Lazy River Blues

Every summer since I can remember I have picked berries, whether wild or at our favorite u pick farm. This summer’s new find provided me with the best of the best, the Lazy River Farm. In our constant search for new picking grounds my wife stumbled across a blog that boasted about a quiet farm, close to Seattle, with amazing products. We decided to venture out on a lazy Monday with my daughter and see what they had to offer. Set only a few miles from Emerald Downs racetrack and right on the Green River, Lazy River Farms soared past all expectations. They offered a large variety of produce most of which is set aside for their CSA accounts. The u pick berries are not only the best tasting I have found but the farm itself made you want to cry with pristine rows of berries, and obvious signs of sustainable agriculture.
As I made my way through the rows of berries Larry one of the farm owners/farmers greeted me. He generously showed me his farm and the meticulous techniques he uses to shape each and every plant. Larry gave me a rundown of the many different types of berries they grow and educated me on what varieties are best for what. The early blues were great for pies because of a nice balance of tart and sweet. The Cascade raspberries were immensely sweeter and slightly smaller. The thornless blackberries were a gem to pick. But the berry that took the cake was a blueberry variety named the Chandler. From the first time I went there in late spring Larry teased me with the notion that the best berries were yet to come. I originally thought, “ya right, how do they get better,” but they did. I had become nervous since I had a two-week vacation planned (my wedding) and I had not heard from Larry but as luck would have it a call came and all I needed to hear was, “The Chandlers are ready”. The Chandlers were as good as advertised with every other berry the size of a quarter. Complete with a great flavor balance, their unusually large size made for a meaty bite of berry and a great yield for any recipe.
Throughout the summer my family and I had many chances to u pick close to home in a nearly fairy tale like setting. After soaking up my excitement for weeks the staff at the Virginia Inn got their chance to make the trip to Lazy River for some bounty. Our group arrived at the farm armed with some of the toughest line dogs Seattle has to offer, a cold case of beer (no cook goes more than 5 miles away from home without it), and empty buckets. We were set to clean them out. Larry and Linda graciously opened the farm on a day they were normally closed and the harvest began. We picked nearly all morning long only to return to a busy night where the bounty of the day was truly paired on the plate. For a solid week we had blueberry everything on the menu as well as preserving many delicious berries. As a result of our efforts the Virginia Inn now serves a staff picked Lazy blue trifle that has been a great success thus far. This trip was an great chance to allow the people I depend on day to day to experience the amount of skill, effort and energy it takes to produce a product of such a high caliber. This is the value and promise of a product driven menu. Now I just have to convince everyone that it’s time to go slaughter chickens.

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