First Tractors and Truffles event tears it up in Fallon

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Tractors & Truffles Showcases Nevada Agriculture & Arts

Fallon celebrated its inaugural small farm agriculture and arts event Tractors & Truffles on Saturday, April 24, with a sold-out crowd who were treated to farm tours, wine tasting, gourmet dinner and a performance by country blues artist Rory Block.

The event showcased the small farm agriculture industry that is alive and thriving in Northern Nevada. Guests toured two Nevada farms and feasted on a lunch and four-course gourmet dinner prepared almost entirely from Nevada-grown foods.

The day began with a tour and lunch at Lattin Farms where guests visited two hoop houses that are currently growing lettuces and assorted spring produce. Award-winning chef Mark Davis, Cordon Blue, prepared a tossed salad from freshly-picked greens. The salad was part of a locally-grown lunch that included cream of spinach soup, fresh baked bread and carrot cake.

Busses took guests to Churchill Vineyards after lunch for a tour and wine tasting at Nevada's only estate winery. Owner and winemaker Colby Frey explained the best producing varieties for Nevada's climate and talked about the history and future of the four-generation farm.

"We want to see more vineyards and wineries in Northern Nevada," Frey said. "Our vision is that visitors can spend a day wine tasting at four or five wineries in the Fallon area."

Dinner was served in historic Oats Park which was transformed into a fine dining experience for the event, complete with a string quart and ice sculpture of a tractor. Antique tractors filled the lawn of the park.
Three chefs including Steve Hernandez, Slanted Porch in Fallon, Mark Davis, Cordon Blue, and Ryan Scott, Bravo's Top Chef Chicago, created the dinner menu that featured wine, produce, and a main course of braised beef short ribs, all produced at local Nevada farms.

Tractors and Truffles was produced by the Fallon Tourism Authority to showcase two of Fallon's greatest assets - its small farm agriculture industry and the vital and eclectic arts scene. Executive director Rick Gray said plans are underway to make next year's event bigger and better.