New England Holiday Part 2: The Wedding

While I was back east this summer I attended the wedding of an old college friend. Actually, I planned my trip back east around it. I have gotten into the habit of planning my summer trip to New England around some event or other and deciding which summer school session to teach given that. This was actually just a wedding reception -- the fun part. And it was a total blast catching up with the bride and some other college friends I had not seen in far too long. But with banquets like weddings and other similar events, eating ethically gets tricky. Here we were at the absolutely beautiful Wadwanuck Yacht Club in Stonington, CT, just outside Mystic, CT. The weekend in Connecticut was great fun as I was catching up with all sorts of friends. I had good Italian food in Bridgeport and got my Dunkin' Donuts coffee, too (which is had usually once a year because while it is good, it does not meet my regular fair trade standards, although I recently found out that their espresso roast is fair trade).

This was more casual than many such "yacht club" weddings, perhaps in part because it was just the reception, the destination wedding took place in Mexico in April. So it was not your traditional New England sit-down plated dinner. There was a raw bar on the beach (not something I eat because I don't like it, not because of the ethical implications and honestly I didn't look closely enough at what they were serving to have an opinion about it other than I was told that most of what they were serving, minus the shrimp I would guess, was local). Noticing the raw bar did make me think of those losing their livelihoods in the Gulf of Mexico. There were also crab cakes and fajitas (an odd choice perhaps, but they were tasty). It was more like very heavy hors d'oeuvres and a lot of drinking. I did tell my friend who accompanied me that these were my "fun friends" from college. They did not disappoint. I believe a good time was had by all.

Instead of traditional champagne, or from my own Italian heritage, the dreaded Asti Spumanti, there was prosecco, which I greatly prefer. It is crisper than champagne but much more like it than Asti. I always liked it, but fell in love with it again while in Florence a few summers ago. It is now my go-to bubbly, so was thrilled it was the choice for the wedding. It is, alas, imported and has some environmental implications because of that. But, it is far more affordable for the average person than champagne or even many of the good California bubblies.

Lastly, there was no wedding cake--just a collection of beautiful, from scratch cupcakes. Which brings me to my last ethical note -- the pistachio. Like the almond, the pistachio is grown widely in the US, but many people think of it in terms of Italy (just like the prosecco!) which is one of the regions it is likely originally from. The US grows more pistachios than any other country but Iran. Pistachios are actually really good for you--good fat that lowers LDL cholesterol and anti-oxidant levels that rival green tea. This was a very good cupcake, but likely some of the health benefits of pistachios were off-set by the other cupcake ingredients. It was dense and not too sweet, like a home made, not from scratch, cupcake. It wasn't dry like wedding cake can sometimes be either.

But wedding feasts are an ethical triumph in different respects than much consideration of ethical eating. It is the joining of friends and family in celebration and food is one way we celebrate with one another. While the food was good, it was secondary. Honestly, I did not eat all that much -- I was too busy talking, laughing and having fun, and having a little more to drink than usual. So, the wedding, when it comes to ethical eating, likely rated higher on community value than on environmental, but I have to say it did good for the soul!