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Following lunch on our third day, our bus had Price Bell, the 6th generation at Mill Ridge Farm aboard. His grandmother, Alice Chandler started the farm in 1962 with 286 acres and four mares, inherited from her father. We were told they raised some of the world’s best Thoroughbreds from birth to high school, and then sent to Florida to learn racing.

He mentioned he has planted 70 trees to replace those lost, and the largest Blue Ash tree in Kentucky is on this farm.

Since 2000 they have sold 36 grade 1 winners. Mill Ridge Farm prepares the horses for the sales. There were 115 to 200 mares boarding on the farm, at $45 a day for feed and care. However they own 10 mares. The farm has a staff of 30 to 35 people. We were able to offer the yearling fillies carrots, since they really liked them and came to the fence to beg for more.

That evening we were hosted by Hallway Feeds, Mr. Bob, Lee Hall and Julia Hall at the Round Barn Stable of Memories.

This four-story barn was built adjacent to the Red Mile Racetrack, serving as an exhibition hall before being used to house horses for the races. After being restored as a museum, The Round Barn became a unique, historic location for special events. Now it has exhibits upstairs from the era. The Red Mile is a horse racing track located in Lexington. The track hosts harness racing, a type of horse racing in which the horses must pull two-wheeled carts called sulkies while racing. It is one of harness racing’s most famous tracks and is located in the heart of the Bluegrass region, an area of Kentucky famous for horse breeding and racing.

Julia Hall wrote: “Our meal was very typical of food from this region of Kentucky. Burgoo-a meat stew with roots in Europe. Originally made as a celebration stew. Folks would bring whatever meat and veggies they had and combine them in large kettles and cook over an open flame. They would cook all day and be enjoyed in the late afternoon/evening. Most often would contain game meats that would be bountiful in this part of the country. Venison, rabbit were commonly used. Where does the name burgoo come from? Some say it was invented by a Frenchman named Gus Jaubert during the Civil War, made with whatever gamy meat, like squirrel and fowl, he could scrounge up as a meal for soldiers. Others say it was the invention of freed slaves, who would make big batches of burgoo for livestock sales. And yet another theory claims the dish can be traced back to Native Americans, who prepared it as a hunting stew. The name itself was likely born from a mispronunciation of bird stew or barbecue. The common thread through all of these stories, though, is that burgoo is a dish that was created out of necessity or celebration, depending on the story origin.””

We also had pulled pork, fried catfish with tartar sauce, cornbread, country green beans, corn pudding another local favorite. Statement below is from Southern Living magazine in reference to corn pudding. “In Southern kitchens, we love a casserole, and it’s an indulgent way to eat your vegetables—another thing Southerners are known for. Made with eggs, heavy cream, a touch of sugar, onion, and plenty of corn, a good corn pudding has a soft, tender texture, like a cross between cornbread and a souffle. It can lean sweet or savory, depending on how you like it. And because so many ingredients pair well with corn, you can flavor this dish in so many different ways.”

The music for dancing and listening was bluegrass, and you should have seen some of our group on the dance floor. They were dancing like teenagers after the delicious dinner and Kentucky Bourbon. “Shades of Grass” with guitars, violin, keyboard, but no drums. What makes bluegrass different from country music? Bluegrass is a sub-genre of country music with characteristics that differentiate it from mainstream country: The instrumentation is purely string band based: Guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle and upright bass. There is more emphasis on an acoustic sound. The music is more free and the structures are more complex. Bill Monroe, known as the Father of Bluegrass Music, was born 100 years ago in rural Kentucky. He influenced early country music and rock ‘n’ roll, as well as the hard-driving, high-lonesome genre he created — bluegrass.

Centerpieces were three small pots of red geraniums with the samples of both Mr. Bob’s Mouthwatering Meat Rub and Hallway Feeds “Feelin’ Your Oats” Granola. Golden horseshoe balloons with smaller black and white balloons added to the festive evening.

Hallway Feeds general manager-Jeff Pendleton; Director of Sales and Marketing- Anthony Koch; Director of Technology and Innovation- Jared Pendleton; Directory of Customer Care – Carly Guinn and Lee’s wife Stephanie were introduced. President Mr. Bob at 92 years received a standing ovation when introduced to the group by his son Lee, Vice President. Julia Hall is Vice president and arranged the delightful evening.

Next morning the fire alarm was going off as we were getting dressed, with fire trucks outside. Learned that someone had buttered a slice of bread and then placed it in a toaster with the smoke causing the alarm to go off.

We visited Golden Age Farm where Wagyu and Angus cattle are raised. We were in the finishing barn with the half-blood (half Wagyu and half Angus) cattle. They would be harvested at 18 to 20 months of age, weighing between 1200 and 1400 pounds, while they were 65 to 85 pounds at birth. They had been in the barn all winter because of the rain. Fed a grower ration with 14% protein. A half-blood bred to a purebred Wagyu made a good cross.

The full blood, pure Wagyu, were 55 to 75 pounds at birth, weaning at 400 pounds, since they have lower growth rate. Artificial insemination is used, with semen purchased from many sources. At ABS, a straw of semen is $250. Harvested at 30 months for maximum marbling, with a carcass selling for $8,000, but the feed in it had cost between $2,000 and $2,500. Steers are started on feed in the barn at yearling to 16 months of age. Harvested at 1,600 to 1,800 pounds, with a 1,000 pound carcass. A half blood will grade Prime 75 percent of time, while a full blood will be 100 percent Prime.

They purchase hay for roughage, plus corn and silage. The straw for bedding comes from the Thoroughbred farms, and they compost the bedding to be placed on the pastures. Takes about 6 months to make compost.

Jean Barton has been writing her column in the Daily News since the early 1990s. She can be reached by e-mail at jbarton2013@gmail.com.

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