Sporting Resort and Spa Provides Best of Both Worlds

Swainsboro, Georgia (April 22, 2008) - With the largemouth bass spawning on beds around the 18 different ponds located at Flat Creek Lodge, it’s no wonder that some monster bass are being caught! Guest Claudia Haraway noted that the highlight of her visit was catching of a 14-pound, 28-inch largemouth bass. Another happy visitor to Flat Creek Lodge, Kerri McKenzie caught a pre-spawn 26-inch, 12.5 pounder from the same pond. Both of these trophy-size fish were caught, weighed, measured (and photographed!) and released back into the main lake. Haraway and McKenzie’s good fortune provides an example of the great catches that can be made fishing the lakes and ponds that surround the unique resort, spa and outdoor sports destination.

Flat Creek Lodge is a 2,000-acre, top-notch outdoor sports facility located just outside the town of Swainsboro, Georgia. The resort offers 12 lodge rooms along with six two- bedroom and two four-bedroom cottages, a complete spa facility, fitness center and a unique Japanese bathhouse for guests to enjoy.

Along with phenomenal bass fishing, Flat Creek Lodge offers seasonal quail, deer, turkey, wild boar, pheasant and duck hunts on its game preserve. Renowned Sporting Director Bob Edwards offers training tips and sporting classes to improve any sportsperson’s abilities and maximize enjoyment. For visitors who prefer other outdoor activities, the resort also offers hiking, nature tours, biking and other summer related activities at the onsite freshwater beach. During fall 2008, Flat Creek Lodge plans to offer new options like fitness training, orienteering, a confidence course and paintball in the woods. With so many types of adventure, there is never a dull moment at Flat Creek Lodge.

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main Lodge or in a private Cottage.  Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the Spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room.  Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia.  Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine.  The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401. The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273. It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com

THE BIG CHEESE

Flat Creek Lodge Dairy Places 12th in World Cheese Competition

Atlanta (April 2, 2008) – The results are in, and Flat Creek Lodge Dairy is, in fact, The Big Cheese. Open for less than one year and under the leadership of Head Cheesemaker Dane Huebner only half of that time, Flat Creek Lodge Dairy’s rankings in the recent World Cheese Championship Contest show that not all cheese has to be aged to taste great!

Hosted by the Wisconsin Cheesemakers Association, the 27th Biennial World Cheese Championship—the largest international cheese contest—was held March 11-13 in Madison, Wis. The contest judges cheeses and butters by class; each is evaluated by an international panel of 22 expert judges. Flat Creek Lodge Dairy placed 12th out of 29 places, putting it in the top 43 percent of participants—pretty sweet for a young dairy.

Of course it doesn’t hurt that Huebner, Flat Creek’s Big Cheese, came to the Dairy with plenty of cheese-making credentials. In addition to working in beer production and as a scientist in a bakery, he served as Research Chef and Cheesemaker at Cedar Grove Cheese in Wisconsin, where he developed different cheese and flavors for private label companies, helping them win cheese awards.
 
With the Flat Creek Lodge Dairy since November, Huebner has been hard at work making local versions of some of his favorite cheeses from around the world, as well as coming up with several of his own American Originals. Since elements like type of milk, microbes and the terroir affect the flavor of every cheese, no cheese can ever be exactly duplicated. So Flat Creek Cheddar will only taste like Flat Creek Cheddar.

Feeling cheesy? Flat Creek Lodge Dairy cheeses are available at the Flat Creek property, online or by placing a telephone order.

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main Lodge or in a private Cottage.  Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the Spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese Bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room.  Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia.  Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine.  The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401. The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273.  It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com.

Artisanal Cheese Dairy in SE Georgia Benefits from New Head Cheese

Swainsboro, Georgia (March 4, 2008) – Last summer, Flat Creek Lodge celebrated the opening of the second licensed artisanal cheese dairy in Georgia. In less than a year, the micro-dairy earned a nomination for the “2008 Innovative Dairy Farmer of the Year” award, which is co-sponsored by the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) and Dairy Today magazine. This spring, Flat Creek Lodge has another reason to rejoice – a new Head Cheese Maker with plenty of creative ideas and a retail arm that will help get the Flat Creek cheeses out to lucky cheese lovers throughout Georgia.

Head Cheesemaker Dane Huebner has come to Flat Creek Lodge with plenty of cheese making credentials. With a background in microbiology, Huebner began his career in beer production then worked as a scientist in a bakery. Traveling to Vietnam, he researched fermented fish products before realizing his desire to develop cheeses. He served as Research Chef and Cheesemaker at Cedar Grove Cheese in Wisconsin where he developed different cheese and flavors for private label companies, helping them win cheese awards.

With the Flat Creek Lodge Dairy for four months, Huebner has already been hard at work making local versions of some of his favorite cheeses from around the world as well as coming up with several of his own American Originals. Since elements like type of milk, microbes and the terroir affect the flavor of every cheese, no cheese can ever be exactly duplicated. So Flat Creek Cheddar will only taste like Flat Creek Cheddar.

“Cheese making is about combining ideas that already exist to make something new,” says Huebner. That “something new” has played out as local Cheddar and Leiden, but also an American Original – the Flat Creek Farmhouse, which is an aged farmhouse style that has been wrapped and covered in white mold. (It actually is aging now and will be ready in about six months!) Huebner has also created Aztec Cheddar, a traditional hand-milled Cheddar with cocoa and guajillo peppers, bringing a very old culinary idea to cheese.

Huebner is not flying solo in the Dairy; he has plenty of assistance from Cheese Maker Fred Faye and Cheese Monger Rip Williams. Faye also comes to Flat Creek from Wisconsin and has a background in milk processing.

“Dane comes up with a lot of ideas, and that is exciting,” says Faye. “We have the opportunity to try many different cheeses and are not limited by one or two products.” What happens to the cheese after sufficient aging is up to Williams who has been presenting the cheeses at farmer’s markets throughout Georgia. Last fall, Flat Creek Lodge cheeses came to Atlanta for a farmers market on Northside Drive, and they were also found at Taste of Atlanta as well as Tour de Champagne last month. This spring and summer, Williams plans to take the cheese on the road every weekend. He is also talking with high-end retailers and wholesalers who cater to restaurants about carrying special lines of the cheeses. 
Flat Creek Lodge cheeses are currently available at the Flat Creek property, online or by placing a telephone order. Like certain cheese complements, cheese itself gets better with age. Look for flavors like Vidalia Onion Cheddar and a naturally smoked cheese to reach maturity this fall!

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main Lodge or in a private Cottage.  Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the Spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese Bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room.  Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia.  Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine.  The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401. The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273.  It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com.
 

 
Swainsboro, Georgia (October 16, 2007) – The Southeast Georgia hunting and fishing resort Flat Creek Lodge announced the addition of Sporting Club Director Robert Edwards to its highly skilled team. Edwards brings a new level of expertise to the property, having earned his stripes working at places like the Cloister Resort and Remington Shooting School and instructing at first-rate shooting tournaments like the Charlton Heston Celebrity Shoot for the NRA.  

Finding an ideal home at Flat Creek Lodge, Edwards asserts that he has been an outdoorsman all his life and can happily say that for the past 30 years, he has earned his living shooting guns or fishing. His professional know-how will advance the hunting, fishing and clay target shooting programs at Flat Creek Lodge, beginning with a full assessment of the current amenities and implementing a long term plan for improvements.  
"We are very excited about the addition of Bob Edwards to our staff.  He brings with him a wealth of hunting and fishing experience and expertise,” said Cathy McDaniel, Flat Creek Lodge General Manager. “We are sure that this addition with take our hunting and sporting clay programs to new levels."

“Flat Creek Lodge is a diamond hidden in the state of Georgia,” says Edwards. “It currently offers a five-star resort experience, and I look forward to developing a five-star hunting, shooting and fishing program.” Edwards is surely the man who can make it happen. In addition to spending five years as Gun Club and Waterfront Manager for the Cloister Resort and Spa on Sea Island, Georgia, he was the Director of Shooting Sports for The Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia where he designed and built the sporting clay facility. He most recently held the title of General Manager of the Forest City Gun Club in Savannah, Georgia. Edwards’ fishing expertise includes a sixth place finish in the Bahamas Billfish Championship in 2006, as Captain aboard the Roulette a 61’ Jarrett Bay Sportfisherman and Lead Instructor of the Genmar Backwater Fishing Schools at Tarpon Lodge on Pine Island, Florida. He also spent four years as the Director of Marketing and Promotions for Sporting Clays Magazine.    

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main Lodge or in a private Cottage.  Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the Spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese Bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room.  Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia.  Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine. 

The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401. The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273.  It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com.  

Swainsboro, Georgia (July 9, 2007) – A visit to almost any spa would be a step in the direction towards relaxation, but a trip to the Spa and Bathhouse at Flat Creek Lodge in Southeast Georgia, redefines the word. The rustic, heart pine building housing the Spa overlooks a beautiful lake complete with a fountain and swans, while across the property, the Japanese Bathhouse beckons with private or shared mineral baths and milk soaks. Even better, the milk has traveled only hundreds of yards, straight from the Flat Creek Lodge Dairy.

The Spa incorporates many traditional treatments with a special twist from specialized whirlpools to cedar-lined sauna and steam rooms, but the view from the hot tub is anything but usual. Each tub is surrounded by ceiling-high windows and overlooks the Flat Creek Lodge central lake. Guests can rejuvenate the body and spirit with wraps, facials, manicures and pedicures and hot foot massages. All treatments at the Spa utilize Occitane products, and maintain Flat Creek Lodge’s environmentally sensitive philosophy.

The newly opened Japanese Bathhouse is one-of-a-kind in the Southeast. Designed with a similar rustic architecture, but with Asian influences like bamboo and metal sculpture, the Bathhouse offers private milk baths in white claw-footed tubs to replenish the skin. Guests can also soak in comforting mineral baths; there are private rooms with smaller baths or one large public bath in the main room. Throughout, the atmosphere is one of simplicity, a place where tranquility is de rigueur.

For visitors looking for something stimulating as well as calming, Flat Creek Lodge has recently added a state-of-the-art Fitness Center, which features his and her changing rooms on either side of the main fitness area. With rubber flooring, weight-training and high-tech cardio equipment, the Fitness Center might be the perfect place to work off the excellent meals from Flat Creek Lodge’s gourmet kitchen!

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main Lodge or in a private Cottage.  Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the Spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese Bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room.  Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia.  Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine.  The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401. The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273.  It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com.

Swainsboro, Georgia (June 27, 2007) – Flat Creek Lodge rings in each season with a visit from a decorated guest chef. Drawing culinary experts from throughout the Southeast, the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room will feature different award-winning chef each quarter.  The chef is invited to create something special with vegetables and herbs grown onsite, artisanal cheeses from the micro-dairy and fish and game from the Flat Creek Lodge grounds. Each dinner will be expertly paired with wines, and promises to be a highly memorable event and the perfect weekend getaway. 

On Saturday, August 25, Flat Creek Lodge will welcome Philippe Chin, Master Chef of France, who currently resides in Aiken, South Carolina. Chef Chin has achieved widespread acclaim from food critics and national publications including Bon Appetit, Gourmet magazine, The New York Times, AAA and others.  For more than 20 years, Chef Chin has delighted diners with his unique fusion of French and Asian fare. 

Details:
Saturday, August 25
6:30pm-7:30pm Cocktail Hour and Chef Introduction
Cocktail Hour is followed by a Five Course Wine Dinner
Cost: 
All-Inclusive Weekend–$795 per couple including all meals and lodging
Saturday Night Only–$425 per couple including all meals and lodging
Dinner Only–$75 person

Coming Up in October…
On Saturday, October 20, Stephen Minton, CEC, Chef Instructor from Georgia Southern University will bring his knowledge of food and beer pairings to the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room. 

For reservations and dining information, the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273.  Reservations must be made no later than 4pm on August 22. 

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main Lodge or in a private Cottage.  Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the Spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese Bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room.  Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia.  Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine.  The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401. The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273.  It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com.

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main lodge or in a private cottage.  Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge Dining Room.  Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia.  Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine.  The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401. The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273.  It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com.

Micro-Dairy Opens With Artisanal Cheese Line

Swainsboro, Georgia (May 29, 2007) – Peaches, peanuts and … cheese. In recent years, the art of dairy farming in Georgia has been on the decline even as the global demand for dairy products rises. With a goal of growing the local economy, the folks at Flat Creek Lodge, a hunting and fishing resort and spa in southeast Georgia, have announced the opening of the Flat Creek Lodge Dairy, and they are kicking off with a line of artisanal cheeses.

In keeping with the Flat Creek Lodge mission to support the local economy of Emanuel County and provide an eco-friendly environment, owners Steve and Caroline Harless instigated the micro-dairy project to bring the small family dairy that might be found in Europe or New England back to Georgia. Since the process began one-and-a-half years ago, it has been truly a labor of love for these dairy neophytes.

“We didn’t even have a herdsman when we got the cows,” says general manager Cathy McDaniel. The team learned everything as they went along and even hand-milked the cows for the first three or four weeks. The hard work has paid off, and on Saturday, June 9, Flat Creek Lodge Dairy will officially celebrate its opening with a line of four delicious cheeses – Havarti, Gouda, Edam and Colby.

Working in tandem with the supportive Department of Agriculture, the Flat Creek Lodge Dairy has become only the second licensed artisanal cheese producer in Georgia. In addition to serving the cheeses in their own fine dining restaurant onsite, Flat Creek Lodge plans to market the Flat Creek Lodge cheese brand to restaurants and retail outlets and is looking to the rising interest among chefs, restaurateurs and consumers in using locally produced products.

The Dairy isn’t the only thing keeping it local at Flat Creek Lodge. The site also includes several greenhouses where herbs and vegetables are grown and then served in the dining room. The Lodge employed Emanuel County builders to erect the structures on the property, and they used only local materials like pine and cypress. Inside, each building has been decorated using art by local artists, including custom made furniture and taxidermy. Outside, all sporting activities are stocked with wild game indigenous to Georgia or that thrive in the southeastern environment. That means, hunters and fishers can expect Mallard ducks, bobwhite quail, pheasants, wild turkey, white tail deer, wild boar, trophy-size large mouth bass, bream, blue gill and crappie.

Located just three hours southeast of Atlanta, Flat Creek Lodge welcomes the discerning sportsman and sportswoman to an unforgettable hunting and fishing adventure. Amid a pristine and private woodland preserve, guests can stay in the main lodge or in a private cottage. Visitors can enjoy many outdoor activities, relax in the spa, or pamper themselves in the uniquely designed Japanese bathhouse before experiencing the cuisine in the Flat Creek Lodge dining room. Menus feature fresh, seasonal herbs, fruits, and vegetables, wild game and seafood from the Golden Isles of Georgia. Dining on Friday and Saturday evenings is four or five courses paired with just the right wine. The 2,000-acre Flat Creek Lodge is located at 367 Bishop Chapel Church Road, Swainsboro, Georgia 30401.

The Lodge can be reached at 478.237.FISH or 877.352.8273. It can also be visited online at www.flatcreeklodge.com.