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A LINE THAT LONG CAN ONLY MEAN ONE THING.
HERE IN THE AGRICULTURAL BUILDING, IT GOES ALL THE WAY
BACK TO THE OTHER WALL. THEY'RE HERE TO SEE THE STAPLE
OF THE IOWA STATE FAIR, THE BUTTER COW.
THIS YEAR SARAH PRATT'S CREATION HAS SOME COMPANY.
IT'S SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARVES, AND EVERYBODY WHO COMES
TO THE FAIR, IT'S ON ONE OF THEIR THREE THINGS TO DO.
THIS YEAR STARTS HERE AT THE BUTTER COW.
HOW LONG DID YOU STAY IN LINE FOR THE BUTTER COW?
ABOUT 20 MINUTES. WORTH IT?
YEAH, I THINK SO. YOU DON'T SEE A COW MADE OF
BUTTER EVERY DAY. ONLY EVERY YEAR IF YOU COME TO
THE FAIR. DO YOU COME TO THE FAIR EVERY
YEAR? I DON'T COME TO THE FAIR, NO.
THIS IS THE FIRST I'VE SEEN A COW MADE ENTIRELY OF BUTTER.
I'VE BEEN HERE EVERY YEAR FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS, ROUGHLY.
I COME AND SEE IT EVERY YEAR AND BROUGHT THIS GUY FOR THE FIRST
TIME TO SEE IT. IT'S ALWAYS A GOOD TIME.
IT'S A TRADITION. YOU'VE GOT TO DO IT EVERY TIME.
HOW ARE YOU GOING TO DESCRIBE THE BUTTER COW TO YOUR FRIENDS?
IT'S VERY BUTTERY, BIG. VERY LIFELIKE.
DO YOU TELL YOUR FRIENDS BACK IN OREGON THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE
THIS COW MADE OF BUTTER? WHAT DO THEY TELL YOU WHEN YOU
DO THAT? THEY CAN'T BELIEVE THE THINGS I
TOLD THEM ABOUT THE IOWA STATE FAIR, SO I'VE BEEN TAKING
PICTURES TO TAKE BACK WITH ME THIS YEAR TO HELP THEM
UNDERSTAND WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT. WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE BUTTER COW
THAT IS SO MUCH A STAPLE OF THE IOWA STATE FAIR?
IS JUST A TRADITION THAT'S ALWAYS HERE, AND YOU'VE GOT TO
SEE IT. YOU'VE SEEN THE BUTTER COW.
THAT THING IS A STAPLE HERE AT THE IOWA STATE FAIR, BUT THERE'S
A NEW SCULPTURE YOU'VE GOT TO SEE.
IT'S HERE AT THE ELWELL FAMILY FOOD CENTER.
IT'S THE LARGEST CHOCOLATE MOOSE IN CAPTIVITY.
FROM WHAT WE'VE HEARD, YOU GOT TO SEE IT TO BELIEVE IT.
WHEN THEY TURN THE CORNER AND THE FIRST MOMENT THEY SEE
IT, I'LL DON'T THINK PEOPLE EXPECT IT TO BE THAT LARGE.
THE THOUGHT WAS, ORIGINALLY WE DID NUT CLUSTERS AND TRUFFLES
AND CARAMELS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
FOR SOME REASON, I DON'T KNOW WHERE IT CAME FROM, WE THOUGHT
WE SHOULD ADD CHOCOLATE MOUSSE AND DO A MOOSE.
SO WE STARTED THE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE SO WE STARTED A CHOCOLATE
MOUSSE COMPETITION ABOUT EIGHT, NINE YEARS AGO.
BUT WE COULDN'T REALLY GET A SPACE WHERE WE COULD GET
CHOCOLATE.
WHEN WE WERE STANDING HERE LAST YEAR DURING COMPETITION, WE
WENT, IS IT ALWAYS THIS COLD IN HERE.
WELL, YEAH, IT IS. SO WE'RE, LIKE, WE CAN JUST FIT
IT IN HERE. THAT'S HOW WE BROUGHT THE
LARGEST CHOCOLATE MOOSE IN CAPTIVITY TO THE FAIR.
IT TOOK 233 METAL HOURS TO BUILD THIS STAINLESS STEEL,
ONE-OF-A-KIND 10'6" CHOCOLATE MOOSE FRAME.
IT TOOK ME APPROXIMATELY 300 HOURS MORE TO FINISH IT UP.
WE HAVE TEMPERED CHOCOLATE IN 4-POUND SHEETS, AND THEN WE
STARTED TO APPLY THEM BY LIFTING UP THE BAKING WAX PAPER AND
PUTTING THEM ON THE FRAME. THEN WE BUILT UP THE LAYERS.
THEN WE HAD TO CARVE IT BACK JUST LIKE MICHELANGELO WOULD DO
WITH A MARBLE STATUE. SO HIS MEDIUM WAS MARBLE.
MINE IS CHOCOLATE. IT'S A 118 INCHES LONG, 46
INCHES WIDE. IT STANDS FROM HOOF TO ANTLER
10-6. THE BASE IS 2 FEET.
I WILL TELL YOU THAT IT WEIGHS 4,250 STAM CHOCOLATE BARS.
IT'S PURE EUROPEAN IMPORTED DUTCH CHOCOLATE THAT WE'VE TAKEN
AND ADULTERATED IN A GOOD WAY. WE'VE ADDED A PURE IOWA PRODUCT,
CORN SYRUP. WHAT THAT DOES IS INCREASE THE
MELTING POINT FOR IT SO THAT WE CAN SET IT OUT AT ROOM
TEMPERATURE HERE AT THE IOWA STATE FAIR FOR YOU.
WE HAD SEEN HOW THE EMOTIONAL EFFECT THAT THE BUTTER COW HAD
ON ALL THE PEOPLE WHO WITNESSED IT.
PEOPLE WHO LOVE CHOCOLATE, LOVE CHOCOLATE.
WHEN YOU LOOK AND SEE HOW MUCH THERE IS OF IT, HOW COULD YOU
NOT ENJOY IT. PEOPLE ALSO TELL ME THAT IT
SMELLS GREAT AND THEY THINK IT MAY TASTE BETTER THAN THE BUTTER
COW. I'M NOT SO SURE.
I'VE NEVER TASTED THE BUTTER COW.
I HAVE TASTED THIS, SO I KNOW IT TASTES GREAT.
IT'S A FUN EXPLORATION. IT'S FUN TO FIND OUT IF YOU CAN
ACTUALLY DO IT, BECAUSE IT WAS KIND OF A BIG STEP GOING FROM
THE LARGEST THING WE'VE EVER DONE WAS 3 FEET, SO THEN GOING
TO 10.5 IS A STEP. I HOPE THEY COME SEE IT AND
APPRECIATE IT FOR WHAT IT IS AND SEE THAT AS MUCH AS THEY'RE
IMPORTANT TO US, IOWA IS NOT JUST CORN AND PIGS, BUT THERE'S
OTHER GREAT STUFF HAPPENING IN IOWA...
LIKE CHOCOLATE.