Nothing Cheesy About the Artisan Cheese Festival

Pardon The Punctuation…I was recently given the chance to explore the California Artisan Cheese Festival in Santa Rosa and boy was it worth the trip. Just the weekend is definitely not enough time to explore this great part of northern California but here’s what I did.

The Stay:

My two nights in town were spent at the Hotel La Rose. Built in 1907 and quite charming. I barely spent any time awake in my room but it was great for an older hotel. I didn’t get a chance to check out the more updated section of the hotel but I heard it’s great.

After checking in and throwing my stuff down, I went over to Perch + Plow for some pre dinner cocktails. One thing I know about all of my friends that work in the wine industry is that once they get off work the last thing they want to see is a glass of wine. Perch + Plow takes care of that in spades. As Tony the Tiger would say,” They’re GREEEEEEAT.”

After drinks it was time for some amazing Indian food at Bollywood Bar and Clay Oven. Authentic, ingredient-focused modern Indian cuisine. Chef Niven Patel’s cocktails and Chicken tikka masala are to die for. A must when you’re in the area.

Now it was time for a day of cheese tasting. I made it to Nicasio Valley Cheese Co., Marin French Cheese, and Valley Ford Cheese & Creamery. This was my first time being in northern California for something other than wine. What a pleasant surprise. You will be blown away by the scenic beauty and the level of excellence in the cheeses. Well worth getting my butt up early and on a bus for some yummy queso. Marin french cheese even has a lovely pond surrounded with picnic tables that I plan on bringing a bottle of wine to the next time I’m in town.

If you’re a cheese head like me them you have to make it up to Santa Rosa. Even if you can’t make it to the cheese festival just go up and do a cheese tour. Give your liver a break from wine drinking and indulge in some award winning cheese. For more info if visiting please check out the official site for tourism in Santa Rosa.