“All thingsedible, all things Appalachian!” That is the motto of this year’s “Taste ofTennessee” festival, taking place on Saturday, June 18^th in downtownJonesborough. Taste of Tennessee is a day-long celebration of Appalachian foodand foodways, highlighting the history and culture surrounding the region’scuisine.

Youmay remember hearing about Taste of Tennessee in years prior, although theCOVID-19 pandemic forced the event into an entirely online format in August2020 and a cancellation in September 2021. Despite those necessary changes,approximately 4,000 people attended the first event online, participating inspecial programs like cooking classes, historical demonstrations, farm tours,and more.

Thisyear, The Heritage Alliance of Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia ispleased to announce that the event will take place live and in-person, with asimilar dynamic and exciting program of activities. The festival will includelive musical performances, food, special guest presentations, vendors, andcontests. One of the festival’s central features is a cake-baking “Take theCake” competition for homecooks, professionals, and children, where localresidents are encouraged to show off their skills, as well as their favoritedishes. A public tasting of the entries will be offered. Listening tickets forthe lecture series, starring some stellar panelists and demonstrators, areavailable for purchase online at heritageall.org.

ExecutiveDirector Anne G’Fellers-Mason and Programming Coordinator Megan Cullen Tewell hopethat the event will bring people together to explore and celebrate Appalachian cuisine. This festival will take placefrom 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM and is completely family friendly. In addition tohighlighting the work of local chefs, farmers, historians, and food experts, thisday-long celebration also serves as a fundraiser for The Heritage Alliance andwill benefit local hunger-fighting initiatives.

Describingthe event in years past, Tewell explained that: “Our goal is to get peopleexcited about Appalachian cuisine, past and present. That’s our main objectivewith this event— to connect people to food and to each other.” The HeritageAlliance has partnered with numerous local entities to highlight Appalachianfoodways in a variety of contexts.

Acomplete program for Taste of Tennessee will be released shortly. Confirmedspeakers include prominent chefs, “foodies,” farmers, historians, interpreters,to name a few. Speaker series tickets are now available to purchase on theTaste of Tennessee page at heritageall.org. The cost for the speaker series isonly $5.00, or you can bring five, non-perishable food items to the event todonate to the JAMA Food Pantry. In addition to the speaker series and cakecontest, vendors will have artisanal goods available for purchase, alongsidefood trucks offering local fare. Featuring historic recipes, techniques, and ingredients, as well as modern spins on Appalachianclassics, Mason and Tewell hope that Taste of Tennessee helps the public tocome together and enjoy a sense ofcommunity, preferably one smothered in butter.

Vendorforms, food truck forms, sponsorship forms, speaker series tickets, and “Takethe Cake” contest forms can all be found on the Taste of Tennessee page atheritageall.org.

Taste of Tennessee promises good times, good company, andgood eats. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity to learn more about our local food heritage on June 18^th—andbring your appetite for Appalachia! Learn more and purchase tickets atheritageall.org or via Heritage Alliance on Facebook.