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| Our church group- Father Pat is seated! I felt so privileged he joined us! |
Our church, Holy Spirit Catholic Church here in Fresno, has periodic field trips around the state, and even internationally. I have always missed these trips, many of which I really wanted to do, such as LA museums. This cool trip popped up and I had to go! I love doing stuff, especially stuff I haven't done before. This trip was just me because, well, we had to be at the church by 0645 (ugh!!) and attended the Foo Fighters concert the night before, getting home around midnight. Rich could never get up that early; it was quite hard for me, too!! But the chance to see so many new things couldn't be missed😋😁.
Sciabica Olive Oil (https://sunshineinabottle.com/)
Our visit to Sciabica Olive Oil was amazing! They have been in business since 1936!!!!
We have all gone to shops and jars and bowls of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and jams are available for tasting, pieces of bread or pretzels are used to dip. I somewhat expected that; I was so pleasantly surprised!!! We sat in a classroom with small cups of several types of olive oil on a mat, clearly labeled. Our instructor, Craig, who is a qualified taster and on the California Olive Oil Board, provided fantastic instructions on how to taste the olive oil: first, smell and describe what you are smelling- mown grass, wheat, fruit; then pour some on your tongue, aerate it, breathe through your nose and describe what you are tasting. He said if you are doing it right, there is a bit of a burn at the back of your throat. Who knew!!! We tasted several different olive oils, plus flavored oils. Sciabica grinds the olives directly with the flavoring, such as lemon or garlic!!
The presentation included the history of Sciabica, information on Olive Oil production around the world (hint- only California has defined extra-virgin and developed standards) (hint- Spain makes the most olive oil, but it is about 3 years old before coming to the US), video of the pressing process, information on recipes, information on the cultivation of olive trees, and ended with a cookie made by Mrs. Sciabica! After the presentation, Craig had further tasting of different oils, such as the more robust flavored.
It ends in the gift shop where you can purchase all the different oils, pasta and chocolates at very reasonable prices.
Really excellent presentation! Much like a very intense and thorough wine tasting, we learned so much! Sadly, I didn't take many pictures, but check out their web site- really worth it.
Duarte Nursery (https://duartenursery.com/)
Our second stop was the Duarte Nursery for pointsettias!! Sara gave us an excellent presentation on the history of pointsettias (brought to the US from Mexico in 1828 by Ambassador Joel Roberts Pointsett!- thus the name), care of the plant, how they get their color (hint- keep them in the dark for 14 hours a day as light stops the red color!), explained they are NOT poisonous! (that came from all the pesticides and fertilizers used during import), and how to turn them from an annual to perennial! Great presentation!. Then, wandering around all those beautiful plants! Many in our group bought them😋
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| The center color is so beautiful!!!! |
Hilmar Cheese Company (https://www.hilmarcheese.com/)
Our final stop was the Hilmar Cheese Company! This stop started with lunch!! Salad, sandwiches, and the very BEST cheese soup I have ever had!!! There is of course a large gift shop with tons of cheeses and lots and lots of cheese/dairy/farm-oriented gifts. Hilmar staff then boarded our bus and gave us a tour of the entire complex, giving information on the company, now in both California and Texas and soon in Kansas, milk production, testing, processing, transport, and cheese production! It was so interesting! We have been to Tillamook in Oregon and loved it, but this tour, with a tour of the entire complex, was so informative and interesting!
If you are ever in the north San Joaquin Valley, neat Modesto, each of these three sites make excellent side trips!!!
