Culinary History Enthusiasts of Wisconsin (CHEW)
Goodman Community Center-Ironworks 149 Waubesa St., Madison, Wisconsin 53704
press release: “Lonesome Stone: The First Ten Years of a Small Grain Mill”
Presented by Gilbert Williams
Tonight we’ll hear from southern Wisconsin’s Pied Piper of whole grains, Gilbert William, co-owner and manager of Lonesome Stone, a small mill in Lone Rock, Wisconsin with a big reputation for processing excellent, locally sourced flours. Gilbert will share the story of the mill’s startup and development into a milling system that buys from area farms and serves the local market. He’ll explore the company’s farm connections, milling system, marketing and future prospects. The evening will include a sampling of dishes made with Lonesome Stone flours, which will also be available for sale.
Gilbert Williams came to Wisconsin from Maryland in 1986 with an MS in Agronomy and a desire to be in a state that seemed “more to my rural liking.” After stints as an environmental chemist and in food processing quality control, he started the business that became Lonesome Stone Milling by renovating an old seed cleaning mill in order to process rye. Gilbert is now in his tenth year of stone-milling locally raised wheat, rye and flint corn. He and his five-person crew flour “mill to order,” and their flour reflects the terroir of good farming in the Driftless region of Wisconsin.