Save the date for 2009: Saturday, September 26 --Free cranberry marsh shuttle bus tours (courtesy of the MW Chamber & Cranberry Growers Assoc.) --Free pontoon cruises on the Manitowish Waters chain (courtesy of the MW Lakes Assoc., weather permitting) --11th Annual Cranberry Colorama cooking contest --Taste of Harvest (lunch concessions featuring some of the area's restaurants, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.), plus beverages and live music --Lioness Bake Sale (morning 'til goodies last) --Arts & Crafts (a small, quality selection of handmade items) --Free cranberry samples --Fresh cranberry sales

The Chamber produced a commemorative 10th anniversary Cranberry Colorama Cooking Contests Cookbook after Colorama '08, and the delightful book of 200 recipes from the past 10 cooking contests is now available for purchase. Cost is $15 per cookbook, and may be purchased at the Chamber office and various businesses (currently Up North Wisconsin, LaPorte's Market, and Michael's Parlor). The Chamber will ship orders to any U.S. address, but priority shipping charges apply. The order form may be downloaded from the Chamber’s website at www.manitowishwaters.org. The cookbook makes an excellent gift for the holidays, birthdays, hostess gifts, or any special occasion.

** 2008 Cranberry Colorama Winners **

This year’s 10th anniversary cranberry cooking contest held at the Manitowish Waters Chamber’s Cranberry Colorama, Sept.27, had 25 scrumptious entries from “kitchen connoisseurs” in Manitowish Waters, Presque Isle, Fond du Lac, Minocqua, Mercer, and Boulder Junction, Wisconsin, plus Burlington, Illinois. Eleven entrants were awarded top honors by a panel of seven judges. All entrants received a booklet of last year’s contest recipes, while the first, second and honorable mention winners received gifts from Alder Lake Cranberry gift shop, Cranberry Square gift shop, and the Manitowish Waters Chamber. Of the general public entries, award winners were:

Breads/Muffins/Desserts First Place: Bobbie Behnke, Winchester, WI ~ Cranberry Orange Tassies Second Place: Mary Hanson, Manitowish Waters, WI ~ Cranberry Pecan Bars Honorable Mention: Melinda Pearce, Presque Isle, WI ~ Cranberry Nut Pie

Main Dishes/Salads/Appetizers First Place: Marla Suckow, Manitowish Waters, WI ~ Cranberry Popcorn Treat Second Place: Melinda Pearce, Presque Isle, WI ~ Cranberry Fluff Honorable Mention: Audrey Winchell, Mercer, WI ~ Cranberry Raspberry Spinach Salad

Sauces/Jams & Jellies/Miscellaneous First Place: Heather Bauers, Manitowish Waters, WI ~ Sweet Wild Rice & Craisin Walnut Pudding Second Place: Sandi Iglewski, Manitowish Waters, WI ~ Cranberry Apple Relish Honorable Mention: Stephanie Kanies-Smith, Burlington, IL ~ Apple Cranberry Chutney

Blue Bayou Inn of Manitowish Waters was the only restaurant that entered the professional category. Matt Mazur’s Northwoods Roll-ups Bayou Style with Cranberry Glaze was awarded first place in the Main Dishes/Salads/Appetizers category, and Penny Mazur’s Crazy Craisin Cookies took first place in the Breads/Muffins/Desserts category.

Judges were Chuck DeCarlo, John Hanson, Suzy Foster (2007 “Best Overall” contest winner), Mark Suckow, Alex Negro (our first student judge, a freshman at Lakeland High School and Manitowish Waters resident), Vicki Mendham (Nicolet College Culinary Arts Instructor) and Keith Ambrosini (Nicolet College culinary arts student). Contest chairperson was Jean Eales of Manitowish Waters.

Cranberry Colorama is an annual event which celebrates the start of the fall color and cranberry harvest seasons in Manitowish Waters, sponsored by the Manitowish Waters Chamber of Commerce. Always held the last Saturday of September, Cranberry Colorama features free shuttle bus cranberry marsh tours compliments of the Chamber and Cranberry Growers of Manitowish Waters, fall color pontoon tours on the Manitowish chain compliments of the Manitowish Waters Lakes Association, craft exhibitors, Lioness bake sale, complimentary cranberry juice & Craisin samples, live music, Taste of Harvest featuring some of the area’s fine restaurants, cranberry cooking contest, raffles & educational booths, and more.

This year’s event also featured a cranberry count contest which was won by David Golla of Stevens Point, Wis. He had the closest guess without going over of 2,756 cranberries to the accurate count of 2,810. Golla received a Manitowish Waters DVD, 2007 contest recipe cookbook and Craisin trail mix from the Chamber.

Cranberry harvest in Manitowish Waters has been underway since Sept. 29, and the final Friday morning marsh tour will be offered Oct. 10 starting at the Manitowish Waters Community Center at 10 a.m. and ending at the Vilas Cranberry Co. marsh (660 Alder Lake Road). The tour is free and lasts about one hour. Nearly 800 people have enjoyed a Friday tour since July 11, 2008. Please contact Cranberry Square gift shop at the Vilas Cranberry Co. to check on the status of harvest and the availability of fresh cranberries for purchase: 715-543-2778.