The food and wine connection in Sonoma County is a beautiful thing. Don’t get me wrong, there are natural tensions, as in all relationships.
But from my perspective, they are a match made in heaven. Cooking with local ingredients + pairing it with local wines = my kitchen “self-actualization” to borrow a term from good ole’ Abraham Maslow.
My day job deals with economics. And one principal continues to ring true: “It’s good to diversify.”
After reading the Press Democrat’s article showing Sonoma County posted losses from the 2011 grape harvest, I was concerned. Wine grapes are the dominant agricultural crop of Sonoma County representing 60 percent of the county’s farm production last year. So an 11 percent decline hurts. A cool summer reduced the size of the grapes and delayed the onset of harvest, exposing the vines to rains, which can cause vine rot. No bueno.
Yet an array of small farmers from around the county posted gains in crops like eggs, milk, apples and lamb. Twelve of the county’s $15 million-dollar crops posted increases in value last year.
