By Natalie Bazinet
Staff Writer
CONNOR — Candy Shrewsberry isn’t offended when people wrinkle their noses after learning what her farm stand sells — after all, it’s a common misconception that goat’s milk has a strong, “goaty” taste (whatever “goaty” means).
Aroostook Republican photo/Natalie Bazinet
Candy Shrewsberry, right, brought the young LaMancha goat Sweetpea to the Caribou Farmers’ Market with her on Saturday to mingle with the customers. Owner of Talk of the Town Farm in Connor, Candy sells raw goats’ milk at the market and will also be selling chevre within the next few weeks. Shown above petting Sweetpea is Arianna Singletary, 7, from Perham.
Candy offers the wrinkled-nosed skeptics a free sample of the milk and then smiles while the following conversation most always plays out.
“This is good!” the customer will say with befuddled round eyes.
“Thank you,” Candy politely answers.
“No, really — this is good,” the customer reiterates, more a factual affirmation for themselves than positive praise to the Shrewsberry family and their goats. “It tastes like milk!”
Candy never pushes people to try the raw goats’ milk, but almost everyone who’s tried it becomes a fan.
Indeed, the goats’ milk tastes remarkably similar to cows milk, “but sweeter and creamier,” Candy says.
Candy and her husband, Michael, were organic dairy farmers for years in Wisconsin until Maine (and the state’s progressive raw milk laws) drew the farming family to the most northeastern state in the country; what brought them to central Aroostook County, however, was such an extraordinary sequence of events that Candy’s certain nothing short of the hand of God led them to their 44-acre farm in Connor where they raise five cows, one calf, one horse, and two dozen goats.
The family believes they were brought to northern Maine to grow food that can be trusted, and every happy bleat that comes from the farm’s pastures is a testament to the health and happiness of their herd.
Talk of the Town goat’s milk is currently available in quart jugs at Sleeper’s in Caribou and at Bread of Life in Presque Isle; Candy also sells the milk directly at the Caribou Farmer’s Market and at the Connor farm (where she offers customers an opportunity to taste goats milk).
They no longer offer certified organic milk like they did when they farmed cows, but the organic practices they implemented in Wisconsin have carried over to their Connor farm. While the organic-styled farming and rearing are similar, be it cows or goats, the Shrewsberry’s have found that the two animals have very little in common.
Candy says that both species are ruminant animals and they’re milked, “but that’s about where their similarities end,” she said.
The family’s been surprised to find how personable the majority of their herd is, particularly the LaMancha dairy goats.
“They have an awesome personality, they’re quiet and mild mannered,” Candy says.
But there are also plenty of Nubians goats on the farm who are equally charming, and the two are easily distinguishable from one another; Nubians look like typical goats with long drooping ears but the LaManchas, on the other hand, have very tiny ears close to their heads — which is why Candy’s used to another common reaction people have, which is saying “what happened to their ears!?!”
Rest assured, the LaManchas’ ears are just fine.
Just another way that Talk of the Town farm aims to educate the public about goats and goat milk, Candy brings a special “helper” to the farmers market with her occasionally (weather permitting) — the loveable LaMancha Sweetpea.
Just a few months old, Sweetpea proved to be a rather friendly goat in her first few weeks. With the newborns being closely cared for by the Shrewsberry family — and Sweetpea was an “only kid” at the time — their children Allyson and James made sure to give her lots of attention. Sweetpea napped in their laps while the kids did their schoolwork and, resultantly, Sweetpea has become a very friendly four-legged greeter at the Talk of the Town farm stand at the market.
While the family truly enjoys their job, it wasn’t their intention to move to Maine to raise goats; the Shrewsberry were approached by so many individuals asking if they’d sell goats milk that they decided to go with it, despite having the same misconceptions about goats milk at the time that most people still have — they thought it was, essentially, bad tasting.
But as Candy milked their first goats, she knew she had to try it if she was ever going to sell it.
Hesitantly, she took her first sip.
Just like the skeptical customers she serves samples to at the Farmers’ Market, her first thoughts after tasting real, raw goats’ milk for the first time was “that’s really good!” and while the family’s never wavered from being dairy farmers, the jug of milk that’s always in their refrigerator has changed from cow to goat.
In the next weeks, cheese from the farm will also be available for purchase.
For additional information regarding the dairy farm can be obtained by visiting http://talkofthetownfarm.com.
