Blanco Lavender Festival

This was the 10^th year Blanco has hosted a Lavender Festival. It is a great way to check out the quaint historic town of Blanco just a short drive from Austin. The Lavender Festival offers a outdoor artisanal market with a variety of great vendors all situated in the historic town square wrapped around the beautiful 1885 courthouse. There is also live music playing in the tree shaded park with natural small amphitheater at the back end of the town square. You must try the famous Lavender Festival «Lizzie» drink, a mimosa style champagne cocktail — just substitute the OJ with some Lavender cocktail mix — it’s sweet but bubbly. They have lavender everything at the market — I never realized just how many ways you could utilize lavender. This year they had two lavender farms outside of town offering free tours, and at one of them $ 5 cuttings. Being from the heart of lavender country in Sequim, WA, I was expecting huge fields of purple. But, even though they said this year the lavender went «crazy», the farms are better described as sporadic bushes of purple. Each farm also had a store with various products for sale. It definitely was worth a drive, and the market and town were fun to explore. The lavender itself was a bit disappointing, but I had high expectations going in based on previous Lavender festival experiences held elsewhere.

I’ve been going for a few years now. Nice group of vendors. Informative speakers. Live music along the creek. Wine and food tastings. And be sure to take in some farm tours out in the country side.

After National Geographic photographer Robert Kendrick returned home to Blanco from Provence after working on a story about perfume for the magazine, he realized there was little significant difference between the weather and topography of the Texas Hill Country and south of France,.
They started the first lavender farm, and Kendrick’s wife Jeannie Ralston has gone on to establish this annual festival chock full of events and Blanco’s busiest time of the year where a roving festival takes place both in town and the 9 area lavender farms.
TIP: attend the growers dinner if they let in non-​farmers this year… in the past, it’s been a great meal on the top floor of the Blanco Courthouse with lavender-​induced ingredients added to dishes, and there’s dancing afterwards… a great time!
Brieger Pottery tends to be a hot spot during the June weekend, and there are great cold drinks at Real Foods next door.
Does get crowded, and probably should like lavender.