California's main cheese event happens next weekend, Friday, the 23rd thru the 25th, in Santa Rosa. For a cheese nerd, this hits all the right buttons.
On Friday, there are farm tours (including a stop at this writer's own farm - Straus Home Ranch - tickets are still available). A Best Bite Competition where chefs and cheesemongers come up with their best ideas, pays tribute to those brave and hardworking, first responders of the recent fires.
On Saturday, industry experts instruct on pairings with charcuterie to beer and wine and how to judge cheese. Then start your evening with a cheese and cocktail pairing.
On Sunday, you can start your morning with a cheese and bubbly brunch. Then, besides the farm tours (which I LOVE), comes my own favorite event: the Sunday Marketplace. Here you meet 115 producers of cheese, wine, beer, ciders and other specialty foods. One ticket gets you access to tastes galore, including both current and new cheeses while meeting the cheesemakers themselves.
This year the festival has moved from Petaluma to the Santa Rosa Fairgrounds. But parking comes FREE with your ticket purchase. To purchase tickets, click HERE. See you there!
