This is one cool place!…read more I've been to two classes here recently and absolutely love what Wellspring is all about. It's a CSA, it's a bed and breakfast, it's a working farm, and it's an educational facility. The classes I took were Introduction to Cheesemaking and Advanced Cheesemaking. Both were taught by Herbalist and Cheesemaker Linda Conroy. And each six hour session was packed with so much great information I could not take notes fast enough. We received an eight page packet full of recipes, food sourcing information, and additional tips and links, which was a good base for our learning that day. In the intro class we learned to make our own butter from fresh (the cow was milked less than 24 hours before the class) dairy cream. It was much easier than I expected and voila, we had butter for our fresh baked sourdough bread that would be served at lunch. The we learned, hands-on, how to make fresh feta cheese. Because the process requires significant drying time Linda had finished product to share - both for our lunch, and to take home. We packed the dense white chunks into small canning jars with sprigs of fresh rosemary and filled the jars with extra virgin olive oil. Linda explained that the rosemary would infuse the oil and the porous cheese and preserve it without refrigeration indefinitely. She also shared variations on the starter recipe to make both paneer and farmer's cheese. Lunch at both classes was the most gourmet of farm to table spreads. We had fresh churned butter on fresh baked salt crusted sourdough. Linda made a delectable egg and vegetable baked and shared many of her fabulous canned goods. There was applesauce, and candied kumquats. Cherries and olives. And everything was divine. The afternoon of the basic class consisted of finishing up our feta and then making a 30 minute mozzarella to take home. The advanced class began with how to make aged gouda and aged cheddar for your home cheese cave. We learned to press the fresh curds into molds and continually extract the whey. After lunch we pulled the cheese from the forms and learned the aging process, as well as flavors we could incorporate into each cheese. Our final project of advanced class was creating squeaky and fun curds from scratch. And as good as those taste you would not believe how simple the process was. And taste testing the warm little nuggets was pretty cool too. I never would have imagined learning all the concepts and techniques that I did, but thanks to Linda and Francie from Wellspring, learning like this is accessible to anyone. I absolutely see myself going back for other classes. Cooking with Herbs, and Brunch Class have peaked my interest right now. But I check their site often to see what new classes have been added and I highly recommend that you do the same!

I signed up for the CSA here this spring b/c I didn't know if there would be any farmers' markets…read moreopen due to Covid. The fact that there were still openings available this late in the season should have been my first red flag--most of the better CSAs are sold out long before this. In a nutshell, while I'm sure these folks MEAN well, the end result has been disappointing, to say the least. First of all, according to the website, I would be able to pick up my box from the dropoff location between 3 AM and 8 PM. As I work 2nd shift, this sounded great; I'd be able to pick up in the morning before work. However, immediately before pickups were to begin, an email was sent out saying we could pick up between 4 PM and 8 PM. This is a problem--I'm at work from noon to 8:30 or 9 PM. A friend was willing to do the pickup for me, so I found a solution, but even though I notified Wellspring that the pickup time was WAY off, I don't think it's been corrected on the site yet. I signed up for a small share, and they're not kidding, it is small indeed. Some of it is what I'd call "junk" produce. I received purslane twice, which, although edible, is a weed and doesn't really require cultivation. I received violet leaves, which are only borderline edible, and the same thing about not needing cultivation. I received "broccoli greens", which are the leaves cut from the broccoli plants, but interestingly, I have not received any actual broccoli. This all gives the impression that the CSA shares don't get the "real" produce, only the stuff that can't be sold elsewhere b/c no one would buy it. I received yellow crookneck squash that had been allowed to get so large that the lower portion was entirely seeds and thus useless; the neck was so tough that it was inedible. I suspect that they allowed gourds to cross-pollinate with their squash, likely not knowing any better. The zucchini also has been allowed to get too big and is mushy inside. I've been receiving onions and garlic regularly, but since these are FALL crops, they haven't been dried/cured so they will keep. I don't consider it a bonus that I get to do that part... The website goes on about the advantage of getting FRESH produce, but much of what I've received appeared to have been harvested LONG before it got to me, or else was indeed harvested recently but stored incorrectly. Within a few days of receiving it, I have to pick slimy bits out of my salad mix. The eggplant I stored in a plastic bag in the fridge has shriveled and gone soft in less than a week. Some of my tomatoes were showing sunken spots when I received them. I don't expect "supermarket perfect" produce, but I don't expect produce that is on the edge of being spoiled, either. It has not been a terrible year for growing, so I don't believe these problems can be put off onto bad weather. I suspect that it's more a failure of knowledge and perhaps labor problems, too. I understand that part of being in a CSA is to help share the risk of bad weather and other crop problems, but this seems to be a very different sort of problem. Overall, the impression is that Wellspring is scrambling every week to find something, anything, to put in the CSA boxes. I understand that organic produce costs more than conventional, but I am quite sure I could go to Outpost and get much more produce (locally grown, organic, better quality) for my money than I'm getting at this CSA. I grew up on a dairy farm and we always had a huge garden. I am VERY familiar with what to expect in terms of quality and freshness from real "garden fresh" produce, and sadly, Wellspring falls short much of the time. I wish the best for everyone there, but I will definitely not be returning, at least not anytime soon.

Great communications and high-quality produce. Nice selection. Good recipes too!read more

Nickel and Rose was the first acoustic band and they threw serious sound that really had great…read moresound and spoke a good vibe. I am feeling a lot of love for this duo.

Once a 9 hole golf course and country club, many investors have pooled their knowledge, resources…read moreand expertise into what is now Riverview Gardens. Owned by the Cots organization, this project, now in it's second year, aims to use the grounds to grow food and feed those in the Appleton food desert. Riverview serves as a means to establish work habits and provide jobs, paid and unpaid, for many in the community. Many hoop houses have been erected, and garden beds are being prepared. Food bearing plants are being added to those already in place outside of the hoop houses. Sound organic principals are being practiced under the able leadership of Oren Jakobson. Certain areas of the grounds are dedicated to park like persuits. The former Country Club is being made into a community center. Volunteer driven. This addresses many needs of the community. They'd love to have you stop by and chip in.

You can't go wrong with their Winter CSA share. My only regret is that I shared my share with a…read morefriend. We really, would have liked to have hoarded the whole thing for ourselves. The breads and baked goods were especially welcoming in the Wintertime. They offered a cranberry hickory nut bread around Christmastime that really made our holidays extra special. I liked that it was a savory bread in a season that offers up way too many sweets. My husband's favorite bread was the greens bread that came later and was full of the Wintery greens you crave. We would slice up the loaves and freeze them using them for toast all week. Heavenly! I have only three slices of bread left, as we have received our last share for the Winter. I had to alternate weeks when I got the bread loaf with my friend and am very envious that she got the oatmeal loaf on this final delivery. My other favorites were the breakfast cookie with whole grains and blueberries and the quinoa muffins. I am trying my best to recreate them, but falling short of my goal. Canned goods were also something I alternated with my friend. Next year I am getting my own damn share because I missed out on the applesauce as that was her week! I can vouche for some incredibly good sauces that made dinner preparation easy and delicious. And I have a jar of pickles to look forward to from the final delivery. Their Granola is really special. Not the toasted kind I make, but I think a dehydrator granola. Really surprisingly yummy. And the New Century Farm eggs were appreciated. It's Winter, so mostly root veggies and squash with some greens in the mix. Next year there will be more greens and more veggie variety. I can't wait. Please try this out. They are pleasant to work with, love what they do, and write about it well in their newsletters. I am hoping they will share some of their baked good recipes.

Beware!!! They did my catering for my recent wedding and as soon as she got my deposit everything…read morewent downhill! When I first started emailing Yvonne, she was very helpful and quick to respond to all my emails, and like I said, as soon as she received my 50% deposit she would not respond to me by email or phone. This whole process was made even more difficult because I was planning my wedding out of state. My husband, mother, and mother-in-law and myself all went for a tasting. Yvonne was nice in person, and the food was great, but on my wedding day the food was not what it was at the tasting. My mother and mother-in-law raved to everyone how great the food was, and then to get what we got at my wedding was a disappointment. Not only was this an issue, but the biggest and most unprofessional issue came when Yvonne emailed me the MORNING of my wedding to let me know they made a mathematical error in their spreadsheet and I owed them $693.00! I had just got to my reception when she cornered me in the hallway, and said I needed to sign a contract saying that within 7 days I needed to pay this amount or she would not serve the food. I told her that I needed to talk with Josh, my husband first, and she said again that I needed to sign this contract. Yvonne also told me that I had 10 extra plate settings at my wedding that I did not account for, which was completely wrong! Yet another very unprofessional and disappointing issue was that I asked about what happens to the leftovers and Yvonne told me that there are not always leftovers and if there are they go to feeding her staff. The next morning I looked in the fridge, in the kitchen that she used, and she did leave behind leftovers, but just left them in the baking tins with no cover, plastic wrap, or anything. I did end up paying her the $693.00 and asked for Yvonne to email me once she received the check and I never heard back from her. Frankly, I wish I would have never paid her that money, because she certainly did not deserve it! Yvonne was not only rude through this whole process, but she was the most unprofessional vendor I had to deal with. She seemed frazzled at the wedding, and maybe that's why she never got back to my emails, maybe she has too much on her plate...but then maybe you shouldn't be running a catering business!!!

What an absolute gem of a farm and the family that owns it! My husband and I took our boys there…read moreto meet the Easter Bunny. They had such an adorable set up in a cute cabin and the photographer was really great with my boys. The bunny was friendly and had a kind face that was welcoming to my toddler twin boys! It was rainy and muddy, but the family that owns the farm was so kind and welcoming! They had baby chicks that the kids could pet and had set up a great egg hunt around the farm! My boys were very interested in the chickens and goats! I definitely hope to visit Godsell Farm in the future and would highly recommend to anyone else as well!

I think I learned about this farm with a Google search last year and stored it for a future pumpkin…read morepatch visit. You park in the lot and walk to the Welcome Center to pay the $5 per person admission, which includes the hayride with hay bales (not lame wooden benches with a few strands of straw on it like most places), haunted maze, bread for feeding the farm animals and touring the grounds. Pumpkins range in price from $3 to $6, and you pick them in patch. Animals include horses, ponies, pigs, a llama, a donkey, a cow, turkeys, goats, chickens, and ducks. The staff is extremely welcoming and friendly! Godsell Farm is my new favorite place for pumpkin picking and affordable Fall family fun! It is a MUST visit! You still have time this year yet!

I didn't even know that the farmers market was going on where I was having breakfast so this was a…read moreplus because I had a cooler with ice packs in the trunk, you never know what you will find on a day trip. As I left breakfast I took a walk through the farmers market and noticed some fresh Asian food being cooked on a grill. A band was setting up but I would be gone before it started. It went on for blocks with lots of veggies and something I don't see in the Milwaukee area farmers market, fresh strawberry's so I got a container. I saw a little girl dressed in Amish clothes at a fresh baked goods stand so I stopped because I have never had Amish baked goods. Everything looked amazing and I took a mini rhubarb pie with me. As far as farmers markets go it's not the big Maddison kind but it's not the worst that I have been to.

Love the Farmer's Market.... We never miss it. My husband and children and myself enjoy all the…read moredelicious items they have to offer... We love the farm veggies... The delicious egg rolls... And the Amish Bakery.... We never miss it!!!

Very friendly service. Plenty of produce inside market. Well priced not over charged.read more