Be a Farmer for a Day with Eau Claire Distillery

Come stook grain bundles with Eau Claire Distillery’s majestic Percheron horses harvesting barley at Bar U Ranch National Historic Site.

The ultimate Alberta volun-tourism adventure in the Rocky Mountain Foothills awaits the bold and brawny willing to stook horse-harvested barley as it has been done since the 1800s. Onlookers and families welcome too.
Turner Valley, Alberta, August 16, 2016: Eau Claire Distillery and Bar U Ranch National Historic Site are inviting the public to be a part of their farm to glass movement. Spend the day with farmers in the field to help harvest the grain that will be used by Eau Claire Distillery to create their delicious, award-winning craft spirits.

The process will take place over the course of two days;

·         September 17, 2016 – Harvest (Binding and Stooking bundles of grain) – 10 am to 3 pm.

The Harvest invites participants to gather sheaves of barley grain cut by horse-drawn vintage farm gear in preparation for threshing. The process is called stooking and it protects and dries unthreshed grain from inclement weather elements – often ominous in Alberta. Snacks and refreshments on site.

·         October 1, 2016 – Threshing (collecting and processing the grain) – 10 am to 3 pm.

Threshing invites participants to work alongside the horses as we bring in the dried bundles of grain from the harvest and watch the straw separate from the grain. Snacks and refreshments on site.

“Our annual harvest is a unique event, utilizing 100-year-old horse farming equipment to complete the annual cycle of barley growing. We are thrilled to invite the public to see how we produce our grain and participate in the process – the only distillery in North America that farms its own grain by horses – truly farm to glass.” Says Eau Claire Distillery founder David Farran.

The Eau Claire Distillery Horse Harvest is a unique volun-tourism experience to harvest the barley planted this spring by horse on antique farm equipment at Canada’s historic working ranch at Bar U National Historic Site.

The Bar U Ranch sits along trout-rich Pekisko Creek with 35 historic structures and a visitor orientation centre with café. It’s a stone’s throw from Longview, Alberta (population 300 and home to one of the world’s 15 best steakhouses according to Conde Nast Traveller Magazine) just 60 km southwest of Calgary along the legendary Cowboy Trail.  It welcomes almost 20,000 visitors each year from Canada and around the world.

For information about this unique educational volunteer experience, contact Chelsea Barclay at 403-837-5400. To be part of the unique experience, please RSVP to info@eauclairedistillery.ca

Important Note: As with all farming, this day is subject to weather conditions. If in doubt, call Eau Claire Distillery to confirm it is still on. Long sleeves, trousers and gloves recommended.