UMaine Extension offers specialty jam and pickle workshops at Maine Tasting Center

Wiscasset, Maine — University of Maine Cooperative Extension is offering two food preservation workshops at the Maine Tasting Center, 506 Old Bath Rd. in Wiscasset.

The first, Spirited Spreads: Boozy Jams Happy Hour, will take place on Friday, August 1, 2025, from 4:30–7 p.m. Participants will learn how to effectively and safely incorporate spirits and liqueurs into fruit jams. The second, Pickle Party: Brining the Summer Harvest, is scheduled for Friday, August 29, 2025 from 4:30 p.m.–7 p.m. and will cover the basics of pickling vegetables and how to use a boiling water bath canner to safely preserve pickles.

Workshop attendees will receive a “Preserving the Harvest” informational packet and learn recommended methods for preserving foods, the latest and safest recipes, what equipment to use to ensure safety, and how to check for properly sealed jars. A local snack will be provided during class, and attendees are encouraged to bring a potholder to the workshop.

Registration is required; the cost is $40 per workshop. For more information and to register visit the program webpage. To request a reasonable accommodation, contact Kate McCarty, 207.781.6099; kate.mccarty@maine.edu.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension

As a trusted resource for over 100 years, Extension has supported UMaine’s land and sea grant public education role by conducting community-driven, research-based programs in every Maine county. UMaine Extension seeks to build thriving communities and grow the food-based economy, focusing on aspects from production and processing to nutrition, food safety and food security. Extension also conducts the most successful out-of-school youth educational program in Maine through 4-H, which offers hands-on projects in areas like health, science, agriculture, and civic engagement and creates a positive environment where participants are encouraged to take on proactive leadership roles.