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Agriculture
EQUINE CULTURE
An integral part of Dutchess County’s agricultural diversity is its horse culture. It ranks rst among 62 state counties in the number of horses and ponies—more than 4,600—within its boundaries.
Millbrook Hunt Country, an area encompassing 50,000 acres in the Millbrook region, is a special part of this rich culture. Leading that culture is the Millbrook Hunt, an equestrian organization founded in the 1890s that sponsors trail rides, hunter trials and paces, and hound and puppy shows.
Coole Park Farm, a boarding and training facility with 16 stalls, is in the center of Millbrook Hunt Country. The farm hosts Millbrook Hunt fox hunting events and the annual Millbrook Horse Trials, a United States Eventing Association competition that attracts Olympic-level equestrians from across the world.
The Victory Cup Polo Match in Pawling.
an artisinal co ee chain with seven locations in New York City and a larger wholesale business.
The story of Crown Maple, which produces high-quality maple syrup, shows how Dutchess County’s agricul- tural producers have found immediate international success.
In 2010, Robb Turner—a West Point graduate and co-founder of ArcLight Capital, which has invested more than $16.5 billion in energy assets—and his wife Lydia left New York City for Dover Plains, ultimately purchasing 800 acres of property they named Madava Farms. After discovering the property was lled with maple trees, Robb Turner developed an ambitious plan to launch a maple syrup business called Crown Maple and began by installing 15,000 taps. The company has been an unmitigated success, growing rapidly and garnering international acclaim.
“Immediately, Robb realized there was an opportunity here to have national and international distribution of a quality product,” says Tyge Rugenstein, chief operating o cer of Crown Maple.
Crown Maple stands by a philosophy of bark-to-bottle, managing quality control as well as packaging and distribution. It’s also a standalone brand with international aspirations— unique in the maple syrup industry, which is populated primarily by small producers who work with packers on a local and regional level.
The company—which owns one of the largest reverse-osmosis machines in the sugaring industry and has the largest maple syrup production facility in North America—has grown to 90,000 taps. By 2018, after installing taps on land it has purchased in Vermont and nearby New York counties, Crown Maple will have 200,000 taps, increasing its workforce from 35 to 50 employees.
Crown Maple has more than 2,000 points of distribution and is available at national grocery stores, including Whole Foods Markets, Albertson’s, and Kroger. The top restaurants in the world,
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