Wallowa Butchery Tour


In this era of boxed meat, a hanging side of beef is a rare sight.  At Kevin Silveira’s butcher shop in Wallowa, Oregon, you’ll witness old-world butchering of a Carman Ranch dry-aged carcass.  This four-hour hands-on session in a custom butcher’s shop is the centerpiece of a culinary and stewardship tour in the picture perfect Wallowa Valley from Friday, June 18 to Sunday, June 20.

Itinerary and Pricing 

The weekend begins on Friday evening with a barbecue on 96-year-old Carman Ranch hosted by fourth-generation rancher Cory Carman. You will be served 100% grassfed hamburgers with all the trimmings along with 360° views featuring grazing cattle, rolling native grasslands and snow-dappled Wallowa Mountains. Oral histories, photos of the way things were and discussion about the way things ought to be are all on the menu for this campfire-lit evening.

Saturday’s activities will center on beef cutting, cooking and tasting. You will spend the morning at Valley Meat Services, with owner Kevin Silveira, where you will gain a personal understanding of beef cuts and a new perspective on the choices every butcher makes. You will also have the opportunity to don a glove and wield a knife to practice the age-old art of butchery. Afterward, a lunch of local fare will be served at the Blonde Strawberry Café on Main Street, Wallowa.

The afternoon kitchen session will be a full-on tasting lab experience guided by Lynne Sampson Curry, author of a forthcoming cookbook on grassfed beef. You will cook and taste meat from different breeds, ages, frozen and fresh, dry and wet aged so you can experience for yourself the attributes most important to your own palate.

As you drive out of the Wallowa Valley, return to Carman Ranch to collect farm-fresh eggs from the brood, check out the heritage pigs and pick up a care package of local goodies to get you all the way home in comfort.


$225/person (lodging not included) SOLD OUT