There’s something about fall in the Finger Lakes that makes me want to grab my guitar and spend an evening playing songs somewhere with a good view. The hills change colors, the air gets a little sharper and suddenly that extra layer you brought along doesn’t seem like such an unnecessary thing to carry around.
Jeremiah Craig live at Bet the Farm on Friday, October 23rd at 5pm
I’ll be playing a solo show at Bet the Farm Winery in Trumansburg, NY, on Friday, October 23rd at 5pm. Come out for some folk music, a glass of local wine and a chance to slow down before another weekend gets away from us.
There’s also a pretty big milestone worth raising a glass to. Bet the Farm just celebrated their 20th anniversary!
Twenty years is a lot of harvests. A lot of decisions. A lot of showing up and doing the work even when things don’t go quite the way you planned. As someone who makes music and runs a small business, I have a lot of respect for that kind of commitment.
Nancy Tisch founded Bet the Farm in 2006, starting with a small shop in Aurora featuring locally produced foods and wines. Over time, that idea grew into the winery we know today.
They celebrated the anniversary on September 6th with a dinner featuring food from longtime collaborator Scratch Farmhouse Catering. Food, wine and people coming together. Seems like a pretty appropriate way to celebrate a business built around those things.
Enjoy amazing Finger Lakes wine
Bet the Farm makes red, white, rosé and sparkling wines, with an emphasis on balance and letting the fruit come through. Nancy describes her wines as fruit forward and food friendly, which sounds like a good starting point for an evening spent hanging out with friends.
Their vineyard includes Gamay, Cabernet Franc, Lemberger, Saperavi and Dornfelder. I like knowing that there’s so much happening right there in those rows. You can look out at a vineyard and see a beautiful landscape, but there’s also an entire year of work behind what eventually ends up in your glass.
That view is part of what makes Bet the Farm such a great place to spend some time. The vineyard, the open sky and the surrounding hills give you something to appreciate before the first song even starts. Add the changing season and you’ve got a pretty good reason to put your phone away for a while.
Fall around here has a way of getting your attention. There are the reds and yellows along the roads, the leaves moving across the pavement and that cool evening air that reminds you summer really did leave. October can keep us guessing, of course. I’m bringing music, not a weather guarantee. But whatever the day brings, this season makes a familiar drive feel a little different.
Music perfect for an autumn day
My music has a lot to do with that feeling of noticing where you are and figuring out where you’re headed.
Appalachian folk music was my first love, and I’ve always connected with the Celtic roots running through it. Those traditions are a foundation for my songwriting, but I also want to keep exploring. I like making something that feels familiar while still having its own direction.
For me, folk music is about stories and the emotion behind them. Sometimes the story gets you thinking. Sometimes it makes you laugh. Sometimes a song gives you a feeling that sticks around longer than you expected.
A solo show gives me room to share those songs in a pretty direct way. I’ll mix my original songs with familiar favorites and we’ll see where the evening takes us.
That’s one of the things I enjoy about playing places like this. You get to share an evening with people instead of just moving through a set list. There’s room for conversation, a little laughter and hopefully a song you’ll remember.
So join me Friday, October 23rd at 5pm at Bet the Farm Winery, 4204 Krums Corners Road in Trumansburg. Bring a friend, find a wine you enjoy and help me congratulate Nancy and Kit on twenty years of following their own path.