at quinoa as a rotation crop on signi¿ cant acreage if all the parameters could be worked out for processing and getting a consistent production. Those last two “if all the parameters could be worked out” ques- tions are the big ones: processing and consistent production. Con- sistency looks like it’s coming. But processing is a not a job that one guy with 60 acres on the moraine can work out on his own. “The goal is to have 1,200 to 1,500 acres of organic production in the upper valley and a facility that will allow for processing and packing our products,” Thiel said. “Our” product is the key word in that sentence. Wallowa County Quinoa growers will not want to send their quinoa to a large out- of-state production facility because Wallowa County quinoa is already too good, too distinct, to be mixed in with quinoa grown in other places. If 20 years of marketing Wallowa County organic products has taught Thiel anything it’s the value of what we have. “I know we have a value in our Wallowa County products — and it is À avor,” Thiel said. “Quinoa is like my porcini powder I can sell a small bag of porcini powder to a chef in Portland and he or she can earn the James Beard Award. It’s the secret ingredient. Quinoa is like that. We’re sitting on something that there is a high W “ Ellen Morris Bishop/For The Chieftan Chef Annie of Veritable Quandary and Patrick Thiel. demand for.” And you don’t ¿ nd that À avor just anywhere. Chefs on Thiel’s marketing route are drawn to Wallowa County quinoa because of Thiel’s reputation and their personal experience. “ If native son Tyler Hays has his way, a new microbrewery in Joseph may help boost Wallowa County’s employment statistics. Hays is the owner of BDDW, a very successful East Coast arts and design company, as well as the M. Crow & Co. store in Lostine. He maintains his Wal- lowa County roots by frequently vis- iting the home he Hays owns here. Hays says he’s very concerned about the long-term economic disruption caused by the closure of the area’s sawmills. He purchased the M. Crow & Co. store in Lostine that was in immi- nent danger of permanent closure. 1ow, he hopes to bolster the Wal- lowa County economy by building a microbrewery and has already purchased a 22-acre Joseph proper- ty with plans of eventually adding a commercial woodworking/ceramic workshop. Hays said the project was about three years in the making. The working title of the beer is simply “M. Crow”. Hays plans to start off brewing and possibly selling the boutique beer out of the shop as well as the M. Crow and Co. store and his online site. He said the building is not a multi-million dollar enterprise, but a small operation — at least at the outset. “We have a lot of good contacts and a lot of good people behind it. We want to keep our growth slow and stable. “It’s going to be more than just beer. I’m working with (local rancher) Alan Klages, who is grow- ing Heritage Barley, a strain invent- ed by his great uncle.” Hays said a two-year search led him to a farmer growing the seed in southern Oregon. Hays purchased 500 pounds for Klages to sow. Half of the total is slated for the brewery and the other half for more sowing. The idea of being a big-shot em- ployer in the county doesn’t appeal to Hays, but he is aware of the scar- city of family-wage jobs in the area. See QUINOA, Page A7 I KNOW WE HAVE A VALUE IN OUR WALLOWA COUNTY PRODUCTS — AND IT IS FLAVOR. Forest Plan discussion draws crowd Show featured Thursday on OPB’s ‘Think Out Loud’ By George Plaven EO Media Group An overÀ ow crowd of about 100 people gathered Wednesday evening at Blue Mountain Com- munity College in Pendleton — coming from as far as Baker City, Joseph and even Bend — looking for answers to the same basic question. Who should be allowed to do what, and where, on the Blue Mountains national forests? Those decisions are ulti- mately guided by the Blue Mountains Forest Plan, which is undergoing its ¿ rst revision since 1990. It has been a slow, laborious process as the Forest Service attempts to balance all manner of public interests, from access and recreation to logging and conservation. The stakes were laid out during Wednesday’s discussion of the forest plan, which was recorded and aired Thursday on “Think Out Loud” on Oregon Public Broadcasting. See MEETING, Page A7 E.J. Harris/East Oregonian Steve Beverlin, supervisor of the Malheur National Forest, gestures to the audience while answering a question while sitting on a panel of experts during a taping of OPB’s “Think Out Loud” on Wednesday at BMCC in Pendleton. The topic of the show was the highly controversial Blue Mountains Forest Plan.
