Just a short drive across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, Sonoma County is a gorgeous winemaking region about an hour north (unless you're me and have a horrible sense of direction and get lost...then it will take longer.)
But once you arrive, you'll find that Sonoma boasts world-class cheesemakers like Ig Vella who makes Sonoma Dry Jack, a hard grating cheese whose exterior is rubbed with cocoa powder for ripening. There's Craig Ponsford's Artisan Bakery too, which won the Best Baguette in, gulp, Paris...of all places.
As you can imagine, that was quite an upset!
The last of the persimmons, barely hanging on the tree.
It isn't California without Caesar Salad. But bread and butter alongside? Trés americain!
This is 'French'?
I've never seen taffy in France...or a goofy mug like that either.
Just-harvested olives, to be pressed into California extra-virgin olive oil.
Lucky plants...
Even they get chocolate too!
Nice post. But you had me, er, smiling, about, hmmm, eliminating Marin County from the map, in your first paragraph. (Or did it just seem that way?!...drive past Golden Gate Bridge - reach Sonoma County.)
That mulch is the best! Our lot smelled like hot cocoa for two weeks, mellow and delicious to come home to every night. We ate more chocolate then than at any other time this year. I'm so sorry to have missed you in Naperville, IL. Maybe next time!