Cheese, Bites and Booze
California Artisan Cheese Festival
Saturday, March 23, 2019
Jackson Family Wines Hanger
Life is about the pursuit of great taste…in the form of cheese and booze!
Cheese, Bites and Booze is just one of the many events associated with the California Artisan Cheese Festival, which takes place every spring in Sonoma County. My friend and I arrived early and were greeted by excited and friendly workers who got us quickly checked in and slapped with wristbands. Once the doors opened, the sold out crowd flowed into the Jackson Family Wines Hangar at the Sonoma Jet Center. The space was vast and filled wall to wall with booths of, you guessed it, Cheese, bites and booze! It was light and bright and clean and we made our game plan to hit every one of the booths at least once before the end of the evening. We were given a comprehensive printed program with each of the vendors listed and a map. We didn’t look at it once, because it was just one great booth after another! Cheesemakers, restaurants cooking up cheesy bites, wineries, breweries and distilleries, oh my!
We spotted judges amongst the crowd with their clipboards carefully scrutinizing the delicious bites. Not only could the judges select a favorite, but the crowd could chime in too for the People’s Choice awards which were tallied via text. Music from Solorio flowed nicely through the space…not too loud and not too soft. We wandered through the maze of deliciousness, finding some of our own favorites: Tips Roadside with a chili con queso with Pedroza Dairy Northern Gold, peppers, and hand cut potato chips; Railroad Stop Bar & Kitchen with Laura Chenel’s Goat Cheese mousseline on a toasted baguette with persimmon chutney; and The Gables Wine Country Inn with Pennyroyal Farm blueberry laychee on an almond cookie with Crème Fraiche and local honey. The combinations of flavors that the chefs were creating, was positively heavenly.
We can’t forget some of our favorite beverages too – a Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir from Black Kite Cellars; Boochcraft High-Alcohol Kombucha; and Pampelonne Sparkling Wine Cocktails. Cheese makers from all over California were on hand to sample their cheeses straight and to answer questions about their unique cheese making styles – Beehive Cheese Company, Valley Ford Cheese Company, Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co., and Cowgirl Creamery, just to name a few of my favorites. Needless to say, it was a night of over indulgence of amazing foods, coupled with perfectly paired drinks, excellent entertainment and lots of our local Sonoma County friends.
Sponsors include: Visit Santa Rosa, Life Opens Up, Jackson Family Wines, Sonoma Jet Center, City of Santa Rosa, Bellwether Farms, Cowgirl Creamery, Cypress Grove, Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese, Beehive Cheese, Mike Hudgon Distributing, Pisenti & Brinker, Pure Luxury Transportations, Ellipses, Real California Milk, and Clover Sonoma.
Venue................................. 5 stars
Entertainment/Program... 5 stars
Food.................................... 5 stars
Drinks................................. 5 stars
Décor.................................. 5 stars
Flow.................................... 5 stars
Overall................................ 5 stars
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