Cooks’ calendar

Are you the best baker, canner or candymaker? Put your skills to the test in the S.C. State Fair Home & Craft competition. Registration is being accepted at www.scstatefair.org through Sept 1 (no entry fee before midnight Sept. 1; late entry fee of $25 for entries dated Sept. 2-19). Special contests this year include a team Pumpkin Decorating contest and the King Arthur Flour Baking Contest.

Here’s your chance to win a professional grill. Enter the Jarlsberg Cheese Extraordinary Grill Contest simply by filling out the form on the Facebook/JarlsbergUSA site. One entry per person, per week, now through Aug. 31. Winners will be randomly selected and notified by email.

Columbia Food Tours, owned by Kristin and Brian Cole, takes you on a walking tour of downtown Columbia to experience the culture and cuisine of the Capital City. Sign up for a tour, gathering at the State House steps, and visit six to eight of Columbia restaurants and sample items from the menu. Tours last 21/2-hours, rain or shine. Upcoming tours: Friday, Aug 21, Five Points; Saturday, Aug. 22, Main Street Columbia. More information and ticket reservations, $42 per person, at www.columbiafoodtours.com

Two Gals and a Fork Foor Tours and Historic Columbia offer monthly 21/2 hour walking historical food tours in the Famously Hot Vista. Groups enjoy specialties from five top restaurants all while hearing tons of cool history about Columbia and the Vista. Try the 11a.m.-1:30 pm Brunch and Munch or 4-6:30 pm Sites and Bites Tours all beginning at Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center. Tickets, $30-$38 depending on the number in your party, available at www.twogalsfoodtours.com. Customized tours available. Upcoming dates for public tours: Saturday, Aug. 22, September 5 and October 31.

A three-ring culinary circus: Asheville (N.C.) Wine & Food Festival, Aug. 20-22. The event opens with Elixir on Aug. 20, a competition between chefs and mixologists. Then comes Sweet, the largest gathering of pastry chefs on the East Coast. The weekend ends with the Grand Tasting at the U.S. Cellular Center. Information and tickets at ashevillewineandfood.com

Farm to Farm Dinner and A Show at Music Farm 6:30 p.m Aug. 24. Tickets $85 per person, 21 and older only; includes opening cocktail, wine pairings with four-course dinner prepared by chefs Kristian Niemi and Travis Rayle and live performances by Lauren Hall and Haley Mae Campbell. Available at www.musicfarm.com

Shrooms! Join in the fun at the 2nd annual Lowcountry Mushroom Gathering 6-9 p.m. Aug. 28 at GrowFood Carolina, 990 Morrison Drive, Charleston. Enjoy mushroom dishes created by local chefs, local beer and live music. Local foragers and mushroom cultivators will be on hand to answer questions. Tickets $45 per person, available at eventbrite.com

Go nuts and celebrate the 80th anniversary of Cromer’s P-Nuts 10 a.m.-1p.m. Aug. 29 at 1700 Huger St. Enjoy bounce houses, live music, a vintage car show and, of course, Cromer’s treats. www.cromers.com

Wine on the River, to benefit Lexington Medical Center Foundation’s Cancer Care Fund, is 7-10 p.m. Aug. 29 at Stone River, 121 Alexander Rd., West Columbia. Tickets $40 per person in advance, $50 at door, include hors d’oeuvres, wine and specialty beers and live music, available at eventbrite.com

Stomp those grapes! The muscadines are ready and that can only mean that it’s time for Irvin-House Vineyards & Firefly Distillery’s Grape Stomping Festival. Bring the family and have fun noon-5 p.m. Aug. 29 with games, contests (“I Love Lucy” Lucy Look-Alike Contest is always fun), food and more. Tickets $10 per car. Irvin-House Vineyard, 6775 Bears Bluff Road, Wadmalaw Island. Information and contest registration at www.charlestonwine.com, (843) 559-6867.

SC Food Truck Wars Festival noon-6 p.m Sept. 6 at Historic Columbia Speedway will feature 40 food trucks from the area and local beer. Bring blankets and lawn chairs and enjoy an afternoon with family and friends. A kid-friendly are will have music and games. Early Bird tickets, $12 per person, gets you in an hour early (at 11 a.m.); regular tickets, $8 per person; kids 12 and under free. eventbrite.com

Chefs, now’s your time to show off during the Columbia Small Plate Crawl Sept. 22-24. Presented by Six and Twenty Distillery, restaurant registration ends Sept. 4. During the three-day Crawl Event, restaurants will offer special Small Plate Menus priced from $4 to $10 to showcase their cuisine. Restaurants can choose the block of time to participate (breakfast, lunch, dinner or all day). Details: Nichole Livengood at Nichole@CarolinaEpicurianEvents.com or (864) 320-3002. Latest news at facebook.com/columbiasmallplatecrawl.

The Great American Whiskey Fair, presented by Bourbon, 6-9 p.m. Sept. 10 at 701 Whaley will feature more than 300 bourbons, whiskeys and ryes from the U.S., Scotland, Ireland, Canada and Japan; food from Bourbon. Tickets on sale now ($75 per person; VIP tickets $125 per person) at eventbrite.com; tickets sold only in advance, not at door. ExperienceWhiskey.com or info@experiencewhiskey.com

Beer in the Garden: Moore Farms Botanical Garden Beer Fest is 1-5 p.m. Sept. 12, at 100 New Zion Road, Lake City. Enjoy craft beer while wandering the 50-acre botanical garden. Tickets $20 in advance, $25 at gate, $10 designated driver. Special VIP ticket, $35, includes MFBG Beer Fest T-shirt, pint glass, early tasting (enter at noon rather than 1 p.m.) and a hops plant. Proceeds go to Harvest Hope Food Bank-Pee Dee. Tickets at moorefarmsbg.org

Euphoria Greenville celebrates 10 years Sept. 17-20. Check out the official lineup (Edwin McCain returns); tickets at euphoriagreenville.com.

ColaTown Oktoberfest begins 3 p.m. Sept. 19 at River Rat Brewery. More than 100 taps in 50 tents, food vendors, live music and more. Tickets sold in advance only, no tickets at the gate; ages 21 and older only. Tickets: $90 VIP includes commemorative glass, exclusive entry to Tap Room, special beer pouring and all food; $65 regular entry, commemorative glass, access to vendors and beer tents, food not included; $25 designated driver includes food ticket for plate of barbecue and soft drink. River Rat is at 1231 Shop Road. Tickets through eventbrite.com, information at riverratbrewery.com

Dine on the Bridge ... the Gervais Street Bridge Dinner brings together restaurants from Columbia, West Columbia and Cayce in a celebration of what we all have in common. Scheduled for 4-8 p.m. Oct. 18, tickets for this first-ever event are on sale now at gervaisstreetbridgedinner.com. Proceeds to benefit Congaree Riverkeeper.

Carolina Farm Stewards Association Sustainable Agriculture Conference is scheduled for Nov. 6-8 in Durham, NC. Information at www.carolinafarmstewards.org

FoodShare Columbia connects families and communities with affordable fresh fruits and vegetables from local and regional farmers. The partnership of the Columbia Parks and Recreation Department, Richland Library, USC School of Medicine, EdVenture Children’s Museum and the Columbia Housing Authority provides boxed food that can be ordered twice a month, between 10 a.m.-2 p.m. and 4-7 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Bellfield Cultural Arts Center at 2611 Grant St., (803) 255-8161. Cost is $20; $10 for SNAP participants. Cash and EBT accepted.

True farm-to-table, have lunch on the farm! Old McCaskill’s Farm, 377 Cantey Lane in Rembert, will be serving lunch every Friday in August, $10 per person. Call to reserve, (803) 669-1628 or oldmccaskillsfarm@gmail

Wine Wednesdays at Craft And Draft. Each Wednesday will feature select wines at $5 per glass and three to four wines that will be available for sampling and buying. Craft and Draft is at 2706 Devine St., (803) 764-2575, www.craftanddraftbeer.com

Columbia Brew Bus offers tours of Columbia’s growing beer scene. A standard tour, $45, includes pickup at one of the partner restaurants (Flying Saucer, Liberty Tap Room or World of Beer) and stops at Conquest Brewing, River Rat Brewery and Swamp Cabbage Brewing. At each stop you get at least 16 ounces of beer samples, brewery tour, Q&A with brewery staff and opportunity to buy brewery merchandise. Along the way, enjoy sightseeing, light snacks, trivia and prizes, coolers to keep purchases cold and an all-S.C. music playlist curated by Scene SC. Information and booking at www.columbiabrewbus.com

Greenville Brew Tours offers Saturday tours of breweries, an overview of the brewing processes and tastings of craft beers with a final stop at The Greenville Growler Station, a leading craft beer tavern in Greenville. Participating breweries include Thomas Creek, Brewery 85, Quest Brewing and Swamp Rabbit Brewery with occasional excursions to Charlotte, Asheville, NC, and Athens, Ga. Tickets are $55 per person. Private tours available. Information, schedule and ticket reservations at greenvillebrewtours.com.

Calling all chefs – current, retired and experienced. Cooking Matters, a new cooking and nutrition education curriculum, will be hosting cooking and nutrition classes for adults and is looking for volunteers to share their skills.Email snapclasses@gmail.com

Learn to make sushi at SakiTumi. Wednesdays by appointment, couples and small groups can call and arrange classes in the art of making sushi. Pricing options include food and class or choose to include wine or hot sake. Call (803) 931-0700 after 2 p.m. for scheduling or information. SakiTumi is at 807 Gervais St.

Ballentine Community Center presents Flavors of the World cooking class series, meeting 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. the third Wednesday of the month. Classes $15 per person. Charlene Lyles, (803) 781-2031.

Chef Francois Fisera hosts cooking classes at Fleur de Lys Home Culinary Institute. Friday, wines of Provence with salmon and lentils; Aug. 25 and 28, duck breast falmbe with Busnel Calvados and green peppercorn cream sauce. Fleur de Lys is at 3001 Millwood Ave. (803) 765-9999 or fleurdelyscolumbiasc.com.

Let’s Cook Culinary Studio events: Thursday, Mediterranean; Friday, couples Italian; Aug. 28, Asian small plates. Detailed listings at letscookculinary.com. Let’s Cook is at 1305 Assembly St. (803) 348-5874.

McCutchen House at USC. Chef du jour classes (9 a.m.-1 p.m.): Sept. 19, soups & chowders; Oct. 3, Holiday Dinner Made Easy; Oct. 31, Pie Making 101; Nov. 7 (extended 6-hour class), Bread 101; Nov. 14, roasting; Dec. 5 (extended 6-hour class), Cakes 101. Wine classes: Sept. 1, Wines of South Africa; Sept. 29, fall favorites; Oct. 6, Wine 101, how to purchase; Oct. 20, Wines from Alsace; Nov. 3, dessert wines; Dec. 1, rare wines. Registration for classes through McCutchen House or call Becky Moran (803) 777-8225

Farmers in the Forest, Forest Acres Farmers Market at Richland Mall in the parking lot along Beltline Boulevard. Wednesdays 3-7 p.m. through Oct. 28. Vendor applications can be found at farmersintheforest.org; follow on Facebook.

Blythewood Farmers Market, 4-7 p.m. Wednesdays, Doko Meadows, 171 Langford Road, Blythewood. Contact Michaela Barno (843) 697-1733 for more information.

302 Artisans at Senate’s End, 2-7 p.m. (No Frills Grill food truck serves lunch noon-6 p.m.) Thursdays through Oct. 29 at 302 Senate St. www.facebook.com/302Artisans

Northeast Farmers Market, 3-7 p.m. Thursdays through Oct. 22, Lake Carolina Town Center, www.lakecarolina.com

Rosewood Market Farmers Market, 1-7 p.m. second and fourth Thursdays, 2803 Rosewood Drive, (803) 256-6410 www.rosewoodmarket.com

1st Market at First Nazareth Baptist Church, Saturdays 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. through Nov. 21; Wednesdays 9 a.m.-1 p.m.; Millwood parking lot across from church. Senior vouchers, WIC, SNAP/EBT and debit cards accepted. Local farmers and gardeners encouraged to participate, (803) 254-6232

Irmo Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-noon, first and third Saturdays through September, Carlisle Street, Irmo, www.irmofarmersmarket.com

Kershaw County Farmers Market, 8 a.m.-noon Saturdays through Nov. 21, 222 Broad St., Camden, www.kcfarmersmarket.org

Lexington Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-noon Saturdays through Sept. 26 (except July 4), Lexington Square Park, 205 E. Main St. www.lexsc.com

Soda City Market, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. every Saturday at the 1500 block of Main Street; Mini-market every Tuesday-Friday 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Marriott on Main. www.sodacitysc.com

Sandhills Farmers Market, 2-7 p.m. Tuesdays through Nov. 24 at Sandhill Research Center, 900 Clemson Road, across from Village at Sandhill www.clemson.edu

Healthy Carolina’s Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Tuesdays at Davis Field (Greene Street) July 28.