Hi,

This all sounds like a ton of fun! How long do these usually last? Since I'll be coming from Pittsburgh with my family, just wondering if we'll be making it a day trip or staying the night somewhere. If I remember correctly, MapQuest said something like 3.5 hrs from Pittsburgh to Buffalo.

As for name, your suggestion of NFTE reminds me of "nifty" :)

Remy, tomatopalooza, held this past Saturday, is in NC, not SC. ( smile)

And please don't name it upstate NY b'c upstate is really a band of territory that extends from just above NYCity to the Canadian border. Anything west of maybe Amsterdam is western NY, not Upstate.

POliticians are about the only ones who consider Syracuse and Utica and Buffalo upstate. LOL

Yeah, I'm a purist and know it and also wish I could attend, as you know, but I can't. ( smile)

Carolyn

Penguingardener,
I was trying to make it sound like nifty,lol! Oh another forum there was a mention of Canada, so now I just thought of NIFTE Niagara International Frontier Tomato Enthusiasts.
I'm going to send you an email.

Carolyn,
I know you would come if you could! I agree about upstate. Everyone around here calls it western NY or the Niagara frontier. I don't know if you remember the post(If you do, sorry for the repeat : ) ) of when I met Garrison Keillor at a book signing. My husband started to quote him about one of his characters, Irene Bunsen, that is a crazed tomato grower in reference to me. I got my book back and it said "For Remy, The Tomato Queen of Upstate NY" I looked at it and wanted to say to him, you made a mistake, Carolyn is Upstate, I'm western NY, lol.(And for anyone who does not know me, in no way do I really think I'm the queen of anything, lol.)
I wish there was a way to correct posts, not only did I write S.C. instead of N.C., I forgot the n in announcement, lol.
Remy

Here's a couple more:

BOPTAG (Buffalo Open Pollinated Tomato Associate Growers)
BHOPTAG (Buffalo Heirloom Open Pollinated...) (or Buffalo Hybrid & Open Pollinated...)

Those two closely resemble CHOPTAG & MAGTAG format.

NIAGARAfest (Niagara Immediate Area Growers And Related (or Relatives &) Associates fest.)

VIAGRAfest (never mind..)

Carolyn shot down UNYpalooza...

I don't mind the term "Upstate" if it sounds better, though Western NY is more locally recognized here. Don't forget, our milk is branded "Upstate Milk" snd I think some soft drinks the fine print says "Upstate Bottling."

To get your "nifty" carry the "i" from Niagara...NiFTE

I guess nobody cares for BANFATfest (Buffalo And Niagara Frontier All Tomato fest) lol

Hi,
Just bumping this back up!
Remy

Falls Area Regional Tomato Tasting

;)

Hortist,
LOL! I don't think anyone will be wanting to attend a FARTT party.
Remy

Is this a closed party? I'm new to this list and would like to hear more.

I think all the names sound nifty.

Sue...who would love to vacation up yon way next year.

Hope all goes well. How exciting!

Hi Corginerdgardener,
No it is not a closed party. There is going to be a great mix of people(coming from all over including Canada,) and tomatoes : ) Besides what I originally wrote, we are going to have prizes for best, largest, and ugliest tomato.
If you are interested in attending please email me or Mark/Korney19 for directions. I am going to the CHOPTAG(Cincinnati Tomato) party this weekend so if you email me I won't be on as computer until later next week.

Sue,
That sounds like a great idea. Save your pennies! You can come to the party and see Niagara Falls, etc.! I would love to have you come. I'm a great tour guide : )
Remy

OK, It's 10 days away...

Who is attending for sure?

Who thinks they are probably or most likely attending?

Who is thinking about it but still undecided?

We are hoping to have somewhere between 100-150 varieties to taste. I will probably also try to bring my seed collection if possible for those looking for something not represented.

There is very little duplication between my 2007 varieties and Remy's 2007 varieties--maybe just a few.

Post if you are coming or thinking about it, and what you may be bringing. Grand Island is about 10-15 minutes from Niagara Falls or Buffalo, many can plan a vacation around this weekend, with tourist sites, casinos, nightlife, entertainment, attractions, factory outlet malls/shopping, great local food, etc. Rooms nearby are as low as around $100 for 2 nights stay if you want to make a Friday to Sunday weekend out of it...

Thanks.

Mark

I'm still planning on making it, though it's looking like a day-trip for us because my husband reminded me that we have tickets to a Genesis concert for Sunday evening.

I'm also feeling a little antsy about my tomatoes, a lot of green currently, no current signs of blushing even. I'm hoping to be able to bring any at this point. No problems with some of my other plants though. :/

Hi Mark,
I wrote the list that I can remember on the Upstate Forum. I did not hear back from Corginerdgardener. Did you?
Remy

Hi Peguingardener,
We posted at the same time : ) Don't worry about amount! Mark has enough to cover us all, lol. Remember there are prizes for Best, Ugliest, and Biggest by weight. It only takes one to win.
Gottagarden would like to see us add Sweetest to the list. If anyone else has a suggestion, please tell us now!

Oh and I have Friday off so I will be making my famous meat-on-a-stick!
Remy

Penguin, did you know that Genesis is playing in Buffalo the night of the tastefest? (I'm pretty sure...unless it's Van Halen...)

Largest
Smallest?
Best Tasting
Ugliest
Prettiest?
Sweetest?
Tangiest/Most acidic/strongest?

Meat on a stick? City Chicken?

"Penguin, did you know that Genesis is playing in Buffalo the night of the tastefest? (I'm pretty sure...unless it's Van Halen...)"

Mark, I don't know if I want to even mention that to my husband! I don't know what we'd do about a sitter! ;)

Mark,
I make marinated meats thin sliced and woven onto skewers. I do teriyake beef, cuban chicken or pork. They are quick and easy to cook. People always go crazy for it. We are also going to have Sahlen's hot dogs. Tomatoaddict showed late at CHOPTAG and missed out. They went quick! At least she will get a hot dog this time.

All told we are going to have a nice bunch of people : )
Remy

To clarify the term UPSTATE in NY. Please visit the site to view a regional map by color. I would insert it if I knew how to do it.

UpState New York Regional Map
Click on any of the regions below for phone numbers to receive additional information about UpState New York.

We have added phone numbers for the following organizations in each region of UpState NY: municipal and county Chambers of Commerce, Regional Tourism Bureaus, County Information Centers, Visitor Information Centers and others. We hope this will help you find out additional information about the area of UpState New York you are interested in.
We would appreciate you letting people know that you heard about them from our UpState New York WWW page:
(http://www.rawood.com/upstateny).
Thanks, and please stop by again!

Thousand Islands-Seaway : The Adirondacks : Niagara Frontier : Finger Lakes : Central Leatherstocking : Capital-Saratoga : Chautauqua-Allegheny : The Catskills : Hudson Valley

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Copyright ©1995-2004 by R. A. Wood Associates.

Hi All I'll try the map thing again!

My wife and I are wondering if It is open to the hybrid tomato varieties also.

larry

Larry, it's open to ANY tomato! And for those that can't bring tomatoes just bring something else ;-) See Remy's guidelines at the top regarding food/drink/beer/vodka & PJ's Crystal Beach Diet Loganberry, etc...ooops!

Mark,
"vodka & PJ's Crystal Beach Diet Loganberry", LOL! Now that is a drink to get sick on. Though I believe it wasn't diet when I was young and stupid enough to drink large quantities of that!

Larry,
Interesting about your map. I know it a bit different. Western NY is usually considered west of Rochester and south so what you have mapped as Niagara Frontier and Chautauqua/Allegany is all inclusive in the term WNY. Now what you have mapped of Chautauqua/Allegany and heading east along the bottom of NY towards Elmira(so the southern part of the Fingerlakes section) is known to me as the Southern Tier. To me Niagara Frontier is the northern 1/2 of what you have labeled as Niagara Frontier. The central Buffalo area has no secondary term like the other parts of WNY that I can think of at the moment.
Anyway, yes, as Mark said, any tomato is good!
Remy

Is there a preference for more dishes or desserts to bring?

I've recently been making weekly Sam's Club visits, so I can also bring any sort of supply type items from there. What's needed?

Mark,
Are you bringing any Grubs or Green Giants?

Penguingardener,
I think we are now set on desserts. Hilde, my sis-in-law, and Ginny are bringing some. We are set on supplies, because the cottage is the family party place, so that kind of stuff is good. I've got meat covered as you know. I think we are going to be overflowing in food!lol. Well, better to have too much than not enough. Not everyone coming has told me what they are bringing. Since you are traveling here, maybe some table snacks like pretzels or that kind of stuff? Of course if you would love to make something, I am not adverse to it : )

Remy

I will bring both GMG & GG if I have ripe ones. Both plants are loaded but they are hard to tell when ripe by looks, you have to get in there and feel them up close. Are you bringing them too?

I will try to make an assessment of what varieties later this week... some that I'm growing aren't great for flavor but rather unique plant characteristics.... variegated dwarf plants, tri-pinnate leaves (3 ''end'' leaves instead of 1), white flowers & green striped fruits, PL dwarf plants, etc. Even something quite similar to ''Stick'' but dwarf.

Everything may depend on weather too--if we get any downpours between now & then, they'll split & rot unless I keep a watchful eye on the weather radar and have enough warning & time to pick them early.

The other worry is if I'll have enough of each variety. How many is enough? I can't say how many will be ripe at the same time.

I am still debating on a dish... maybe basil garlic pork chops (finish them onsite)...Annie's Salsa (3 different heats, from sweet to hot, all made with heirloom tomatoes, garlic, onions & peppers from the garden)... maybe the PJ's loganberry if somebody brings the other half needed... many people don't even know what loganberry is outside of WNY!

Other concerns:

Sharpie marker(s)
pens/pencils
notepad
3x5 index cards or labels
tape
knives to prepare the maters
paper towels/napkins
cheese/crackers?
bread/lettuce/mayo/bacon? (BLT's anyone?)
etc...
somebody bring toothpicks...

Hmm, looks like meats and desserts are covered. Ok, I'm now thinking of preparing veggies for roasting. I can bring the veggies whole (with herbs) no problem for the trip, then prep there before tossing on the grill (like Mark's basil garlic pork chop idea).

Maybe we'll bring some beer and juice boxes too.

Mark,
I saw rain for Friday. Hopefully it is not much. Of course that can change between now and then! I have a bunch of varieties that hopefully will look ripe on Friday.
For tasting Mark, one or two of each normal to big size tomato is good. One for display on the plate, one to cut up. They really need to be smaller pieces so no one gets too full trying them. I even quartered my cherries at CHOPTAG.

I have a multitude of pens and sharpies. At CHOPTAG most people wrote directly on the plates, near the edge of course, of what it was on them.
I'm bringing Knives and so is Hilde. I know there are some in the kitchen there. If you want to bring more that would be nice.
I have plates, napkins, and plastic utensils. I can pick up toothpicks at work.

Penguingardener,
That would be fine, because you can finish prepping everything in the kitchen real easily.
Remy

Do we have a coordinated list of stuff yet so we don't have everyone bringing noodle salads?

I guess everyone bringing maters to enter will be looking to get their name on this:

{{gwi:1373005}}

Because of the faults of my color laser printer, I went with an assortment of tomatoes varous colors & shapes for the border. The pic below is reduced from original size.

I will make similar award certificates for all the categories.

Each winner will receive multiple heirloom tomato seed packs, on the spot if I bring them, or mailed to them if I don't have them there. Plus I think there are other prizes too.

Please make sure we know you are attending in advance--besides, that's the only way to get the address directions!

Contact Remy thru GW or me thru my matermark at gmail dot com address.

Mark

"Plus I think there are other prizes too."
Mark,
There are prizes! Wait until you see them. I'll have to make sure pics are taken of them.
Remy

Apologies, I was not able to do a beer run today for tomorrow. I did get some apple juice though. Don't know about NY, but in PA, liquor is purchased in a state store, not grocery stores like many other states.

But, I didn't think I'd have any tomatoes to bring, I will have 1 variety! :)

Hi Penguingardener,
I'm happy to hear you got one coming! It only takes one to win a prize : )
That's ok about the beer. Beer can be purchased right in a grocery or convenience store here. If we end up need it or anything else someone can just make a run to the store. It is weird about the beer stores in PA. I remember from when we stayed in Hershey.
Looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow.
Remy

Hi All! Thanks to Remy & Family & Korney19 for setting up a very nice gathering on the GI to taste tomatoes. I havn't ever been to one and the wife and I had a very pleasent time. Meeting and visiting with you all. This was the perfact size to get started in such endevers. To taste a little of what this type of event is like. We also enjoyed the tomato tasting/eating. The food was also excellent says Dawn, I was sort of full of tomatoes so I resolved to only eat a dog and bun. Its 6:54 pm and I'm still stuffed. So Thank you all very much for having us to the event.

remy or Mark(aka Korney19) could you post the winners of the cirtificates. So all the attendees will know.

larry

Hi Larry,
I'm so glad you can and had a great time. Your salsa was excellent! I'm going to start a new post with the results : )
Remy

Can anyone point me to the "results" page.

Korney, how did Spud 117 fair?

D.