taste
BOUNTY
ALL THINGS JAM IN SONOMA COUNTY
TIERRA VEGETABLES
PIANO FARM
Harvest bounty at this landmark Santa Rosa farmstand comes pickled, frozen, dehydrated, smoked, canned, bottled, and milled. DON’T MISS: Colorful popping corn such as Dakota Black, Ruby Red, and Shaman Blue. Also excellent hot sauces and stoneground polenta. 651 Airport Blvd., Santa Rosa. 707-544-6141, tierravegetables.com
At Veva Edelson and Karel Sidorjak’s organic farm in Bloomfield, everything is made by hand including apple cider vinegar produced with an apple press they received as a wedding present. DON’T MISS: Tomato-plum-rosemary jam, zingy Fire Cider, and stoneground Floriani polenta. Order at pianofarm.org
At Flatbed Farm, late-summer bounty is captured in jams, shrubs, and pickles. The farm’s owners also offer classes in food preservation.
WATERHORSE RIDGE Oliver’s Markets carry the creative combinations put forth by Jesus Velasquez and Patricia Greer from their small farm in Cazadero. DON’T MISS: Triple Noir preserves, with grapes, berries, and chocolate, or the Creative Buzz tea, a flurry of peppermint, rhodiola, yerba mate, berries, and more. Order at waterhorseridge.com
FOURTEEN MAGPIES HOMEMADE JAMS & PRESERVES Tanya Seibold makes delicious micro-batches of Bartlett pearginger jam, Gravenstein apple jelly, quince paste and more. DON’T MISS: Comparing versions of her wild plum jam from orchards just a few feet apart— one rosier in color and tasting of spiced apricot; the other a deep, inky purple. Order at fourteenmagpies.com
LALA’S JAM BAR AND URBAN FARMSTAND
Locally, Oliver’s Market carries Waterhorse Ridge products, including the Triple Noir preserves, a “crazy blend” of blackberry, mulberry, estate grapes, and chocolate. Emily O’Conor, who oversees Oliver’s gourmet cheese selections, recommends their apricot preserves with a rich triple-cream brie, or the plum chutney with blue cheese. Waterhorse Ridge batches are tiny: just seven cases at a time, 12 jars to a case. And as with the best of all farm-grown products, availability is seasonal, says Greer, “and subject to the whims of nature.”
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Jam-making classes are a highlight at this popular shop, held Sunday mornings. Sign up for Sunday Jammin’ ($55 per person); or Family Jam ($99 per family). DON’T MISS: The Petaluma Fog, with figs, orange juice, and ginger, and wonderful mild and hot versions of Lala’s organic pepper jelly. Open Thurs-Mon, 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. 720 E. Washington Street, Petaluma. 707-773-1083, lalasjams.com
FLATBED FARM Pickles, flavored sugars, preserves, and all kinds of other harvest goodness come from the kitchen at this bucolic Sonoma Valley farmstand. Register in advance for “Preserving the Season: Shrubs and Jams” class on October 17, $125 per person. DON’T MISS: Delicious apricot jam and pomegranate shrubs. Open Saturdays 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. 13450 Highway 12, Glen Ellen. flatbedfarm.com
To learn more: The Sonoma County chapter of the UC Master Food Preserver Program debuted last year. The group plans to offer virtual online canning, pickling, and fermenting workshops, and volunteers can answer food preservation questions. mfpsc@ucanr.edu, 707-565-3026
