Cheese festival offers tasty tours, events
The annual California Artisan Cheese Festival returns in March, delivering three days of revelry filled with tastings, tours and conversations in Marin and Sonoma counties for everyone from casual snackers to devoted turophiles.
Kick off the 20th anniversary event from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 20 with one of four guided farm and producer tours ($185). Each tour includes tastings, lunch and round-trip transportation to and from the Flamingo Resort and Spa in Santa Rosa.
Tour A winds through western Sonoma County, with behind-the-scenes visits to the family-run Achadinha Cheese Co. for a dairy tour, Gold Ridge Organic Farms for an apple and olive orchard walk and picnic lunch and William Cofield Cheesemakers and Alemar Cheese Co. for a look at British- and French-style cheesemaking.
The Point Reyes National Seashore sets the scene for Tour B, which begins at Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co., the Giacomini family’s multigenerational dairy. It continues with a Pennyroyal Farm cheese tasting and picnic lunch at Straus Home Ranch on Tomales Bay in Marshall, where Michael and Vivien Straus, who also co-own the Cheese Trail, share insights into the region’s dairy history. The tour concludes at Heidrun Meadery in Point Reyes Station with a production tour, an exploration of its bee forage farmscape, a sparkling mead tasting and a curated selection of Laura Chenel goat cheeses.
The Meadery opens Tour C, followed by a visit to Marin French Cheese Co., one of the country’s oldest working creameries, for a look at traditional cheesemaking, a tasting of its soft-ripened cheeses and lunch on the grounds. The final stop is Nicasio Valley Cheese Co., the Lafranchi family’s century-old ranch and organic farmstead creamery, where guests can walk the pastures, visit the creamery and taste award-winning cheeses.
Tour D opens among the redwoods at Sebastopol’s Redwood Hill Farm, home to the goats behind Mt. Eitan Cheese in Bodega, before moving to British- and French-style cheesemakers William Cofield and Alemar Cheese Co. for tastings and lunch. A final stop at Ambix Spirits rounds out the day with an orchard and distillery tour and a pairing of apple brandy, apple wines and Cypress Grove goat cheeses.
On March 21, choose from three seminars ($85 each): “The Raclette Experience: A Celebration of Melted Cheese” (1:30 to 2:30 p.m.); the art of building a cheese and charcuterie board (11 a.m. to noon); or pairing cheese with caviar (11 a.m. to noon). All are held at the Flamingo Resort and Spa.
Later in the day in Sebastopol, take part in the Cheese Crawl, following a map to cheese, food and beverage sampling stations throughout the Barlow, a 12-acre outdoor market district in Sebastopol. VIP early entry runs from 3 to 6 p.m. ($60), with general admission from 4 to 6 p.m. ($40).
Get an early start at Bubbles + Bites from 9:45 a.m. to noon March 22 at Saralee & Richard’s Barn at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds ($145 including marketplace admission).
The weekend’s finale, the Artisan Cheese Tasting and Marketplace, is from noon to 4 p.m. March 22 at Grace Pavilion, bringing together more than 100 artisan producers, winemakers, brewers and chefs for tastings, shopping, live music and a beer and wine garden. Each guest receives an insulated cheese tote and wine glass ($85).
The Sonoma County Fairgrounds and Event Center is at 1350 Bennett Valley Road in Santa Rosa, and the Flamingo Resort and Spa is at 2777 Fourth St. in Santa Rosa. Tickets for many events sell out quickly. Proceeds help support the California Artisan Cheese Guild, the nonprofit organization that produces the festival and promotes sustainable agriculture and artisan cheesemaking statewide. For details or to purchase tickets, visit artisancheesefestival.com.
Leanne Battelle is a freelance food writer and restaurant columnist. Email her at ij.lbattelle@gmail.com with news and recommendations and follow on Instagram @therealdealmarin for more on local food and updates on the launch of The Real Deal Marin restaurant search guide.