Feature Articles

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Photographer Frank Barnett and writer Martha A. Solomon (formerly Mart McCann) specialize in collaborating on feature articles. Their past work has ranged in subject from food and specialty beverages (wine, beer and coffee) to cigars and steelhead fishing on the South Umpqua River. Give them an assignment and watch them exceed your expectations. You can read several samples below.

"When we arrived by train at the Venice Santa Lucia Station, even before checking into the charming pension that we had discovered in Frommer's Europe by Rail, we decided to stop off at one of that ancient city's abundant coffeehouses....behind the bar stood baristas at the ready, pressed white napkins draped over their forearms with white waiters' jackets that had been starched beyond belief....This was not your father's ordinary coffee beanery."

From Portland, Oregon, to Portland, Maine, Frank and Mart followed the hops trail, beginning at the Goschie hops farm near Silverton, Oregon. 

Their adventures led them from the hops fields to the fermentation labs at Oregon State University in Corvallis, and on to their discoveries of far-flung craft brewers across the nation. 

The story behind Oregon's Wine Country began as long ago as 10,000 to 15,000 years – if we want to take the long view. That's when the catastrophic Missoula Floods from Montana and Washington contributed to the creation of the perfect soil for growing grapes. That's the long story. The shorter version is a captivating and uniquely American tale of overcoming nay-sayers, the migration of dedicated and determined families, of endless toil, a collaborative spirit between a handful of dreamers and pure grit and determination.