Saturday, come downtown for the City Wide arts celebrations, with shops, drinks, food and music.

If I were to expend the time and effort required to explain to you which entity was sponsoring a particular arts event in downtown New Albany this coming Saturday, there’d be no time left to drink beer as the day unfolds.

I merely thank all the folks making it possible, and leave it at that. Readers, park somewhere and aimlessly wander. With a handful of exceptions (look for the Arts Council pamphlets), most of the city-wide events are taking place in a relatively small area, bounded by Main Street (South), Vincennes Street (East), Spring St (North) and State Street (West).

All this was unthinkable just a few years ago. Unified press releases still are.

Saturday’s downtown festivities are not entirely confined to the arts. Yes, last year’s bicentennial art walk now is concurrent with this year’s bicentennial mural project (and other Arts Council offerings), but all of it is being packaged as the New Albany City Wide Celebration, with shops offerings specials and on-premise establishments encouraged to join in the merriment.

By any title, it will be a busy and artistic day, as evidenced by these links. Seriously, I've done my best to provide an overview.

Farmers Market
If you have not visited New Albany’s Farmers Market (corner of Bank and Market) in a while, consider doing so. While not yet in the class of the one operating for so long on Bardstown Road in Louisville, the organizers have labored mightily over a period of years to make improvements, and the fruition of their efforts truly has become evident in 2011. It's simply a great community vibe.

Bicentennial Public Art Project & Walk
Last year's temporary installations are still in place (they'll rotate out soon), and three new ones add to the total for this year's stroll. Leticia Bajuyo's All Bottled Up remains outside Bank Street Brewhouse, where we had one fine night with the Bicentennial Art walk last year.

Arts Council of Southern Indiana's two receptions
The first Arts Council reception is from noon to 5:00 p.m. at its Market Street headquarters: Beyond Borders, which focuses on butterflies and their meaning in art and writing. From 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., the action moves to the newly renovated United Gas and Electric Building at 138 E. Spring, also home of the Colokial shop (just around the corner from Bank Street Brewhouse).

The new venue there is being called the Resch Gallery, and there'll be two exhibits: Arts WORK, and “By the River’s Edge”, the latter featuring "local and state steamboat artifacts (as) part of the Rivers Institute at Hanover College’s celebration of the 200th anniversary of the first steamboat trip through the Ohio and Mississippi rivers."

Schmitt Furniture Community Mural Fellowship
In essence, Schmitt Furniture is marking its 75th anniversary by teaming with the Arts Council to place a large mural on its building (corner of State and Main). The mural, to be painted by the legendary Dave Thrasher, will be on the alley side, next to a parking lot that will serve as the site of Saturday's celebration. The intrepid Josh Hill will have NABC's Rosa L. Stumblebus beer truck on hand for the party, which will have live music and run from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Apologies for any omissions. As I said, just come downtown for the city-wide show, park, walk and enjoy.

Josh & the Publican at the Farmers Market.

Chef Josh and the Publican were at the Farmers Market (corner of Market and Bank) in downtown New Albany on Saturday morning.

Josh was cooking his popular chorizo hash, and it was fun and instructive to watch him incoroprate ingredients from the market, and improvise as the morning went on. I was distributing samples of NABC seasonals, mostly to wide-eyed stares that seemed to say, "It's too early for that, isn't it?"

Not at all. You can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning.

Photo credit: Author (top), AW (bottom)

Windsor's "Farmers Market" original post updated to include beer and wine dinner pairings.

The beer and wine pairings for the Windsor's dinner this Monday night have been added to the original post, which you can read here:

Windsor's "Farmers Market" beer and wine dinner coming on Monday, July 27.

I'll be there, and I hope to see some of you.

Windsor's "Farmers Market" beer and wine dinner coming on Monday, July 27.

Here’s the lowdown on the Windsor Restaurant and Garden's forthcoming event, called "The Windsor Beer and Wine Dinner: Farmers Market."

The idea is to use as much food as possible from the Farmers Market just across Bank Street from the restaurant. I’ve reprinted the dinner menu below. Wine and beer pairings have yet to be made, but each course comes with a pairing of wine and beer, according to the information I've received.

This dinner will be served on Monday, July 27, and begins at 6:30 p.m. The price per person is $60, not including tax or gratuity. The Windsor’s phone number is (812) 944-9688, and the dinner is available by reservation only. The Windsor Restaurant and Garden is located at 148 East Market St. in downtown New Albany.

Wine will be provided by Louis Meyer of Crossroad Vintners, beer by Tisha Dean of World Class Beverages, and a closing beer will come from the New Albanian Brewing Company.

Chefs are Justin McMillen and Cory A. Cuff. Cory says: "The Windsor staff would like to thank Susan Kaempfer of Develop New Albany, as well as the local farmers who’re making this possible. A full list of farmers is to come, and a full list of pairings, too.

MENU

Aperitif
Wine: Jean-Louis Denoise Blanc de Blancs Brut Chardonnay NV Limoux, France

Soup
Duo of chilled melon soup shooters with champagne "caviar" and lime granite

Beer: Duvel (Strong Golden Ale; Belgium)
Wine: 2008 Crios de Susana Balbo Torrontes, Mendoza, Argentina

Salad
Pork Roulade Terrine with mixed Asian baby greens and a B&B pickle vinaigrette with assorted pickled vegetables

Beer: Brooklyn Lager (American-made, Vienna-style Lager; NY)
Wine: 2005 Hirsch Gruner Veltliner "Veltliner #1", Kamptal, Austria

Fish
Seared Sea Bass escabache with smoked zucchini, squash, and carrot "spaghetti" garnished with a micro green salad and a parsley and meyer lemon vinaigrette

Beer: Ommegang Hennepin (American-made, Belgian-style Saison; Cooperstown, NY)
Wine: 2006 Bouvier Bourgogne Rouge "Monte Cui", Burgundy, France

Red Meat
Seared Ostrich medallions with a honey lavender marinated grilled asparagus, and deconstructed twice baked fingerling potatoes with a Pennywise Petit Sirah Marchand Du Vin

Beer: Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA (American Imperial India Pale Ale; DE)
Wine: 2005 Pennywise Petit Sirah, Napa, California

Dessert
Peach two ways, a peach and blackberry cobbler and a Lindemann's Peche float with a goat cheese and lemon verbena ice cream

Beer: Lindemans Peche (Lambic, infused with peach; Belgium)
Wine: Elvino Tintero Moscato d'Asti, Piedmonte, Italy

Parting Glass
Beer: NABC Thunderfoot (dry-cherried Imperial Stout, aged 18 months; New Albany, IN)

The Windsor thanks: Moonkiss Gardens, Gehman Farms, Graf Farms, Hensley Farms, Sycamore Creek Herbs, Priceless Bread Company, Russell Veggies, Kentucky Bison Company, New Albanian Brewing Company, Tisha Dean from World Class Beverages, Louis Meyer from Crossroads Vintners and Susan Kaempfer (Develop New Albany).