Last weekend’s harvest festival at Cheese Plus in San Francisco introduced me to a bunch of new products as well as giving me the chance to meet a few food producers and enjoy their passionate stories.
As a chocolaphile, it was especially delightful hearing Charles from Charles Chocolates tell of his life-long involvement with chocolate while watching him make delicious mendiants with dried cherries and pine nuts. Tasting them wasn’t so bad either.
The California Artisan Cheese Guild offered a steady stream of tastings of California’s best cheeses.
Beehive Cheese from Utah coated with a lavender and coffee mixture had a nice rich cheddar flavor. On the small pieces I tried the coating had little to no taste. Must taste again! It has the 
honor of having won “1st Place, Flavored Cheddar American Cheese Society Annual Competition 2007 and 2008.”
Some other great discoveries were Ortiz line-caught canned tuna from Spain – rich and light. It’s pretty pricey but well worth a try to taste the best tuna I’ve had.
Sizzling sausage from Fabrique Delice filled the air. If you’re looking for exotic check out their rabbit, duck and wild boar as well as other varieties.
