SFA Past Events
2008 – Southern Drinkways
The Liquid South, from Well Water to Sparkling Muscadine
October 23-26, 2008
The SFA celebrated the eleventh annual Southern Foodways Symposium, October 23-26, 2008, on the campus of the University of Mississippi in Oxford. We explored Southern drinkways, starting with water, the resource on which all life relies. Buttermilk got its due. And soft drinks, by way of a bootlegging survey that traces cane sugar Mexican Cokes and original recipe Dr. Peppers to their sources. We explored the tensions that define Southern attitudes about harder drink, too, in an effort to make sense of the quip, attributed to Will Rogers, “Southerners will drink wet and vote dry – so long as any citizen can stagger to the polls.” That meant a learned disquisition on drink imagery in Southern literature and film, and a look at the temperance movement as a religious impulse.
Louisville: Blue Grass and Brown Whiskey
July 11-13, 2008
In 2008 we traveled to Louisville, Kentucky, home of the “most exciting two minutes in sports,” and the arguable birthplace of the old fashioned. We played dainty, an only-in-Louisville game, in the streets of the city’s Schnitzelburg neighborhood. We gathered in the Rathskeller, beneath a tooled leather ceiling, to toast the work of Minnie Fox and the African American cooks she honored in the Blue Grass Cookbook.
We tasted Benedictine spread and Henry Bain sauce. We sipped brown whiskey from the state’s best distillers and red wine from grapes raised by a onetime tobacco farmer.
We dined on fried catfish at the All Wool and a Yard Wide Democratic Club, and tasted farm-fresh fare at Lilly’s. We sampled bourbon-marinated smoked fish. And bourbon barrel-aged sorghum.
Folks like Wendall Berry and Sarah Fritschner showed us the way, providing context and amplification.
August 22, 2008
6-9 p.m. at the Powerhouse
Corner, University Avenue and S. 14th Street, Oxford, MS
EATS: Potlikker Shots from Mama Jo’s of Oxford. And three catfish riffs, from across the South:
• Catawba River Salt and Pepper Catfish, Dan Huntley of the Carolinas
• Arkansas Rice-Crusted Catfish, Lee Richardson of Little Rock, Arkansas
• Thin-Shaved Catfish, the Ladies of Middendorf’s of Manchac, Louisiana
FILMS: King Corn, that muckraking take on our nation’s newfangled grain addiction. Plus Hotdogopolis, an homage to Greek hotdogs. And a short Joe York biopic, Eat or We’ll Both Starve, profiling Lynn Hewlett of Taylor Grocery fame.
MUSIC: Dent May DJ’s the Blount Box, a collection of food songs compiled by Roy Blount Jr.
DRINKS: Expect Jack Daniel’s Tea Punch and more, from Lazy Magnolia.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
5-8 p.m. @ WorkPlay Soundstage
500 23rd St. South, Birmingham, AL 35233
EATS showcasing the diversity of Southern cookery, as practiced in Birmingham and beyond.
- Ham Hock-Goosed Potlikker Shots, McKinley’s Soul Food
- Scorch-Your-Tongue Catfish, Hot and Hot Fish Club
- Flattop-Fried Pimento Cheese Sandwiches, Bottle Tree Café
- Greek Chili Dog Buffet, Curated by Salt Fine Catering
- Deep South Artisanal Cheese Tray, Curated by Whole Foods
- Mable’s Coconut Cream Pie, Jim ‘N Nick’s BBQ
FILMS from Alabama native, and SFA filmmaker, Joe York, in concert with Matthew Graves.
- Chicken Stew, a portrait of community feeds in and around Florence
- Something Better than Barbecue, about Chuck’s in Opelika
- The Rise of Southern Cheese, featuring, among other makers, Belle Chevre in Elkmont
Barbecue(d) Poetry about Southern cookery and culture from Joe’s brother, Jake Adam York.
Music by the Pine Hill Haints of Huntsville, practitioners of “Alabama Ghost Country Music.”
Beer - Pet the Keg of Reverend Mudbone from our friends at Jim-n- Nick’s BBQ.
Camp Chicago: An Up South Expedition
May 23-25, 2008
SFA headed north in May. We followed blues scholar Scott Barretta along Highway 61. Dished Chicago culinary history with Bruce Kraig, the Horace of hot dogs. Feasted at West Town Tavern as Susan Goss paid homage to old guard Chicago soul cooks. We took a bite out of a Mother-In-Law. Got the blues with Jimmy Burns at The Hideout. Shopped the Maxwell Street Market. Wolfed a catfish sandwich. Got in the swim at an aquarium barbecue pit. And more. Lots more.
There were optional Chicago X’Cursions. These mini-tours, guided by local folks who know their city best, showcased the South in Chicago (Up South), and still got us to lunch on time. Southside BBQ trippers checked out Lem’s ribs and Harold’s chicken wings before chancing to win some sweets at a carnival cakewalk. Bourbon fans bantered with Chuck Cowdery, author of Bourbon, Straight, with pours by Mike Miller at Delilah’s. Donna Pierce led us to Edna’s Soul Food for a plate full of Chicago’s civil rights history, as well as a few delicious bites of macaroni and cheese. And Peter Engler helped us track tamales at hot dog stands in the Windy City.
- For a complete schedule of events, click here.
Blackberry Farm
January 5, 2008
At the 2008 Blackberry Farm Taste of the South Gala, we had pickle plates and Tennessee truffles, salt cured duck and braised beef short ribs. Guest chefs included Andrea Reusing, Lantern, Chapel Hill, NC; Linton Hopkins, Restaurant Eugene, Atlanta, GA; and Billy Allin, Cakes & Ale, Decatur, GA. Cheese selections by Sweet Grass Dairy of Thomasville, Georgia.
- Click here for the menu.
