Sun Shower
SHARON SPRINGS, NEW YORK | SEPTEMBER 2022
Presented by Alaska Airlines
Upstate New York is idyllic in the golden, sunny time between summer and fall. We arrived to the quiet town of Sharon Springs just as the leaves were starting to turn; the landscape was all green and amber and the rust color of brick and late-season flowers left out in the sun — interrupted by occasional bursts of bright Beekman yellow. The goat milk skincare brand known for spreading kindness and saving sensitive skin calls Sharon Springs its home. Specifically, home is the Beekman 1802 mansion and farm just outside of town.
The 60-acre farm felt like a picture-book retreat, with a stark white house that could have been spun out of sugar overlooking pin-straight gardens scattered with pink roses and fragrant lavender. Next door, a big red barn housed the farm’s many goats, so fluffy and sweet that they, also, barely seemed real. Farmer John had few words for us, but always a hand to stroke a curious goat nuzzling his side and all the time in the world to let us get to know them, too.
We set up our table in the sprawling green lawn behind the gardens, looking at the sky with every glass set and napkin folded. The forecast was ever-changing but seemed to be threatening rain, despite sunny blue skies stretching wide above. At times like these, we tend to defer to the locals. They know the eccentricities of their weather patterns, when to trust the forecast and when to disregard. The consensus was that there would be no rain.
Guests arrived for a sunny cocktail hour, where everyone was in high spirits as they sipped welcome drinks from Brothers Bond Bourbon and took in the exquisite surroundings. We sat down to dine together with a few fluffy clouds in the distance, but it seemed all threats of rain were off for the evening. The first courses from Chef Alex Lempka were gorgeous and colorful, with Smithey cast iron perfectly framing the bounty of local ingredients he had selected to show off the season.
Then, the rain came.
We’ve seen a lot of different weather over the years of our Suppers, and dealt with countless different surprises, but this was one of the very few times we really didn’t know what to do. It started pouring out of nowhere while the service team was carrying a course out to the table! No one expected it, and no one was prepared. The rain was so intense that the cooking tents collapsed, and Chef Alex and his team just kept going, keeping the Camp Chefs sizzling hot and preparing the next course while getting soaking wet.
At the table, we hopped up and rushed everyone under the mansion’s wrap around porch, where we served the main course and dessert standing. Everyone got wet, but with good food and conversation, no one seemed to care.
For better of worse, this turned into one of or more memorable Suppers, and a reminder that at the core of what we do is a sense of adventure, and a strong belief that with good company, whatever happens can simply add to a good story later.
WELCOME
The afternoon started with a sunny cocktail hour in the gardens behind the Beekman Mansion, with two cocktails from Brother’s Bond Bourbon to match.
Both the Upstate Lemonade and Hotel Tropicalé offered a refreshing start to what looked like a beautiful summer day…
A MENU BY ALEX LEMPKA
Chef Alex Lempka has been cooking creative, seasonally-driven food at Hamlet & Ghost in downtown Saratoga Springs for years. He brought his tight-knit team to create a beautiful late-summer menu, wandering through the gardens before service to pull some herbs and edible flowers to complete his plates.
We were especially grateful to Alex and his team for continuing to cook and serve their amazing meal after the cooking tents collapsed in the rainstorm! Everyone on the service team got absolutely drenched, and worked through it like the hospitality masters that they are.
MENU
WELCOME
Steak Tartare this year’s ramps, aioli, salsa roja, barley
Ahi Tuna mango, salsa amarillo, red shiso
Poblano Relleno preserved tomato, sweet onion, farro, cotija
Cocktails
Upstate Lemonade Brother’s Bond Bourbon, Grand Marnier, lemon, simple, club soda
Hotel Tropicalé Brother’s Bond Bourbon, apricot brandy, pineapple, lime, simple
FIRST
Chestnut & Oyster Mushrooms vadouvan, smoked pepita, salsa verde
SECOND
Delicata Squash, Cauliflower, Mornay Alpha Tolman, Beekman 1802 farm goat cheese, maize
MAIN
Lamb Shank mole nardello, anise hyssop
Papa Istemana
DESSERT
Horchata Rice Pudding bunuelo, chamomile, fennel pollen
Warm Tepache
WINE PAIRINGS
For this Supper, Danielle personally curated pairings to compliment Chef Alex’s menu, sharing a few of her favorite selections (including the Rodney Strong Chardonnay she is seen pouring here).
NIGHTCAP
The sudden rainstorm drove everyone under the Beekman Mansion’s wraparound porch for the second half of the meal, so dessert was served standing. Luckily, everyone was game to accept the summer storm as part of the party. We enjoyed rice pudding and warm Tepache (alongside an extra pour of Brother’s Bond Bourbon) while watching the rain pass over the rolling hills from the porch’s panoramic viewpoint.
As the sky cleared, the evening erupted into a beautiful sunset, completing the experience with a color-swathed sky after the sudden greyscale.
SECRET LOCATION: BEEKMAN 1802
William Beekman built the pristine mansion on Beekman Farm in 1802. His story is an incredible one, starting with him becoming an orphan at sea and fighting as a child in the Revolutionary War, evolving into him becoming the first Judge in Schoharie County and later a US Senator. He died on the farm he built in 1845.
The compelling story of the property doesn’t stop with its builder. The nearby town of Sharon Springs, once popular as a summer getaway for Manhattanites due to its mineral spring waters, has mostly been passed over by history. But, Josh Kilmer-Purcell and Dr. Brent Ridge were driving through in the early 2000’s and stumbled upon the mansion, which had just undergone a multi-year restoration, for sale. They moved in, and through several serendipitous interactions and a bit of small-town networking, ended up with an organic farm, a herd of 60 goats, and a neighbor, John Hall, as their caretaker.
Brent and Josh started selling goats milk soap made in their kitchen, then starred in a reality TV show about their journey to gentleman farming. Josh wrote a memoir cataloguing their experience. The couple went on to win the Amazing Race in 2012, and have since transformed the Beekman name into an international beauty and lifestyle brand. The mansion and the big red goat barn have stood through it all, a beautiful backdrop to the couple’s ever-growing empire.
While the story is spectacular, the grounds are even more so, from the layer-cake lines of the house to the perfectly manicured gardens it overlooks, to the baby goats rollicking in the green pastures that face into the distance.
