SONOMA, Calif. — Discover the secrets of exceptional food and wine during an extravagant full-immersion culinary weekend, hosted by From Farm to Table, a gourmet travel company in Sonoma, Calif. Today, they announced the kick-off of a summer series of culinary and wine tours in a region that is world-renowned for its vineyards and artisan food producers.
Tour goers will not only learn what experts consider to be great wine, they will learn how to personally identify great wine and discover how to choose the right wine for any meal, dish, or situation.
“After joining internationally-famous chefs and top-flight winemakers, I want people to leave with such confidence in their own judgment that they will be the person who their friends turn to when wine must be chosen and food recommended,” Jeff Cox, the tour’s host said.
This full immersion, hands-on culinary tour is an all-inclusive weekend. Thursday evening, guests check into their bed and breakfast and enjoy a champagne toast and book signing prior to an evening of farm-inspired menu items paired with Sonoma Valley wines.
After breakfast on Friday, guests will follow the grape from ground to glass at a local vineyard and then settle in for a lunch prepared by the winery’s chef. The evening is open to various choices that include more gourmet fare, a casual plaza picnic, and relaxing downtime.
Saturday includes a culinary treasure hunt where guests will visit artisan farms that produce cheese, oysters, produce, and more; engage in olive oil tastings; and learn how to source, taste, select and store the best ingredients on the market.
The tour culminates on Saturday night with a grand-finale dinner – a private, hands-on group meal that is chef guided. Many of the ingredients used in the dishes are harvested during the farm tours.
Jeff, the culinary host, is the author of 18 books on food, wine, and gardening. He has also hosted two television series on food and gardening for PBS and HGTV. As the restaurant reviewer for the Wine Country’s newspaper of record, the New York Times-owned Santa Rosa Press Democrat, he has many opportunities to visit restaurants throughout the region.
Jeff is also the contributing editor of The Wine News, and frequent contributor to Decanter magazine of London. His book, “The Organic Cook’s Bible” (ISBN: 0471445789), was nominated for a James Beard Foundation award for 2007. And he’s the author of “From Vines to Wines,” the standard work on the subject of growing vines and making wine, as well as “Cellaring Wine,” which helps people care for their wine after they buy or make it. His latest book is “The Organic Food Shopper’s Guide.”
“Sonoma County is the most diverse and blessed region in the world for producing top-quality food and wine,” Jeff said. “Our goal is to show people how to become their own tastemaker so they can set the standards of good taste rather than chase after them.”
The first weekend in June is already sold out. Available dates are: June 19-22; July 17-20; July 24-27; July 31-Aug 3; August 21-24; September 4-7; September 11-14; and October 9-12. Space is limited.
For more information, contact a field trip concierge by visiting: http://www.FromFarmToTable.com.
[tags]gourmet travel company in Sonoma, From Farm to Table, The Organic Cooks Bible, California vineyards and artisan food, author Jeff Cox[/tags]
