Giant-burger-record entry hits 123 lbs.

The latest excessive entry in the ongoing battle to hold the title of World's Largest Hamburger comes this time from central Pennyslvania.

Denny's Beer Barrel Pub in Clearfield last weekend cooked up a 123-pound burger, which would be 18 pounds bigger than the current holder of the Guinness Book of World Records entry.

The sandwich, called the "Beer Barrel Main Event Charity Burger," sells for $379. It consists of 80 pounds of ground beef, 160 slices of cheese and a 30-pound bun. It's shown here with its creators, the Leigey family.

Denny's is known for generous servings -- 23-ounce beers, multi-pound Alaskan crab leg dinners and so on, so the burger seems like a natural result.

ON THE WEB
• Clearfield Profile
• Hotel/Motel Guide
• Lock Haven University (Clearfield campus)
• GANT Daily (online news service)
• Clearfield Progress (newspaper)

NY may get a second wine center

A scene at the Benmarl vineyards in Marlboro, part of the Shawangunk Wine Trail in the Hudson Valley, north of New York City.

When the New York Wine & Culinary Center opened on the shore of Canandaigua Lake last summer, it was to mixed emotions.

Most people in the Finger Lakes area were happy the tourism and educational facility was there, promoted as a "gateway" to New York's wine country.

Some people in other parts of the state pointed out that a rural, western New York "gateway" might have been a bit misleading, considering how many wineries are located north of New York City in the Hudson Valley and east of the city on Long Island.

Now, some of that irritation may be soothed with word that the New York Wine & Grape Foundation, headquarted in the Canandaigua facility, has received a $44,500 Empire State Development Grant to explore the feasibility of building a similar wine and culinary center in the Hudson Valley although “I don’t think it would be as elaborate as the one here,” said Jim Trezise, Wine & Grape Foundation president.

Phyllis Feder, co-owner of Clinton Vineyards in Dutchess County with husband Ben (both shown here), is head of the steering committee for the project. She says that once a firm is contracted, the study should be completed in about 90 days.

“It is a project that holds great potential, especially since we are so close to the New York City market,” she said.

The working title of the project is the Hudson River Valley Wine & Culinary Center.

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ON THE WEB
• Dutchess Wine Trail
• Shawangunk Wine Trail
• Hamptons Wineries
• North Fork Wine Trail