At Sunday night’s monthly farm supper at Claverach Farm & Vineyard, a nearby woman’s face fell when she learned we’d be posting something on Relish about the experience. “I don’t want anyone else to know about it,” she whispered. Given the tranquil setting along the Meramec River, the gorgeous refurbished barn, and the delicious food served at the dinner, she has a point.
Claverach’s charm begins well before you see the barn: for nearly two miles, a single-lane gravel road takes you to your destination, over a rickety bridge, with views of the river along the way. The first sight of the barn overlooking the greenhouses conjures up waves of nostalgia for anyone who grew up on or around a farm. Gypsy, an Anatolian Shepherd/Great Pyrenees mix, greets guests in the manner of the best working dogs: uninterested in being pet, she hangs back, barking to alert your presence.
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A gravel courtyard fronting the barn contains a fire pit, where S’mores are sometimes roasted after dinners. Raised beds with herbs and potted olive, lime, and fig trees—all promising a bountiful summer— line the courtyard. Community tables fill the barn’s interior, which also holds a brick oven and the kitchen. Chef Ryan McDonald, formerly of Monarch and currently an intern at the farm, prepared Sunday’s dinner.
A passed appetizer of goat-cheese, herbed flatbread (above left), cooked in the brick oven by Joanna Duley and Sam Hilmer (Claverach’s proprietors), and a crudité platter comprised of the farm’s spring harvest (above right)—baby turnips, asparagus, and pea shoots—were offered with the vineyard’s 2010 Green Wine. Frankly, we could have made a meal alone out of the warm, creamy flatbread and crisp spring vegetables, and the aperitif dispelled any lingering misperceptions about Missouri wines being subpar. (Local Harvest Grocery and Perennial Artisan Ales sell Claverach’s wines.)
An amuse bouche of Humboldt Fog cheese mousse, pickled Bull’s Blood Beets, and horseradish (above left) launched the meal. Main dishes , served family style, soon followed: a “Peas and Carrots” salad (above right), with pea shoots, shaved radishes, carrots, and arugula flowers topped with a carrot honey pistou; a mushroom nettle spoonbread; and pork confit (below left), with leek fondant, roasted hakurei turnips, and sherry jowl vinaigrette. It’s difficult to pick a favorite here as all were excellent, but the salad should be singled out for its freshness and beauty—one diner said it tasted like “earth,” in the best way possible—and the spoonbread, without a hint of hyperbole, was swoonworthy. Dessert—caramelized rosemary oranges (below right) with savory granola and yogurt—was the perfect admixture of sweet and savory, smooth and crunchy.
Community dining can be hit or miss, depending on who your neighbors are. Our guess is that you won’t want for interesting conversation at these Sunday Suppers. To our right sat Liz Fathman, who co-authored the recently published Missouri Harvest (Relish coverage here), and to our left were supper regulars, Bob and Nicole Klages, owner-operators of Painted Pasture Farm in Wildwood. As Fathman talked about the recent Slow Food dinner at Farmhaus with Eric Schlosser, and the Klageses explained how they farm using the Joel Salatin method, we couldn’t help but marvel at St. Louis’ food community.
Once night fell, the barn glowed magically in the dark, and the fire pit’s smoke wafted through the air, recalling memories of bonfires past. Lit hurricanes lining the path guided us to our car as we walked away, reluctant to leave such a special place. We sympathize with the woman who wants Claverach’s Sunday Suppers to remain a secret. But with Slow Food’s Feast in the Field again being held at Claverach on June 3, we think the word is out.
To be added to Claverach’s mailing list for notification of future events, contact Joanna Duley at [email protected]. Ryan McDonald will be cooking at another Sunday Supper on May 13 and at a Wine Dinner on Saturday, May 26. Upcoming guest chefs include Blood & Sand’s Chris Bork on Sunday, May 27 and Something Elegant Catering’s Linda Pilcher on Sunday, June 24; a documentary crew will be filming the Sunday Supper on June 24.
Photo credits: Jenny Agnew and Ryan McDonald
