The Hudson Valley is known for its scenery, tourist attractions, bodies of water, businesses and institutions but is not immediately synonymous with the International Pickle Festival, even though the festival has been drawing crowds to the town of Rosendale in Ulster County since 1997.
While the common saying goes, “Don”™t get yourself into a pickle,” there were no difficulties encountered by organizers in presenting this year”™s annual Rosendale International Pickle Festival after a two-year hiatus because of Covid. The event was held Oct. 16 at the Rosendale Recreation Center.
It”™s traditionally held the Sunday before Thanksgiving, but this year it was moved up to take advantage of milder weather. This year saw the largest turnout in the event’s history, drawing more than 5,000 people to the town’s recreation center. Next year, planners to hold it at the Ulster County Fairgrounds in New Paltz, which can accommodate thousands more attendees.
“It was an absolutely beautiful day. We love the Pickle Festival and it”™s something the entire committee is all willing to put their energy into,” Victoria Coyne, former chairperson and current committee member told the Business Journals. “Rosendale is a very quirky town. We were a boomtown in the 1880s and became a little bit of a hippie sanctuary. The festival is lighthearted and attracts all ages. It”™s fun to watch the crowds come in because people are really enthusiastic about their pickles.”
Jeanne Walsh, town supervisor, expressed pride in the Pickle Festival being a long-standing event in town.
“We”™re very thankful to the volunteers who give their time to run and plan the festival,” Walsh said “The Town of Rosendale has supported the Pickle Festival over the years and has been lucky to have benefited from the funds raised in many ways. It has historically been a time to gather with friends and neighbors and to get supplies for the coming holidays. I have many wonderful memories of fun and food.”
This year’s event occupied more than 12,000 square feet of tent space and featured more than 100 vendors from New York and other states as well as such far-flung places as India, Bosnia, and Lebanon. The vendors showcased hundreds of varieties of pickles in all flavors and shapes, plus pickled fruits and vegetables, and pickling spices and seasonings. Also on display and for tasting and purchase were international products such as cheese, sausage, maple syrup, specialty sauces, baked goods, and more. Merchandise included pickle-themed items such as shirts and tote bags and craft items.
“It”™s become sort of a food fest,” said Coyne. “Pickled fruit is a new up-and-coming item.”
The Rosendale Youth Center ran a craft table, a variety of food trucks were on hand, and there were live musical performances by ukulele players along with ethnic dancing. There was a pickle triathlon consisting of three contests: Pickle Eating to see who can eat a whole jar of pickle spears; Pickle Juice Drinking in which contestants drink 24 ounces of pickle juice; and Pickle Chip Toss, a team event with a pitcher tossing chips into a teammate”™s mouth. Mt. Olive Pickles, a contributing sponsor from North Carolina, supplied the pickles for the competitions and prizes.
Bill and Cathy Brooks and their Japanese friend Eri Yamaguchi, who was an author and restaurateur, founded the Pickle Festival after the Brooks had planned a pickle party for pickle-loving Yamaguchi. The Brooks assumed about 100 guests would come but the party attracted 1,000.
Over the years, the festival has evolved into a fundraising event to benefit the town of Rosendale, serving as a day for pickle lovers from all over to convene and share their love of the brined cucumber. Yamaguchi is credited with putting the international flair into the festival. A memorial to her was on display at this year’s festival. Throughout the years the festival has featured roaming accordionists, Shupplattler Dancers, a Japanese dance group, Senegalese and West African drummers, a German accordionist, and served food from sushi to sauerbraten. Since its founding, the festival has donated more than $150,000 to various organizations and community projects, including the Rosendale Library, the Rosendale Youth Center, Rosendale Theatre, and the Rosendale Food Pantry.
“We try to apportion it out to support different things in the community depending on what the needs are,” Coyne said. “We”™re happy to be giving this money away.”
In 2013 the Rosendale Chamber of Commerce merged with the Pickle Festival, and in 2020 they became separate nonprofit entities. In addition to Coyne, organizing committee members include Billy Liggan, Sue Constable, Sara McGinty, Bernie Obry, Jill Obry, and Laurie Giardino.
“People should mark their calendars for next year,” said Coyne. “We would love to expand it and see it grow so we can put all the profits back into the community, which is really the fun part.”
