the Cento

America is a nation known for borrowing culinary traditions from other countries. Many staples of the American diet are not from America:pizza is from Italy, hamburgers are from Germany and the origin of french fries is rather self-explanatory. However, we do enthusiastically celebrate the cuisines we have created.

One such culinary celebration took place quite recently in our sleepy little town of Danville. The food in question was barbeque, which is linked heavily to the American South, both historically and culturally. This was the first year that Danville held this well attended festival which not only encompassed local barbeque enthusiasts, but also contributors from all across Kentucky.

While at the festival, I managed to learn more about barbeque from Carey Bringle, the owner of the Peg Leg Porker restaurant and a celebrated pitmaster. Recently, Bringle’s barbeque sauce was named second best in the country by Bon Appetite Magazine.

According to Bringle, cooking barbeque is all about cooking “low and slow.” The practice originated in the 19th century.

“[They used] larger cuts of meat, that were known as poor quality cuts. Slaves and sharecroppers used these cheaper cuts of meat, ’cause that was all they had. They wanted to make them tender, so they cooked them low and slow,” he said.

Bringle practices this “low and slow” style himself, with his ovens going just a little over 200 degrees, cooking each cut of meat for 24 hours before it is chopped up and served.

This “low and slow” style attracted many people to the festival, some from Kentucky and others from out of state. Of course, it also attracted quite a few Centre students and faculty, who were eager to get a taste of the food.

First-year Marit Gookin had nothing but praise for the barbeque. “Everything I had was good. Some was smokier, some was tangier, but it was all delicious! Definitely worthy of being called the state festival,” she said.

Gookin was not the only one pleased with the event. Organizer Brad Simmons was absolutely thrilled with the turnout and with a festival celebrating barbeque in general.

“It started out one year when my wife asked me what I wanted for my birthday. She said, ‘Pick what you want, and I’ll pay for it.’ She’s regretted it ever since,” he said. The festival is Simmons’s way of sharing his passion for barbeque with the rest of the world.

There was more than just barbeque available at the festival. Several live musicians such as blues band Big Poppa Stampley of Louisville and classic rock band Soupbone from Columbus, Ohio played for the barbeque-munching crowds.

Cooking demonstrations taught amateur chefs new tricks and a play area was available for children. There were even a few contests, including a bean-eating contest and a hog-calling contest on Sunday.

Across Constitution Square, booths were set up selling wine, honey and, of course, barbeque sauce. The sheer volume of vendors selling barbeque sauces was impressive. The variety of barbeque sauce ranged from mild to super spicy — one vendor even sold sauce made from ghost chile, the hottest chile in the world, which only the bravest barbeque fan tried.

At the end of the festival, one lucky winner took home a Big Green Egg, a kind of ceramic charcoal cooker perfect for an aspiring barbeque chef. The prize was well advertised, as a huge inflated Big Green Egg greeted visitors at the entrance.

While the barbeque festival may be over, it seems unlikely that Danville has seen the last of it. “This was the first barbeque festival and based on the turnout, I think we’re going to have it every year,” Bringle said.

That’s good news for Danville and great news for barbeque fans who will be looking forward to more barbeque festivals in the future.