Tastemakers: Fall Mushroom Mania - Oktoberfest

FALL MUSHROOM MANIA
For years Joe Breidenstein of Walloon Lake has been known as Mr. Mushroom. For the next two weekends he will host mushroom weekend retreats. He has coordinated morel mushroom outings in the spring for the past 30 years but believes that there are plenty of tasty morsels to be found in the fall. “There is almost an infinite number of edible mushrooms in the fall that are quite flavorful, such as shaggy mane, chanterelles, sulfur shelf, puffballs, chicken-of-the-woods and stumpers,” said Breidenstein, who started his fall mushroom mania weekends 20 years ago. “The challenge of fall mushroom hunting and why many people steer clear is there are a lot more poisonous mushrooms.”
Breidenstein’s mushroom weekends include a guide that assist participants in identifying the edibles from poisonous ones. Breidenstien’s advice for those who hunt on their own is “When in doubt throw it out.” A recent hunt turned up over 100 varieties and hunters are encouraged to pick everything they find and bring it all back. “While most have to be tossed because they are poisonous, by picking everything this helps the hunter learn what is edible and what is not,” said Breidenstein who loves the diverse flavors of fall mushrooms and each weekend he prepares soups, soufflés and several other dishes using a variety of mushrooms.
Recent weather conditions (rain and warm temperatures) have mushrooms popping up all over and Breidenstein’s weekends are filling up with visitors from all over. “I get everybody from the home chef to those who love mushrooms to chefs from major restaurants in metropolitan areas,” said Bresidenstein. “These mushrooms are not found in stores, so if you want them you have to find them.” His weekends have become so popular that the Food Network, CNN and several publications have spotlighted them in recent years. Breidenstein’s Mushroom Mania weekends include a two-night stay at his privately owned vacation homes in Walloon Lake, several hunts, a sampling of Leelanau Peninsula wines and all meals, including mushroom lunches and dinners. To learn more visit www.springtimesplendor.com/mush.htm or call for reservations (231) 535-2227.

OKTOBERFEST
This past weekend Oktoberfest kicked off in Munich, Germany. The two-week celebration is the largest festival in the world. By its end nearly seven million people from all over the world will have attended. They will consume 15 million pints of beer, 30,000 bottles of wine and another 25,000 bottles of sparkling wine. There is some serious drinking going on over in Germany right now, but more importantly some serious money being dumped into their local economy.
Oktoberfest began in 1810 when Crown Prince Ludwig (later he became King Ludwig I) married Princess Therese and the citizens of Munich were invited to partake in the festivities. The residents had so much fun they kept it going annually as a celebration to boost Bavarian agriculture. The economic impact of the festival today is estimated at over a billion dollars and requires 12,000 employees to make everything happen.
As Michigan’s economy and tourism industry continue to struggle I wonder if anyone in Lansing is looking at a beer festival as a way to jump-start the economy? Probably not. This past weekend Northern Michigan certainly benefited from the Epicurean Classic, Leelanau Peninsula Wineries Harvest Stompede and other Festival of the Senses activities. While Northern Michigan is loaded with festivals that celebrate wine and food we are lacking a good beer festival in the tradition of Oktoberfest (now the good people of Mackinaw City host Hopps of Fun each September). Festivals have become a dirty little nine-letter word in recent years in these here parts. But we all love a good party and while there are probably a few in Munich not happy about Oktoberfest few complain when a billion dollars is dumped into their economy in 16-days. Northern Michigan is loaded with talented chefs, winemakers, brewmasters, farmers, fishers and others that easily could come together to create a festival of our region’s bounty and we certainly could use a billion dollars. I’ll drink to that.
If you want to as well try these Oktoberfest selections: Beck’s, Sam Adams and Leinenkugel’s all produce a basic Oktoberfest (Märzen style: full-bodied, typically dark copper in color with a medium to high alcohol content). If you are looking for something with a little more “German” to it try Hacker-Pschorr or Ayinger both produce flavorful Oktoberfest brews. For local color visit Shorts Brewery for their Smoked Apple Ale (not an Oktoberfest but he uses local apples and the brew is quite tasty). Cheers to autumn and maybe next year I will be writing about a new fall festival. View On Our Website