Pet goats, learn to grow garlic, sip a cocktail at this unique Pierce County festival
Bulbs of heirloom garlic and Nigerian dwarf goats are the focus of a one-day-only outdoor festival in Wilkeson on Sunday.
Hosted by Simple Goodness Sisters, a cocktail syrup company that opened a cafe and bar in the former coal-mining town two years ago, this family friendly event on Aug. 21 promises fuzzy friends, farming lessons, flowers and food.
The free festival kicks off at 11 a.m. at 535 Church Street, next to the Simple Goodness Sisters Soda Shop. Look for the grassy lot between the bar and the old Washington Hotel, which is currently undergoing renovations.
Also complimentary is the goat-petting zoo, where kids (and adults!) can get close to a friendly herd of Nigerian dwarfs, a West African breed beloved for their playful nature, unusual spotting and small stature — their ideal height is under two feet and weight under 75 pounds. They also produce one to two quarts of milk a day, making them “good candidates for small-scale milk production,” according to the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy.
A pop-up farmers market will feature vendors from as nearby as Buckley, Enumclaw and Bonney Lake and as far as the Yakima Valley.
Garlic being the star here, the allium will be available both as bulbs ready for cooking and for planting. At 2 p.m., tune into an educational session on growing garlic.
A winter crop, it’s best planted in October — meaning now is “the perfect time to buy garlic,” said Venise Cunningham, owner of the Simple Goodness Farms in Buckley that kick-started the “farm-to-bottle” syrup enterprise she runs with her sister, Belinda Kelly.
Two sisters, a farm and a great idea: A cocktail bar and soda shop in one
The family farm now grows a multitude of herbs — lavender, mint, sage, rosemary, thyme — that form the flavor foundation of the brand’s drink syrups, but Cunningham started with garlic.
As a new farmer almost a decade ago, she picked it after learning it was “the most profitable thing to grow on small acreage.” The seeds can be expensive, so it’s important to save part of your harvest to replant the following year. She hosted a casual “garlic sale” one year that blossomed into a full-blown garlic festival and farmers market, with up to 800 attendees in its last year.
Garlic & Goats marks the return of this tradition, albeit at a new location 15 minutes down the road.
Cunningham and Kelly have curated a vendor lineup that revolves around food and farming in varying capacities.
It includes coconut soy and wood-wick candles from Maple Valley’s Horse and Coal, hand-dyed yarn and crochet items from Find Your Joy Fiber Arts and goat-milk soap from Karmakee Farm in Yelm. From Black Diamond, Nanny Goats & Blooms will offer fresh-cut flowers, along with Cattle and Cut Flowers from Enumclaw. There also will be handmade salves and balms.
In the food realm, take home bottles of CB’s Sauces, a Bonney Lake business that offers “sweet heat,” barbecue and mustard sauces. Gramma Berta’s Pantry will also be there with jams and other homemade canned foods. Bright Ide Acres, a family-owned meat producer in Orting, will sell its pork, rabbit and poultry.
Of course, find garlic from Wapato-based Kreuger Pepper Farms and the hosts’ Simple Goodness Farms.
The soda shop will be open, serving sandwiches and charcuteries boards with local cheese, house spreads and pickled things, as well as ice cream and other sweet treats including milkshakes and sundaes. While the kids play, order a seasonal cocktail to enjoy in the pastoral — and dog-friendly — backyard patio equipped with tables, chairs and cornhole.
GARLIC & GOATS FESTIVAL AT SIMPLE GOODNESS SISTERS SODA SHOP
▪ When: Aug. 21, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
▪ Where: 535 Church St., Wilkeson, in the grassy lot next to Simple Goodness Sisters Soda Shop, 360-761-7781
▪ Parking: Wilkeson Elementary, 640 Railroad Ave. (5-minute walk to venue)
▪ Details: free, family-friendly event featuring a farmers market, goat petting zoo and garlic growing lessons; Soda Shop will also be open for food, treats and drinks including beer, wine, cocktails and NA seltzers
▪ Follow instagram.com/simplegoodnesssisters for updates
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