A Fun Day at the San Benito Olive Festival

The fog burned off just in time yesterday to make it a gorgeous day for the San Benito Olive Festival. The organizers created a beautiful setting at Bolado Park for the gourmet event that celebrates the rich culinary agriculture of our region.

The Husband and I had a fun day sampling artisanal olive oils, chocolates, Blenheim apricot jams, Chipolte tortillas, and more. And of, course to taste olives stuffed in garlic, bleu cheese, habanero peppers, and what have you.

It was fun watching the live cooking demonstrations from celebrity chefs such as Mike Fisher, Sakabozzo, and Dorothy McNett. And, to sit under the trees to eat delicious food and drink regional wines and handcraft beer.

Lots of good music from local musicians, including Zachary Freitas, Shiloh, The Flashbacks, Retrospect, and Mr. O's Jazz Band. It was fun to sit and listen to them, as well as to get up and dance.

And, what's a festival without wandering around and checking out the merchants and other non-food booths. One of my favorite booths was the collection of cartoons featuring olives, including Dagwood, Emmy Lou, Beetle Bailey, and the Lockhorns.

 All in all a great day of hanging out with friends, bumping into more friends, and meeting new people from far and near.

A Beautiful Day for a Lot of Something

Hooking up with Skywatch Friday

Today is going to be hopping around San Benito County.  These are just a few of the events:

The Red Ribbon 5K is going on right now in Historical Downtown Hollister. Participants are running a 3.1 mile in the shape of an H.  Post-run festivities continue until 12:30 p.m.

The Cole Canyon Farm , a certified organic nursery in Aromas, is holding an Open Greenhouse Sale to the public, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It's located at 1495 Cole Road. 

The San Juan Bautista Historical Society is holding an open house from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Carl M. Luck Memorial Park in San Juan Bautista. The celebration includes a presentation of the Digital San Juan Bautista Project (hundreds of old photos of the City and its residents), used book sale, silent auction, and BBQ, among other activities. This is a free event, open to the public.

The Second Annual San Benito Olive Festival, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m, at Bolado Park in Tres Pinos, about 8 miles south of Hollister on Highway 25. The gourmet celebration features several celebrity chef cooking demonstrations, live bands, restaurant fare, artisanal food sampling, wine and craft beer tasting, and much, much more.  Tickets are still available at the gate.

The Second Annual San Benito Olive Festival

This Saturday, October 11, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., is the second annual San Benito Olive Festival, which celebrates the natural beauty and agricultural bounty of our county. I have no doubt that it will be another successful fun and joyful affair that will be attended by hundreds of people from near and far.

San Benito Olive Festival is both the gourmet event and the not-for-profit organization that plans, organizes, and brings the event together. The group's mission is to promote awareness and appreciation of the region's world-class culinary agriculture and premier artisans who make award-winning olive oils, wines, chocolates, Blenheim apricot products, and more. All net profits made from the event are donated to service, educational, and other community groups in San Benito County.

This year, the gourmet celebration is going to be at the gorgeous, historic Bolado Park, which is 8 miles south of Hollister. It's easy to find and reach on Highway 25, whether driving from the north or south.

There will be lots to eat, to drink, to purchase, and to enjoy at the festival. General admission tickets -- $20/adults and $10/children, ages 5-12 -- include the cost of entry to the festival, parking, cooking demonstrations, and entertainment. The $35 VIP ticket grants guests access to the wine tasting tent and five tastings of wine and craft beer from wineries in San Benito, Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Santa Clara counties. I'm a beer drinker myself, but I would be tempted to taste samples from places with such great names as Alicats Winery, Wild Eye Winery, Lightheart Cellars, and Graveyard Vineyards.

Six celebrity chefs are scheduled to conduct live cooking demonstrations of dishes using olives or olive oil. Starting off will be Chef Eric Carter, Director of the Culinary Arts at Cabrillo College in Aptos, at which the students run the popular Pino Alto Restaurant on campus. Following him will be Chef Dorothy McNett, the popular foodie legend of the California Central Coast, after which the chef duo Gene Sakahara and Sam Bozzo, also known as SakaBozzo, the twins separated at birth, from the Gilroy Garlic Festival will take the cooking stage. Next up will be Chef Mike Fisher, a Hollister native and local caterer who was trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, and ending the day will be Chef David Boswell who is the Chef de Cuisine at Yahoo!

It's going to be a toss up for me -- watching the cooking demonstrations or listening to the live bands. I've heard three out of the four that will be performing Saturday, and just the music alone makes me realize what a bargain the festival tickets are for a great afternoon of fun. Festival guests will be hearing a range of music from jazz and big band by Mr. O's Jazz Band, doo-wop by The Flashbacks, and popular rock by Shiloh and The Retrospect.

I could go on and on about the San Benito Olive Festival, but I shall stop here. To learn more, check out the festival's website and read this article that the festival posted at BenitoLink.com.

Today, I shall be hanging out at Our World Tuesday. Come join me by clicking here.

The Flashbacks

Yesterday afternoon at the Hollister Downtown Farmers Market, The Flashbacks, a doo wop group got the crowd smiling, clapping, tapping their feet, and swaying to their groove. You can hear them yourselves at the San Benito County Fair on Saturday, October 4, and at the San Benito Olive Festival on Saturday, October 11. Both events will be at Bolado Park.

A Fun Day at the First San Benito Olive Festival

The first ever San Benito Olive Festival has come and gone. Did you have a chance to stop by?

It was quite a beautiful and magical day. Hundreds and hundreds of folks came from all over. Not only from throughout San Benito County, but also from the San Francisco Bay Area, Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Luis Obispo county, Sacramento, and other parts of the state. I heard that a few festival patrons were from New Zealand and Puerto Rico. Whoo-hooo! 

The Paicines Ranch was the perfect setting for the first San Benito Olive Festival. The old hippie in me just wanted to take off my shoes and run barefoot through the lawn and dance with the little joyful kids as they bounced and jumped and ran with the great sounds of Mr. O's Jazz Band, The Retrospect Band, David Huboi and The Architecturals, and Workhouse Poets.

Everywhere you looked, people were having fun sampling locally produced olive oils and wines, chocolates, fruit preserves, and other artisanal products by Brigantino Olio de Oliva, La Piedad Tortilla Factory, Jayse Wines, Marich Confectionary, Pietra Santa Winery, Calera Wine, San Benito Tea Company, Sharobed Grove, Casa de Fruta Winery, B&R Farms, Guerra Vineyards and Groves, Oils of Paicines, and many more.

Folks were also check out lovely, creative products from such merchants as M&M Plant Sales, Gioia Italian Art and Products, San Benito Bene, McAbee Feed, and Off the Chain Bikes.

And, the food, oooooh. I noticed quite a few people chomping happily into  tri-tip sandwiches by Vanguard Catering and the Philly cheese steak sandwiches by Philly Cheesesteak from Stockton. Myself, I ate a caprese panini sandwich from Grillin' and Chillin, while the Husband had a caprese salad made by Running Rooster. Ah, but the most delightful aroma came from Soul Sweets which offered fruit cobblers. The Husband continues to drool over the memory of consuming a blueberry cobbler with a big scoop of ice cream.

Yes, indeed!  To the tune of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, one, two, three: It was a beautiful day for a festival. A beautiful day for a festival. Hope you all had funnnn.

What did you like the most at the San Benito Olive Festival?

For more photos, check out these Facebook Albums. You don't need to be on Facebook or have a Facebook account to access them.

• 2013 San Benito Olive Festival
• 2013 San Benito Olive Festival (at San Benito Olive Festival's FB wall)
• Behind the Scenes

I'm looking forward to next year's San Benito Olive Festival. How about you?

First Annual San Benito Olive Festival

Click here to go to the San Benito Olive Festival website

Agriculture has been the largest industry in San Benito County since. . .forever. In 2012, the industry grossed over $297 million, according to the San Benito County Agricultural Commissioner. That's definitely a big WOW! This includes fruits, vegetables, nuts, livestock, poultry, honey, whole grains, and nursery stock. It's only befitting that come October 19, 2013, we will be celebrating the abundant bounty of our land with the first annual San Benito Olive Festival.

It will be one humdinger of a gourmet celebration. Here's just a few of the olive oil producers, wineries, food artisans, restaurants, and merchants who will be participating: Brigantinto Olio de Oliva, Sons of Sicily, Oils of Paicines, Pietra Santa, Guerra Vineyards and Groves, Casa de Fruta, Marich Chocolates, San Benito Tea Company, Running Rooster, Paine's Restaurant, Grillin & Chillin, M&M Plant Sales, Soul Sweets, San Benito Bene, and McAbee Feed.

Food demonstrations will be given by foodie legend Dorothy McNett and the chef team of Gene Sakahara and Sam Bozzo (aka SakaBozzo). Other food demonstrators will be Chef Maurizio Cutrignelli of Maurizio’s Restaurant in Morgan Hill and Chef Matt Woolston of Supper Club/ Matteo’s in Sacramento.

Mr. O's Jazz Band, David Huboi and The Architecturals, RetroSpect, and Workhouse Poets will be some of the bands playing throughout the day. Other live entertainment will be offered as well.

Click here to go to the
San Benito Olive Festival website

Have I teased you too much with the what? Good. Then, you're ready for the when? where? how much?  and why?

When: October 19, 2013, 11 am to 5 pm

Where: Paicines Ranch, 13388 Airline Highway, Paicines 95043, about 12 miles south of Hollister  (Did you know that Judy Garland and Sid Luft got married at this working, historic ranch in 1952?)

How much: General admission tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children. VIP admission is $30, which includes access to the wine tasting.

You can purchase tickets online at Eventbrite.com. Tickets are also available at the door.

Why: The San Benito Olive Festival (SBOF) is a not-for-profit organization. Its mission is to  promote awareness and appreciation of the region's world-class culinary agriculture and premier artisans and to help support community causes with festival proceeds.

Program Schedule
The Music 

11 AM to 12 PM -- Mr. O's Jazz Band
12:30 to 1:30 PM -- Retrospect
2:00 to 3:00 PM  -- David Huboi and the Architecturals
3:30 to 4:30 PM -- Workhouse Poets

The Olive and Cooking Demonstrations

11:30 to 12:15 -- Don Landis, The Olive Guy
12:30 to 1:15 -- SakaBozzo, chef duo featured at the Gilroy Garlic Festival
1:30 to 2:15 -- Matt Woolston, chef/owner of Matteo's Pizza and Bistro and Supper Club in Sacramento area
2:30 to 3:15 -- Dorothy McNett, Central Coast Foodie, Chef and Instructor of the Cooking Club in Pacific Grove
3:30 to 4:30 -- Maurizio Cutrignelli, chef/owner of Maurizio`s Italian Restaurant in Morgan Hill

For more information about the first annual San Benito Olive Festival, visit www.sanbenitoolivefestival.com or its Facebook page.

Hope to see you there!

Disclosure: Just so you, dear readers, know, I'm volunteering on the SBOF's marketing committee. Hello, FCC: No money or free products were given me to write about the upcoming gourmet celebration.

Save the Date for the San Benito Olive Festival!

Are you ready for an olive festival in our own neck of the woods?

Sure, you are!  The first annual San Benito Olive Festival will take place October 19, 2013 at the historic Paicines Ranch. Save the date and please spread the word.

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