Spring Shots.

Since it actually feels like Spring today and not Summer, it seemed like a good day to post up a few shots from random sites around town. I'll let the images do most of the speaking for themselves...

(You can try to click on an image to get a full screen view. Photos are shrunk a bit to fit into blogger's size limits so this doesn't always work though.)

Manhan Rail Trail gets some color back.

Daffodils mixing it up with the weeds trailside.


Williston campus in bloom.



Trash as art? Spotted on the side of Sunrise Bakery.


Cherry blossom house in Florence.

Front view.

Pond in bloom.

Dandelions enjoying the Williston views.

In conclusion, happy customers.

Things have settled into a more typical Spring pace, so hopefully they'll be more Spring shots to follow. Stay tuned. As for the kiddo shots, those usually find their way into the digital photo frame on the shop counter...

Cool Shot.

Local roving photographer, Patrick Brough, who can now be found over at MassLive's Bay Road Photo, posted this shot the other day. Seems he got use of a fisheye lens for the weekend and took it on a wander around town Sunday morning. Lucky for me, he happened by the shop and caught this sweet shot. Now I really feel like I work in a fish bowl...

Hope you're enjoying this steamy weather. Definitely a banner weekend for ice cream sales. Thanks for coming by. One more day of April summerlike bliss, and I guess it's back to 'normal'. But then again, who knows what crazy weather lurks around the next corner here in New England.

Who is the Original 'Tom' anyway?

I have a once a year customer who drops in every time he's home to visit family. While he's ordering up his favorite flavor, he always asks me, 'So who did they name Mt. Tom after anyway?' I've tried to get that answer for him a couple of times, but inevitably always got distracted and never quite got it done.

Well, along comes a link to a cool youtube documentary about all things Mt. Tom (the mountain not the ice cream). It's by Robert Schwobe, and it's really good. Lots of great pictures, history, stories, and useful local trivia. (Hat Tip: Western Mass Nostalgia Forum via MassLive Easthampton Forum)

As I suspected, sure enough, it includes the answer to my yearly question, who was Tom?

According to Robert, Tom was Captain Roland Thomas, commissioned by the township of Springfield back in 1653, along with Captain Eliza Holyoke (you can guess which direction he went), to form new plantations west and north of Springfield. They traveled along the Connecticut River to also 'discover' Nanotuck, which we now know as Northampton. You can hear and watch the whole story here... I haven't watched the whole thing yet, but I'll be sure to pass along more interesting trivia as I get further into it...



In the meantime, it looks like summer is here, so must go make ice cream. Hope to see you this weekend.

Retail 101.

Before the summer kicks in this weekend (80's expected here for you long distance ICD readers), I thought today, a 48 degree rainy one, would be a good day to talk candy shop. Granted, running the candy store part of the biz isn't what might be considered rocket science, it does require its own care and feeding. Like any retail business I suppose, two simple rules hold:

1. Keep the shelves stocked.
2. Keep the shelves stocked with stuff people actually want.

Or in my case, keep the jars stocked with stuff people want.

So aside from usual 'supply chain management' stuff (coincidentally, this was what I did in my first career, albeit I was managing optical network components and not giant gummy snakes), I'm always on the lookout for which jars are 'moving' and which ones are not. Case in point above, the gummy techno bears, were definitely not.

So they have been replaced by...


Salt water taffy. Just in time for this weekend's arrival of summer.

And with the come and gone of Easter, that freed up some spots for a few new SKU's, (If I actually used the term 'stock keeping unit'. I much prefer 'candy jar'.) Let me introduce a few of the new candies on the block...


Jelly Belly Soda Pop Shoppe mix. Cream soda, Dr. Pepper, Grape, Orange... They actually have an Ice Cream Parlor mix too, but unfortunately it's associated with some 'other' ice cream shop. Lame.

Moving right along...

Gummy Fried Eggs.

Because I can.

Sixlets. By the scoopful. (Hat Tip: Kris P.) Which reminds me, suggestions are more than welcome. If I can get it, I'll bring it in for you. It's still gotta earn its rightful place on the shelf to stay, but I'm always up for trying a new candy variety.

Tried to get this one, but apparently it's only available in Wisconsin. The cool part of this story is the customer who requested it actually went to Wisconsin and brought some home. Even better, they brought one in for me. Thanks to that guy, didn't catch his name...


And on another nutty note, we now have buttercrunch... (FYI: I made a batch of buttercrunch ice cream with it today too.)

And the return of Kookaburra black licorice. If you're into black licorice, this is the stuff...

So that's about it from candyland. Hope this entry left you hankerin' for somethin' sweet.

We're open until 9.

Thanks for your vote.

The Valley Advocate just announced the winners of their 2009 'Best Of the Valley' readers' choices of favorites for all good things, Springfield and west. If you're anywhere within the 413 area code, I'm sure you've seen the Valley Advocate and are well familiar with their 'Best of' lists. You may not always agree with their politics, but there's no denying theirs is the list every local biz aspires to be on.

I know when I started Mt. Tom's more than 5 years ago, making the Advocate's Best of list was one of my goals, right from day one.

Well, I'm happy to report, with your support, Mt. Tom's has made the list again. Third place under the Edibles & Eateries - Ice Cream. That other place in Northampton has a twenty-five year head start, and dare I say, a bit of an edge in walking traffic, tough to beat at this point. But who knows, if Easthampton is destined to become the new Northampton, anything can happen. All I can do is stay focused, make the best ice cream I can, hire the best and friendliest and coolest scoopers, and let the chocolate chips fall where they may.

In the meantime, making the list is still pretty sweet.

Thanks again.

The Days they Get Longer.

There's a common saying in small business, 'Don't be open when you want to be open. Be open when your customers want you to be open.' In the spirit of that thought, along with the corollary, 'make hay when the sun shines,' it seems time to start extending the scoopday here at Mt. Tom's. You'll likely be happy to know, the 8pm close has been safely packed away with the box of ski stuff in the basement, where it will remain until cold weather returns in the Fall.

Here's where we're at:

Now open every day but Monday (just 2 more mondays closed) until May 1st. Noon - 9pm.

Starting May 1:
Open 7 days
Sunday - Thursday: Noon-9pm
Friday, Saturday: Noon - 9:30pm

And Starting June 1st:
Open 7 days
Sunday - Thursday: Noon - 9:30pm
Friday, Saturday: Noon - 10pm.

Toying around with being open until 10 every night, but haven't quite decided on that yet...

See you soon.

Easter Bunny Depot.

Hope you're enjoying this fine and Good Friday.

Just a quick plug for all things fit for an Easter basket can be found right here....

From handmade solid chocolate bunnies to chocolate bunnies on sticks to Easter bunny corn. And not to mention we've got 38 flavors of Jelly Bellies. At just $6.95 a pound, try getting that kind of deal at the mall...

It's getting tight, but there is still time to order up an ice cream cake or pie for your Easter dinner too. 529-2929.

We return to the usual rants and ice cream trivia next week. Until then, I hope you and yours have a great holiday & weekend.

Ice Cream beats the Dow.

A common question I get in the shop these days is 'how is this economy affecting your business?' Makes sense, since we get bombarded every 3 seconds by every form of media telling us how dire things are, who isn't still a bit nervous about things. Our collective moods may swing with the daily performance of the stock market, but generally caution and financial anxiety continue to prevail. So to answer that first question from the ice cream peddling front, I offer up this from the current on-line Newsweek. Standing tough at position number one in their list of 'recession-resistant businesses', you guessed it, ice cream. Nice.

Nail salons coming in at number two was a little surprising though. Alcohol sales, not so surprising.

So far so good here in scoopland, thanks to y'all. This time of year is more about the weather. Some great weather weekends in March made for a banner month. This week, well not quite as brisk. Bring back the 60's!

In any event, hope to see you soon. You still need to come in and sample that Basil ice cream, don't you? Also have fresh batches of strawberry cheesecake, sweet cream, mexican chocolate, and burnt sugar today (to name just a few...).

Basil Ice Cream.

Been curious to try this one since the end of last season, but I figured I'd never go thru a whole tub of it at the off-season pace. So as the fine weather returns and the demand for ice cream cranks right up again, so does my opportunity to try new and interesting flavors. Definitely one of the best parts of being an ice cream guy. I've got a big list of new and rarely made flavors ready to go for the new season. One of the first ones up, you guessed it, basil ice cream. I know that basil is great on top of a slice of tomato and some mozzarella cheese, but in ice cream, I wasn't quite so sure. A couple of customers have been asking for it for a while now, having enjoyed it as a dessert at one of their favorite Boston restaurants.

So now on scoop, basil ice cream. Give it a try. I dare you. It's definitely different, but it does seem to work for the die-hard basil lovers.

If you're looking for something a bit more mainstream, I made up some malted vanilla and malted milk ball vanilla today too. Let the games begin.

Speaking of games, hope to see you at the Riverside charity auction tomorrow night (friday). I'll be scoopin' up some interesting flavors there too...

And on a completely different topic, if you're into marshmallow peeps, check out this guys blog... PEEPS. He emailed me about it, since one of the many, many peeps links is to my blog entry about the chocolate-dipped ones. I hope you and your peeps enjoy it.

Hope you got out on this fine day. See you soon.

Fear not, Pistachio Ice Cream lovers.

I just got off the phone with my pistachio vendor, and he has assured me that the pistachio 'meats' they provide are not part of the current recall. Here's the story, in case you hadn't gotten wind of it yet. Pistachios involved in the recall are of the dry roasted variety, grown and processed in California. The ones we use in our Pistachio Nut ice cream are oil roasted fresh by our vendor in Boston.

Here's the gist of the story:

Supermarkets pulled pistachios and some pistachio-laden foods from their shelves Tuesday, moves resulting from this week's Food and Drug Administration warning to consumers not to eat the nuts because they could be tainted with salmonella.The FDA is scrambling to prevent a repeat of a recent salmonella outbreak from peanuts that has sickened more than 690 people in 46 states. And in Sacramento on Tuesday, a lawmaker introduced legislation to tighten safety standards for foods processed in California.

From what my vendor tells me, the FDA may have underreacted to the peanut contamination recently, and is likely overreacting to the current pistachio one. Although it's hard to argue that over isn't better than under. Nonetheless, authorities are advising people to hold off on popping those pistachios until they can confirm they're not part of this big recall.

And while we're on the topic, the article had some interesting pistachio trivia..

California is far and away the nation's No. 1 pistachio grower, producing 98% of the domestic crop. Globally, it trails only Iran in pistachio farming. About 60% of the crop is exported, making pistachios an important source of foreign currency for both the state and the nation.

Who knew.

4 Words: Chocolate Dipped Marshmallow Peeps.

As if this beautiful 65 degree sunny Friday couldn't get any better, I give you the annual return of Easter favorite here at Mt. Tom's - Chocolate-dipped Marshmallow Peeps.

You know you want some.

They come in sets of two, and it'll only set you back a buck. How sweet is that?

St. Paddy's Parade, Good News, & Ice Out!

I must confess that until this past weekend I hadn't even gone to the giant Holyoke St. Paddy's Day parade. I'd heard plenty of stories about how big (3rd largest in the U.S. next to NYC & Chicago.) and fun and crazy it can get. I've even been invited to a couple route-side parties. But I just never got myself over there. Well, not only did I go to the parade this year, I was in it! I was recruited by Briana and the rest of the Easthampton City Arts gang to march along as they introduced Holyoke to the upcoming Easthampton BearFest. (Granted, many on the sidelines were yelling, 'Go Beerfest!', but as you can see by the crowd photos, I'd say that was to be expected.)

Before I get to the images of the ECA gang, I had to snap this one of the ice cream float in line in front of us... And the Opa-Opa float behind us...



The Easthampton High School band provided the fine live music (and admittedly some flashbacks of my old marching band days) for our 3 mile afternoon stroll through the Holyoke streets of 300,000.

The streets were lined with people, from the K-Mart plaza to downtown, but there certainly were drinking hotspots..

Amy Davis' daughter Ava was a trooper. Granted, she got a lift, but to her credit, she never stopped waving those little hands...

Introducing Patty O'Bear, created by local artist Amy Davis. This is the first and only bear you'll see until the opening weekend of BearFest during ArtWalkEasthampton June 13th.

Ok, you might also catch Greg Stone and his bear in the window of the Nashawannuck Gallery, but that it...

Not to be confused with our buddy Trace Meek, in a bear suit, standing here with Briana Taylor. Ice Sculpture, character acting, web design, the man can do it all...

Another party spot...

The ECA 'float'...

And entourage...

One of the cooler parts of the parade, the Shriner's in their crazy little cars...


There was a lot of waiting around before the start, but I must admit it was a fun experience.

And, in keeping with the upbeat, I thought this was an interesting article to pass along. A theme I've latched onto a lot of late... Selling the Silver Lining. A mainstream publication admitting the news is disproportionately bad, who would have thought...

My neighbor's cats took the break in the weather a few days ago as a chance to get some sun...

And last but not least, the ice is finally out on the Nashawannuck Pond. Yesterday it was there. Today it is not... March 24th, not sure if that's early, late, or just about average. Anybody keeping track of that here? Minesota's pretty good about this stuff. There must be somebody with a little notebook...

Ok, warm weather, you're welcome to come back . Hope to see it, and you, soon.

Welcome to Spring.

At a balmy 28 degrees wind chill out there right now, it may not exactly feel like Spring. But since the calendar says it's so, it must be so.


Aside from the hearty and early bloomin' crocus peaking it's head out, signs of Spring seem elusive as yet. Heck, I took this shot two days ago...


That's where the Smith College Bulb Show comes to the rescue, providing a few helpful images of Spring. In case you haven't been (you've got a few more days...), here are some of my favorites from this year's visit...




Happy Spring to you and yours. See you soon.

Mt. Tom Reservation sans color.

These warm weekend days have been great for two things (in my world at least), ice cream sales and melting the no longer welcome snow that's been blanketing us since mid-December.


Today, I took my trusty Canon digital SLR out for a little stroll in Mt. Tom park. As you probably have discovered, there are lots of cool trails to tramp. One of my favorites is the 'Bray Inner Trail Loop'. It's a short little trail that circumnavigates Lake Bray near the far end of the park. It seems much more pond than lake, though. But as is evidenced by many of the trees around the lake, the beavers don't seem to mind at all.



Nor do the Canadien geese and ducks. I wouldn't call them mixing it up, but neither seemed to mind the other's presence on what remains of the ice. (Click on an image to get the full effect.)

As I've griped about before, it's a challenge to take an interesting photograph this time of year, as we anxiously wait for color to return to the landscape. In the meantime, a little greyscale will have to suffice.

I call this one, 'Cat 'o Nine-tails in hibernation'...

Geese glide...

I did notice the shiny new trail signs throughout the reservation. They were much needed and look great. Not sure who is responsible for the upgrade, but thanks, nicely done....

Well, that's it for now. Thanks to all who came out for a cone this weekend, a taste of the summer action!

Enjoy your St. Paddy's Day.

Feel free to stop in for a pint of Guinness or a cup of Irish Coffee.

Luke Cavagnac likes ice cream.

There are many famous and immensely talented artists that live and work in Easthampton. It's just one of the things that makes it such a cool place to live. Not sure if it's the laid back atmosphere, lower cost of living, beautiful landscape, plethora of colleges, or the many converted old mills that make ideal and affordable studio spaces that draws (and holds) artists here. Perhaps it's a combination of all those things and more. It may be a little bit of a chicken or the egg kind of thing, but this area is just overflowing with good creative energy. There are many hip galleries here in western Mass, from MassMoca in North Adams to the Hosmer gallery in Forbes Library in Northampton. We even have a nice little gallery in our building, the Nashawannuck Gallery.

And until recently, one of the few times we regular folk have had easy access to the art scene here in Eashampton has been during open studios weekends, held just twice a year.

That's just one of the things that make Artwalk Easthampton so cool. Every second Saturday you can catch a bunch of shows featuring all the local artists you love. What's not to like about that? Can't afford it? Can you afford free? There's even a free shuttle bus.

Next artwalk is tomorrow night (Saturday). 5-8pm. And here at Mt. Tom's you can check out a fun little show by nearly a household name around here, Luke Cavagnac. When I asked him to do it, he said sure. If you've ever been to his studio/gallery in EastWorks, you know he has literally thousands of paintings on his walls. They're all unique, in themselves and to his style, and extremely affordable. I figured he'd just grab 15-20 paintings off the wall, throw them in his mini-van, and fill my walls with color.

Little did I know, he'd create a whole show of ice cream paintings. Leave it to Luke.

The weather looks good. The lineup looks great. And the walls here will be covered with ice cream. What more could you ask for in a free night out?

Hope to see you there.

Think Spring.

As a respite from the gloom of the day and the impending chill of tomorrow's day, might I suggest a quick trip over to Smith College. Yes, it's annual bulb show time at the Smith College greenhouses. They're open daily, 10-4pm, and it's free. I'm including a little taste from my photo excursion there last year. As for the warm, humid air and floral aromas, you're just going to have to go get those yourself...

I thought I might also include today's quote from the shop quoteboard. Do with it what you will...

"You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you'll discover will be wonderful. What you'll discover is yourself." - Alan Alda

Don't let Mom Nature fool you. Spring is still on the way.

It's all about confidence, baby.

Amongst the sea of doom & gloom that is the mainstream media, I saw this and thought it was worth sharing...


Watch CBS Videos Online

Hope you're enjoying today's little winter encore.

If you like the weather, wait a minute.

It seems hard to believe after such an amazing weekend, but it appears that although winter may be sipping her last drink, she's not quite ready to leave the party...



The chairs were out on the front sidewalk. The shop was bustling all weekend. The ice fisherman on the pond were wearing t-shirts and didn't need campfires to make it through their morning of ice angling (although it appears that little leather flask under the jacket has other uses besides warmth). Best of all, the townsfolk emerged from their prolonged winter hibernation and were wandering around town once again. Dogs got to enjoy their old favorite fire hydrants after many months of those same old trees in the backyard. Strangers smiled at each other as they passed by. It was one of those prized early spring weekends that makes all those days and months of cold, snowy winter suffering worth it.

Well, maybe not worth it, but I'm certain the balmy weekend was much appreciated nontheless.

I hope you got out, got some natural vitamin D into your winter-weary system, and maybe even started that yard cleanup.

I'm guessing with tomorrow's forecast as it is, you might not even mind going to work this Monday.

'tis the season.

For a savory batch of Girl Scout Thin Mint ice cream. Actually, it's the second batch since the G-scouts set me up with my annual handful of cookie boxes. It's a hearty mix of Thin Mint cookie pieces, with a dark fudge swirl, in a plenty minty base. This one sells fast, even in the 'off-season', so come on by soon!

And in the spirit of the upcoming St. Paddy's day, I just cooked up a fresh batch of Guinness Ice Cream. Customers often make a face of disbelief when they see this one on the menu board, but I gotta say, it's actually really good. It's definitely got a Guiness Stout edge to it, but the sweetness of the ice cream and a little vanilla stave off the bitterness. I could try to describe it to you all day, but the only way for you to know is to come down and have a sample. Come on, I dare ya...

But wait, there's more.

I've got another new St. Paddy's Day-like flavor I'm planning to concoct next week.

Ready for this one?

Irish Coffee.

Coffee ice cream with a little Jameson's whiskey thrown in to make it a party.

What more could you ask for from your local ice cream shop?

Enjoy the warmup, and see you soon.

18 Days.

...Until Spring. Wouldn't know it to look outside today. According to the official weather watchers, we got nearly a foot of snow here in Easthampton. Just when we were starting to see signs of bare ground after a nearly complete snowcovered winter. The school kiddos must be looking at school in July this year!

After the shovel out, I took the camera with me for a little stroll, post-storm. I must confess, although I'm not sure if it was because of the biting cold wind or that maybe I am officially done with winter, but my heart just wasn't in the photo-taking. A sure sign that I, for one, am ready for a new season.

Aside from the shot of my truck, I did manage to catch one of the few people working today, our dedicated postman, Don, getting it done as always...



Hope you're all dug out and relaxing comfortably on your couch.