Staff Picks

LOCALLY GROWN, EMPLOYEE TESTED. (SOMETIMES RELENTLESSLY)

It’s here! Legendary local Asparagus from MacLennan Farm has officially arrived. These emerald spears are crisp, Vermont-grown, and haven’t spent a week contemplating their existence in a shipping container. It’s a customer favorite for a reason, grown by one of our long-time producer partners, and the season is gone before you know it. Grab a bunch before the staff “quality tests” the entire supply into oblivion! Available in all stores, while supplies last.

AWESOME, LOCAL, AND BRAND NEW TO THE CO-OP!

We’re so thrilled about this new local product that we can’t wait for you to try it! Basically you can forget everything you know about modern, mystery-ingredient skincare. Our friends at Go Touch Grass Soap Co. in Orford, N.H., are bringing back the gold standard of traditional soapmaking—tallow. This isn’t just a bar of soap; it’s a masterclass in local craftsmanship.

WHY WE LOVE IT

• Local Love: Small-batch goodness from our neighbors in New Hampshire.
• Vitamin-Packed: Naturally loaded with Vitamins A, D, E, and K for a healthy glow.
• Ultra-Hydrating: Tallow is incredibly compatible with your skin’s natural oils.

Look, we love a fancy botanical infusion as much as the next co-op, but sometimes you gotta go back to the basics. And by “basics,” we mean the stuff that kept homesteaders looking radiant despite the lack of indoor plumbing. Go Touch Grass uses local grass-fed tallow and simple organic ingredients to make handmade, sustainable soap the old-fashioned way.

Your legendary loo. It’s the envy of everyone you know. (Even the annoying neighbors who still look at your house through binoculars under the pretense of bird-watching.) Your bathroom comes with fine exfoliating soaps, life-affirming chalkboard art your friend made, and that all-important, carefully curated selection of reading material. (Author’s note: did someone steal our Jasper Fforde? Asking for a friend.) Only one thing is missing now—THIS awesome toilet paper!

CABOO TOILET PAPER FEATURES

• 100 percent made with bamboo, which is super cool even if our proofreader says it needs a hyphen on the packaging.
• Earth-friendly, septic system-friendly, bum-friendly.
• No pandas were evicted or starved in the making of these rolls. We checked. They’re fine. Busy eating other bamboo.
• Packaging features a cute little owl. When you’re out of reading material, just look at that owl!

Somewhere in the rolling green hills of Pownal, VT—just past the spot where your GPS starts questioning why you decided to live in this state—lies the wonder that is Gammelgården Creamery. It’s here that milk from a pampered herd of Jerseys is transformed into a skyr that’s thick and creamy and delicious.

What is skyr? It’s technically a soft cheese, but it tastes like the thickest, creamiest yogurt you’ve ever experienced. Hand-crafted, small-batch, and incredibly lush—it’s essentially a spa day for your granola.

In honor of Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating a woman-operated dairy that turned a single calf named Babette into a legend. Find Gammelgården Skyr in all of our stores.

Fun fact: The anonymous medieval author of Beowulf famously loved mead! That’s why a mead hall plays such a prominent role in the poem. (Or maybe we made that up. We weren’t there. Whatever.)

Regardless, our friends at Golden Rule Mead in Middlebury, Vermont, are equally obsessed with this wonderful and sadly underappreciated beverage. If mead doesn’t sound appealing to you yet, let us help you see the golden, wild-fermented light:

The Specs

1. Vibe: Smooth and surprisingly potent. Perfect for those who want to feel like a Scandinavian deity on a Tuesday.
2. Honey Source: 100% happy, Vermont bees. (They have tiny dental plans.)
3. Additives: None. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Nada.
4. Fermentation Style: Wild—like a mythical monster’s mother.
5. Grendel Compatibility: Highly incompatible. Keep away from intemperate swamp-dwelling creatures of all sorts, actually.
6. Shield Rating: 0/10. (Actually quite fragile; do not use to block incoming axes.)

What is Mead, anyway?

Mead is an ancestral beverage made by fermenting honey and water—essentially “honey wine.” Unlike beer, which relies on the starches in malted grains, mead is built on the complex sugars and floral aromatics of honey.

While beer often hits you with the bitterness of hops, Golden Rule offers a cleaner, crisper profile that highlights the specific terroir of the Vermont wildflowers the bees visited. It’s a distinct category of craft that sits somewhere between a dry cider and a crisp white wine.

Why We Love Golden Rule

Golden Rule isn’t just a name; it’s a commitment to not ruining the planet. They call it “Brew Unto Others”—a philosophy centered on 100% local Vermont honey and a deep respect for the bees who do all the heavy lifting. In short, this isn’t just a drink—it’s an invitation to be legendary (or at least moderately more interesting at parties).