Incorporating everything from a Shorthorn mart to a herdsman’s walk, the Burren Winterage Weekend offers a packed programme from Friday, October 28 to Sunday, October 30.
A celebration of the Burren’s farming tradition of Winterage, it showcases a range of farming, heritage, cultural and family events around the October Bank Holiday weekend every year.
Burren Winterage Weekend: What’s on?
Events on the Friday will include: ‘Transhumance, tradition and artisanal cheese tasting with Max Jones’ in St. Patrick’s Hall, Corofin, at 7:00p.m and a singing and storytelling evening at Whelan’s pub, Shanaglish, at 9:30p.m.
The programme for Saturday includes a herdsman’s walk with Patrick McCormack at 11:00a.m; book reading, poetry reading and discussion with authors James Rebanks and Jane Clarke at 6:30p.m; a creative writing workshop on nature for children with Shane Casey at 11:00a.m; a Samhain ‘Feel the Burren’ challenge at noon; a Burren pine project visit at 11:00a.m; and a Shorthorn mart at 11:00a.m.
Farming for Nature (FFN) is holding other events as part of its annual Farming for Nature gathering at the Burren Winterage Weekend.
On Saturday, 29 these include: A farm walk in the Burren from 10:00a.m until noon; FFN farmer-led panel discussions from 1:30p.m to 5:00p.m; and the FFN awards ceremony from 8:00p.m to 9:00p.m.
The Burren Winterage cattle drive, a community walk with a Burren farming family as they walk their cattle to the winter pastures, will take place on the Sunday 30 11.00a.m.
This is a 4km loop walk, mostly on a gravel path and a short optional portion of steep and uneven farmland terrain. Numbers are limited and pre-booking is essential.
Admission is €5 for Burrenbeo members and Burren pine project supporters and €10 for non-members. Children under 12 go free, but must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Food
For the first time, the Burren Food Fayre will be hosted on a farm in the heart of the Burren, in conjunction with the Burren Winterage weekend. It will be held on the Sunday and must be booked in advance.
With food demonstrations, tastings and a cookery session by Chef Robbie McCauley from Gregan’s Castle Hotel as well as storytelling and music sessions, it promises to be a great day for all the family.
This year the event will highlight GEOfood. The concept promotes food that is sourced and produced in UNESCO Global Geoparks.
So far, nine producers have signed up to the global brand. It emphasises the connections between local food and the food traditions and geological heritage of the region where the food is produced.
It aims to strengthen local livelihoods by connecting local food producers, restaurants, and retailers to each other. GEOfood increases opportunities for local people and visitors to savour and appreciate quality local food.
The producers are: Burren Gold Cheese, St. Tola Irish Goat Cheese; Burren Premium Beef; Burren Smokehouse; Burren Fine Wine and Food; Flaggy Shore Oysters; Linnalla Pure Irish Ice Cream; Burren Free Range Pork; and Wild Kitchen.
With long-standing traditions of food grown in the Burren, and a wide array of producers of both big and small-scale, GEOfood is a natural fit for The Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark.
Carol Gleeson from the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark, said that events such as the Burren Food Fayre give GEOfood producers an opportunity to network and promote and raise awareness of their offerings to restaurants, hoteliers, retailers, and the general public.
“GEOfood is about connecting people with a place through its food, and the Burren Food Fayre will do just that,” she said.
“It will allow GEOfood producers to tell their food stories – both geological and personal – and bridge the relationship between attendees and the land through their GEOfood produce.
“It is the first outdoor event where GEOfood will be promoted in the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark, and we are very excited about it.
“The event’s location of a working farm with an idyllic Burren backdrop, and the traditional Winterage cattle drive is the perfect embodiment of what the GEOfood brand is all about.”
Tickets are €5 each for Burren Beo members and €10 for non-members. The location of the farm will only be given once the ticket is bought due to limited space at the farm which is near Corofin.