Some of what’s new this winter in the Greene County mountaintop town of Windham could perhaps be called small—as in a microbrewery that’s serving up 12 varieties of beer brewed right on Main Street—though the apparent success of Cave Mountain Brewing Company, after just five months is hardly insignificant,

Some of what’s new in town is big—like close to $5 million invested into base lodge renovations and other upgrades at Windham Mountain—but then when ownership has committed to invest $11 million in upgrades over approximately three years what would you expect?

Elsewhere in town, new and established businesses are doing what they do best, reinventing or reinvigorating themselves with new features, new events and new offerings.

So What’s New?
Cave Mountain Brewing Company was founded by Tim Adams with his wife, Amber, and opened on September 19, 2008. Adams moved to the area six years ago, and lived “down the mountain,” he says, adding “I was attracted to the scenery, found affordable housing and made some friends my age.”

Having worked as a chef since 1991, he also found work in several of Windham’s popular eateries—including Mill Rock, Vesuvio and others, but Adams’ sights were set on a restaurant of his own.

An avid home brewer of beer, basically self-taught, he planned to combine brewing with a kitchen he could run. “Windham is basically devoid of this kind of venue, the Main Street ‘public house’ kind of scene,” he says. “Everything else seems to be a bit off the beaten path. There’s a real growing interest in craft beer, local beer. I really thought it would be great for this location.”

Cave Mountain Brewing Company has a 12-faucet draft tower, and upon opening offered six of its own beers plus six New York State guest taps. “There was more of a demand for our beers, and I brought in six more flavors of our own,” he says.

Batch size is about one barrel per, and each barrel is less than 40 gallons, so Cave Mountain really is a microbrewery, “We have little to no automation. It’s a handcrafted product, but we use the same methods that larger commercial breweries use,” says Adams.

Cave Mountain Brewing Company utilized a small business loan from the Catskill Watershed Corporation to cover the costs of construction and equipment and employs about 12 people full or part time. “The reception has been wonderful,” says Adams. “When we were speculating on our business, trying to figure out our break-even point, we had no idea that we would almost quadruple the … volume we estimated.

Cave Mountain Brewing Company also makes its own root beer and absinthe, which Adams says was recently legalized. “We offer a lot of seasonal and specialty beers,” he says. “We recently brewed a hemp seed ale with 10 pounds of hemp seed in it. Hemp is considered a super food and is highly nutritious, and it’s completely nonpsychoactive.”

While enjoying a healthy local clientele, Adams says the business serves a lot of people from Oneonta, New Paltz, Syracuse and Kingston. “People who are into breweries and craft beer will travel a great distance,” he says. “It becomes a hobby rather quickly and passionately.”

Cave Mountain Brewing Company’s beers could travel themselves one day soon, as the company’s goal is to open a full production brewery to supply the Brooklyn and Manhattan market, hopefully within three years. “That’s big money,” says Adams. “I’m seeking investors for that.”

Big Investments from Windham Mountain
Big money, $4.75 million over the past year, has already been invested at Windham Mountain. The entire lodge has received an alpine makeover, replacing the metal roof with shingles and various exterior features with more stone and timber, including an enhanced fire pit, a redesigned structure above the stairs to the 3500 Club lockers, and attractive wooden signs in other areas.

The Club at Windham includes a new semi-exclusive venue constructed in what was once home to the resort’s administrative offices on the third floor of the lodge. “No public space was sacrificed,” says Kirt Zimmer, director of sales and marketing at Windham Mountain. “And money received from membership has helped pay for other improvements.”

The Club at Windham, accessed by a private, wood paneled elevator, includes a new kitchen, with its own staff; a dining room, lounge, tavern and several massive fireplaces. Club members, their guests and the general public can dine here on the weekend and during holiday weeks, with tables open to the public, providing that members have not reserved them all. On one early January weekend, 18 out of 120 tables for dinner were non-members on Saturday night, but on Friday night that split was 50/50.

Zimmer says there are currently 75 member families with room for more. A membership fee and annual dues apply. “Somewhere between 100 and 120 families is going to be the sweet spot,” he says. “It’s fair to say that membership is not based on who you are, but first-come first served,” says Zimmer, adding that membership levels are decided by the owners of the mountain.

The Club at Windham also features mahogany lockers, a treatment room for massages, valet parking and more. There’s even a day room, which Zimmer says has become a sort of out-of-the-way kids area, for the younger children of member families.

Attractive as it is, with a first-class view of the mountain, The Club at Windham is also available for private parties in the off season. “This is probably better for a small wedding, 120 people in the spring or fall,” says Zimmer. “Legends can accommodate around 300.”

If you’d like to dine at The Club at Windham some Friday, Saturday or Sunday night, call Windham Mountain at 1 800 754 9463 after 4 pm to check table availability.

Elsewhere in the lodge, changes have been made to the “Starting Block,” to improve rental traffic flow on the second floor, and the Wunderbar Cafe opened on the ground floor, offering hot drinks, pastry and more. And even more upgrades are in store throughout the lodge.

On the slopes, physical changes to the trails have been made and snowmaking equipment has been redeployed for better performance, but it’s a big air bag that’s getting the most attention, really. The Big Air Bag, according to Zimmer, is the first one in North America and Windham Mountain owns the distribution rights. Designed as a training tool for skiers and riders, the huge air-filled pad softens the landing for aerial maneuvers. It’s 56 feet long by 33 feet wide, and installed near the halfpipe where skiers and riders have easy access. Separate ticketing applies, and the Big Air Bag has already drawn growing following of skiers and riders who land on the bag after going off a kicker jump. After landing, you can slide on the adjacent snow and the bag refills in 10 seconds, ready for the next in line.

The Windham Country Club
That’s a taste of the big and small in Windham. Elsewhere, there’s been plenty more developing in recent months like the completion of clubhouse renovations at the Windham Country Club. The club is home to an 18-hole public golf course, and an award-winning pro shop, now located in the lower level of the remodeled club house.

Great Dining
Of course numerous restaurants, such as Trail’s End at the Winwood Inn, Bistro Brie & Bordeaux, Millrock, Michael’s Diner, the Catskill Mountain Country Store and Zerega’s Pizza (open since 1952, it’s still acclaimed to be the best pizza anywhere in the Region) continue to delight guests drawn to this mountaintop town.

The Arts
The gallery scene continues to flourish at venues such as Windham Fine Arts, Windham Art and Photography, Roshkowska Galleries and others.

Located right on Main Street, Windham Fine Arts presents a new show in the main gallery every four to six weeks. In the rear gallery annex they have a constantly rotating display of work from many of their exhibiting artists, so that every visit to the gallery is a new experience! Check out The Arts section of this issue of the Guide for more information about the current show.

Performing arts are alive and well, ranging from the annual Windham Chamber Music Festival, presented in partnership with the Catskill Mountain Foundation (map) (publisher of the Catskill Mountain Region Guide), with performances at the Windham Performing Arts Center (also known as the Center Church); to larger-scale concert events hosted at Cuomo’s Cove in Hensonville—also home to a late-season classic car show in 2008 and a weekly “open mic night.”

In short, there’s a long list of possibilities when you’re looking for things to see and do in Windham—and except for the mountain, you’ve barely left Main Street.

So What Else is There?
The town is home to a three-screen first-run movie theater, a seasonal miniature golf course, the year-round Windham Mountain Adventure Park on South Street, Christman’s Windham House with its 27-hole championship golf course, pool, tennis, year-round room rental and a restaurant that’s open to the public.

And, of course, Windham is surrounded by countless miles of trails suitable for hiking, biking, snowshoeing and more.

Whether visiting for the first time, or making a regular stop, consider heading up to County Route 10 for the Windham Vineyard and Winery, where the winemaker and his wife hosted a “Winemakers Weekend” on October 4, 2008 in the tasting room and on its scenic open air deck. About 25 winemakers took part in this harvest festival.

“We had a morning picking, a catered wine lunch, an afternoon picking, then a winemakers dinner at Chalet Fondue,” says owner James Bateman. “They were given two buckets each and a pair of snippers. They worked mainly as couples.” Working down the vineyard rows, these couples filled their buckets, which in turn were poured into large drums, poured in turn into the crusher/de-stemmer and press where the grapes pressed before transfer to fermentation tanks. Bottling of the wine—including three distinct varietal wines (each made from a single variety of grape)—began in January, according to Bateman.

“Winemakers for the day came up from New Jersey, Long Island and beyond,” says Bateman. “They’re kind of what I would describe as people who love us … or love what we’re doing … enthusiastic people who love agriculture or are adventurous types into something different. They get their hands dirty and get mud on their boots. This is the real deal.” Visit the winery for information on next October’s Winemakers Weekend. Space is limited.

Get the picture? From fine art and music to award-winning wine and places to dine, from craft-brewed beer to an exclusive club atmosphere, the town of Windham offers something for everyone.

For more information, including transportation information and contact information for all of the places mentioned here (plus lots of other ideas), visit the Chamber of Commerce’s Web site at www.windhamchamber.org.