Three Colorado-proud natural products from the Vail Farmers' Market and Art Show.
Three Colorado-proud natural products from the Vail Farmers' Market and Art Show.
There’s a whole lot of Colorado pride stacked on my desk and it’s contagious. The origin? Vail Farmers’ Market and Art Show, where I spent several hours weaving through the streets, talking with local growers and manufacturers and collecting information on the diverse products that blossom during summers in Vail Village.
What I appreciate most about this farmers’ market is that, while Vail’s climate doesn’t always allow for cultivating the same variety of local produce as other parts of the country or state, the stands still swell with fresh natural goods produced in the Rocky Mountains. These unique products say, We’re from Colorado and you’re going to like it. Here are a few of my favorite finds.
High-T Snacks Hawaiian Crispy Wafers
The first taste test on my tour de Vail Farmers’ Market, I was instantly obsessed with these low-cal wafer cookies. The company’s owner Tammy Yoshimura brought the traditional Japanese snack to Colorado after moving from Hawaii to Alamosa, and now offers flavors like Caramel Cinnamon, Raspberry Chocolate, and my favorite, Roasted Sesame Seed. Fun fact: For a festive party treat, you can heat them up and mold them into various shapes, like ice cream cones and fortune cookies (prior origami experience recommended but not required).
Smith & Truslow freshly ground organic spices
Ditching salt and adding flavor with herbs and spices is easy when you have fresh, high-quality options in your pantry. Some awesome local restaurants like Root Down and Linger have chosen Denver-based Smith & Truslow’s USDA Organic spices, and after meeting the company’s founder in Vail I will too. Freshly ground in small batches, these spices are packed in airtight, dark-glass jars to preserve flavor and health benefits. Purchase them individually or choose from box-set assortments like “Herb Garden,” “A Year in Provence,” or “Greek Goddess.”
This mountain-based raw-honey company not only formulates each variety of honey to taste deliciously sweet and complex but also to address your health concerns. “Arthritis-Bee-Gone” contains cinnamon and turmeric to help combat joint inflammation. And the whole line is aimed at alleviating symptoms of seasonal allergies, using small bits of pollen to function like an allergy shot, according to the company.
