It's officially September in Santa Fe and that means that it's chile season! Our chile, however is not the same chile that most of you cold weather cities are experiencing this time of year. Our chile is a beautiful vibrant colored fruit that takes over Santa Fe in September. Chile roasters pop up on every corner - from parking lots to grocery stores. You can literally smell the aroma of roasting chiles in the streets. The best way to celebrate this native-grown fruit is the same way Santa Fe celebrates everything - with a festival!

Santa Fe Wine and Chile Fiesta
The 20th Annual Santa Fe Wine and Chile Festival runs from Wednesday September 22nd to Sunday September 26th. Attend seminars and tastings featuring special guest presenters like Master Chefs and Sommeliers. Learn how to pair wine with southwestern cuisine - most made with chiles of course. The 17th Annual Gruet Golf Classic has a different sparkling wine with a food from a different restaurant at every third hole. This event is simply fantastic and opens up your taste buds to the finest in Southwestern cuisine. It's so popular, in fact, that many of the events and presentations are already sold out, but it's worth a try to at least get on the waiting list and be the first in line come next year.

Hatch Chiles
Over Labor Day weekend, I attended the other notable Chile haven - Hatch, New Mexico. The annual Hatch Chile Festival is held in the tiny town of Hatch known for their incredible chile headquarters where their farmers are constantly creating new breeds and various tastes. Burritos, enchiladas, gorditas, caldillo, chile verde con carne, tacos, chiles rellenos, chile-topped burgers, chile in a sack, chile powders and chile sauces - it's like Bubba Gump's shrimp story, but with chile. Even though the festival is over, you can still order Hatch chile in every form imaginable -  seeds, dried, fresh, frozen, canned, and other specialties - straight from Hatch's New Mexico Chile website. Take a look below for pictures of my trip. I can almost smell the chiles just looking at the pictures.

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Red Chile Rasberry Jam
As I said above, with Santa Fe's abundance of chiles, almost no food is safe from a chile experiment. You must make a trip to the Santa Fe Farmers Market for a jar of Heidi's rasberry jam. The most popular jam called "followed by red chile," combines molten rasberries with red chiles. Just take a look at Heidi's website to see what a runaway hit this chile concoction has become.

If you like the sounds of a city where chile fills the streets, food and culture are coveted, and taking breaks on the golf course means stopping for a wine tasting every third hole, then Santa Fe Real Estate is for you. If you are looking for a Santa Fe Home, please give me a call. I would be more than happy to introduce you into my world.

Susan Orth
Certified Residential Specialist (CRS)
City Different Realty

Phone: 505-310-4133
Email: [email protected]

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