Explore the California Cheese Trail
Take one bite of California’s artisanal cheeses and you'll taste the rich favors of the area. Whether the cheese is from cow, sheep or goat’s milk; the love and attention from the farmers shine though each delicious bite. From the fresh triple cream of MT TAM cheese at Cowgirl Creamery to the tangy Point Reyes Original Blue, the bounty of choices for the gourmet traveler can be explored right in our own backyard.
Thanks to the California Cheese Trail website, free app and free printed map, you can choose a farm tour and find out in-depth information about the cheesemakers from Petaluma to Point Reyes to Sonoma to Sebastopol. Choose suggested driving tours of open locations or plan ahead for a private visit of the various cheese producers and farms. No matter which you choose, it will be fun and enriching opportunity for the whole family, and your stomachs won’t complain either. This gift was created by Vivien Straus, who grew up on the family dairy farm in Marshall. I spoke to Vivien about the Sonoma Marin Cheese Trail for her personal suggestions of family-friendly cheese adventures to learn, explore, enjoy and meet the farmers and animals behind your favorite cheeses.
DRIVING TOURS TO EXPLORE
Driving tours of various regions listed below and include only cheesemakers with regular hours at the time this post was written. Call in advance as the situation for the COVID-19 pandemic remains fluid and regulations change.
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Wednesdays or Thursdays you are likely to see cheese making. Cheesemakers often don’t make the cheese on the weekends, some locations on the suggested driving tours are retail locations only, and some, for food safety reasons and the creamery locations, can’t actually show the cheesemaking.
Vivien Straus grew up on her family’s dairy in Marshall. She ran away to Hollywood to become an actress until the cows wooed her back. She helped build her brother’s company Straus Family Creamery, serving as VP of Marketing. She served as Public Relations Coordinator at Cowgirl Creamery. Currently she manages the Straus Home Ranch as well as its vacation rental. In addition, she created and manages the California Cheese Trail project and California’s CheeseTrail.org, which helps to promote cheesemakers, and by extension, small farmers. Currently she manages the Straus Home Ranch as well as its vacation rental. Recently she completed a run of her one-woman show (writer and actress), E-i-E-i-OY! In Bed with the Farmer’s Daughter, is a MOTH StorySLAM winner, and is currently working on a new performance piece.