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Marin
County
Cheesemakers Open for Visits
+1
+2
Achadinha Cheese Company
Barinaga Ranch
Pugs Leap
11
+
3
Bohemian Creamery
Cheese Company
Ramini Mozzarella
12
Redwood Hill Farm & Creamery
4
Cowgirl Creamery
13
+
5
Epicurean Connection
Tomales Farmstead Creamery
14
6
Marin French Cheese Company
7
Matos Cheese Factory
Two Rock Valley Goat Cheese
15
+
Valley Ford Cheese Company
16
+8
Nicasio Valley Cheese Company
9
Petaluma Creamery
+
10
Vella Cheese Company
17
Point Reyes Farmstead
Open Locations Contact for Tour Options Marin Driving Tour
+
Protected Farmland
Sonoma Driving Tour
You can visit any of these cheesemakers during their regular business hours without making an appointment.
Marin County Driving Tour
Sonoma County Driving Tour
Driving Directions
Driving Directions
Novato to Nicasio and Point Reyes Station (about 15 miles)
Version 6, 2015
Start right outside Novato at Marin French Cheese Company, the
longest continually operating cheese company in the U.S., where you can
picnic by the pond, shop in the retail store and taste award-winning Brie
and Camembert cheeses. Then travel west on the Point Reyes-Petaluma
Road, make a quick detour onto Nicasio Valley Road to the quaint village
of Nicasio. There you’ll find Nicasio Valley Cheese Company. The
Lafranchi family produces fantastic farmstead cheeses in the artisanal
tradition of their Swiss-Italian cousins in Switzerland. Then retrace your
steps to the Point Reyes-Petaluma Road and into the town of Point Reyes
to Tomales Bay Foods (also known as Cowgirl Creamery) where you can
watch cheesemaking through the window or take a more formal cheese
tasting (reservations required). At the cheese counter taste Cowgirl
cheeses and other local artisan cheeses.
Petaluma to Sebastopol to Sonoma (about 50 miles)
Starting in the historic agricultural town of Petaluma, with its charming
turn-of-the-century buildings and quaint downtown, stop by the Petaluma
Creamery where you can sample Spring Hill Cheese (for tours of their
creamery, please call ahead). Then head north out of town on the 101
Freeway, taking the 116 exit towards Sebastopol. Make a right on Llano
Road to the Matos Cheese Factory, located on their farm, to sample St.
George, a buttery semi-hard cheese made in the style of the Azores.
From there, make a short jaunt (right on Hwy 12, left on Irwin, left on
Occidental) for rustic-style cheeses to Bohemian Creamery, a goat farm &
cheese shop. For more, head east on Highway 12 to the town of Sonoma
to visit the retail shop of one of the oldest cheesemakers in the area, Vella
Cheese Company.
3. Bohemian Creamery
7380 Occidental Road, Sebastopol
bohemiancreamery.com
F
Lisa Gottreich broke from her midlife mold to fill new ones with
innovate and compelling curds. Her shop and herd of Alpine goats
overlook the Laguna de Santa Rosa in Sebastopol. Shop Hours:
Fri-Sun 10-6, Tours: Sat at noon, Sundays at 1pm. Email info@
bohemiancreamery.com for info.
4. Cowgirl Creamery
80 Fourth Street, Point Reyes Station
415-663-9335
www.cowgirlcreamery.com
FM M O
In 1997, Sue Conley and Peggy Smith built a small creamery in
downtown Point Reyes Station and began making handcrafted
cheese with local organic milk. They now produce three fresh and
six aged cheeses, and have a second creamery in Petaluma.
6. Marin French Cheese Company
7500 Red Hill Road, Petaluma
800-292-6001
www.marinfrenchcheese.com
M
The longest continuously operating cheese factory in America,
Marin French has specialized in handmade Brie and Camembert
since 1865. In 2005, it was the first American producer to best
France and other European countries in international competitions.
7. Matos Cheese Factory
3669 Llano Road, Santa Rosa
707-584-5283
F
Joe and Mary Matos grew up in the Portuguese Azores on the lush
volcanic island of Sao Jorge, noted for its delicious cheeses. They
relocated to Santa Rosa in the 1970s, carrying the recipe for their
native cheese with them.
8. Nicasio Valley Cheese Company
5300 Nicasio Valley Road, Nicasio
415-662-6200
nicasiocheese.com
FM F M O
The Lafranchi family enjoyed the traditional cheeses of their Swiss
homeland and dreamed of making their own. Their organic dairy
was the perfect resource to enable them to pay homage to their
heritage. They made their first cheese in 2010 with Swiss mentor
Maurizio Lorenzetti.
9. Petaluma Creamery
711 Western Avenue, Petaluma
707-762-9038
springhillcheese.com
petalumacreamerycheeseshop.com
FM M O
The 102 year-old Creamery is home to organic Spring Hill Jersey
Cheese, butter, and handmade ice cream from local Jersey cows
as well as 100% natural Petaluma Creamery and Petaluma Gold
cheeses. The store serves BBQ sandwiches, salads, and coffee
daily. Tours by appointment.
17. Vella Cheese Company
315 2nd Street East
Sonoma, 707-938-3232, 800-848-0505
vellacheese.com
M
Bellwether Farms
400 W. Spain Street, Sonoma
707-935-7960 sheanadavis.com
Petaluma, 707-478-8067
www.bellwetherfarms.com
FM M
Sheana Davis is the cheesemaker and proprietor of the Epicurean
Connection, celebrating 25 years of enthusiastic support for
local cheesemakers. Her cheeses include Delice de la Vallee, Creme
de Fromage, Creme de Mouton & Le Tois de Fromage. Epicurean
Connection is open by appointment only for cheesemaking classes
and guided artisan cheese tastings.
10. Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company
Point Reyes Station, 415-663-8880
pointreyescheese.com
theforkatpointreyes.com
FM F M
The Giacomini family makes their award-winning cheese, including
Fresh Mozzarella, Toma, Bay Blue and Original Blue with milk from
their own cows—processed within hours of milking. They offer farm
tours and dinners, cooking classes and more at The Fork, their culinary
and educational center. Reservations required.
11. Pugs Leap
White Whale Farm
5880 Carroll Road, Petaluma
707-876-3300
whitewhalefarm.com
FM
Following the traditions of her Basque ancestors in Spain, Marcia
Barinaga makes a raw-milk Basque-style sheep cheese. Her Animal
Welfare Approved flock of dairy ewes graze year-round on over
100 acres of certified-organic pastures overlooking Tomales Bay.
Clover Stornetta Farms
Petaluma, 707-778-8448
cloverstornetta.com
M
From a small farm in Bulgaria to a creamery in Jalisco,
Mexico. Together, Pablo Guerra, who learned the art of cheesemaking
from his father and his wife Margarita, born on a dairy farm in Bulgaria,
bring you a melding of cultures, reflected in their artisan cheese.
12. Ramini Mozzarella
Laura Chenel’s
Tomales
415-690-6644
raminimozzarella.com
Sonoma, 707-996-4477
www.laurachenel.com
F
Founded by Craig Ramini & his wife Audrey Hitchcock and inspired
by Italian mozzarella di bufala, Audrey uses her 100% water buffalo
milk to produce handcrafted authentic Buffalo Mozzarella. Contact
Audrey to picnic on the farm, sample cheese and pet the water
buffalo. Tours are Saturdays only from 2-4. For reservations email craig@
raminimozzarella.
13. Redwood Hill Farm & Creamery
Sebastopol, 707-823-8250
redwoodhill.com
FM M
Redwood Hill Farm is an award-winning, Certified Humane®, Grade
A goat dairy farm and creamery located in Sonoma County. Familyowned and operated for over 45 years, they are committed to the
sustainable production of delicious, artisan goat milk cheese, yogurt
and kefir. The farm is open for public tours two weekends per year
during spring. Visit redwoodhill.com/tours for dates and details.
14. Tomales Farmstead Creamery
FM F
David and Tamara purchased Toluma
Farms in 2003. They restored the land, certified it organic and
protected it with an agricultural conservation easement (MALT).
They’ve raised Animal Welfare approved goats and sheep
since 2007 and began making farmstead cheeses in 2013. They
produce a soft ripened goat cheese (Kenne), a soft ripened cow,
goat, sheep (Teleeka), a fresh goat cheese (Liwa), an aged goat
(Assa), and an aged mixed sheep/goat (Atika). 15. Two Rock Valley Goat Cheese
Two Rock, 707-762-6182
FM F M
lley Goa
tC
k Va
oc
DD
Valley Ford, 707-293-5636
valleyfordcheeseco.com
FM F M
Five generations of the Bianchi/Grossi family have raised dairy cows
on this prime farmland in Sonoma County. Karen Bianchi Moreda and
her son Joe now make Swiss-Italian-style cheese from the milk of their
Certified Humane Raised & Handled Jersey herd.
Cheesemakers Busy Making Cheese
Find these cheeses at retailers or a farmer’s market. The cheesemakers
below are not open to the public.
Andante Cheese
Petaluma, 707-769-1379
www.andantedairy.com
FM
Laura Chenel pioneered American goat cheesemaking. From small
batches made on her Sebastopol farm in the 1970s to the new Sonoma
creamery owned by French artisan cheese producer Rians Group, the
brand continues to bring increased appreciation of goat cheese to the
U.S.
Saint Benoît Creamery
Two Rock, 530-400-4701
stbenoit.com
FM O
Saint Benoit is a family-owned business handcrafting small batches
of organic yogurt cheese, cream-top French-style yogurt and organic
vat-pasteurized whole milk from Jersey cows. They use locally sourced
fruits and honey. Each item is sold in distinctive reusable crocks, jars and
bottles.
Weirauch Farm & Creamery
Petaluma
weirauchfarm.com
FM F M O
Seasonal, small batch varieties of farmstead, Animal Welfare Approved
as artisan goat and certified organic cow cheese
sheep cheese, as well
produced by husband and wife team Joel and Carleen Weirauch.
Tomales, 707-878-2041
tolumafarms.com
16. Valley Ford Cheese Company
Marshall
www.barinagaranch.com
Cheesemakers Seana Doughty & Dave Dalton are serious about their
cheese but never take themselves too seriously. Their handcrafted cheeses
have whimsical names and every wheel is imprinted with a heart. The
creamery is located in a renovated milk house on a historic ranch.
Petaluma, 707-486-3640
1. Achadinha Cheese Company
2. Barinaga Ranch Farmstead Sheep Milk Cheese
Tomales
www.bleatingheart.com
120 Humane Certified goats roam the pastures at White Whale Farm.
Here, the family-owned dairy makes farmstead, hand-crafted cheese,
under the Pugs Leap label, with milk from their own animals, in a
creamery built inside their historic 1867 barn. Tours are available by
appointment.
Cheesemakers that have occasional or regular scheduled tours.
Signups required. Most require plenty of notice.
Petaluma
707-763-1025
www.achadinha.com
FM F M
At Jim and Donna Pacheco’s dairy, you’ll find 600 goats and a
small Jersey cow herd. The animals graze on pastures year-round;
their diet supplemented with brewer’s grain, whey and alfalfa. One
of the barns has been converted to an on-site creamery and aging
room. Check their website for information on tours of the dairy
and cheesemaking.
Bleating Heart Cheese
Dacheva Son’s Cheese
FM F
DeBernardi Dairy, Inc.
Dairyman Don DeBernardi’s desire to make Swiss cheese like the type
made by his relatives in Switzerland led him to transition from multigenerational dairy farming to producing a goat milk cheese aged on
site at the DeBernardi Dairy. Weekend tours by appointment.
Contact for Tour Options:
operates Bellwether Farms in the heart
The Callahan family owns and
of Sonoma County. They began milking their sheep and producing
handcrafted cheeses in 1990, making them one of the first to be part of
the revival of American artisan cheesemaking.
A family-owned and operated business, Clover Stornetta Farms works
closely with select family farms in Sonoma, Marin and Mendocino
counties. It processes and distributes their high-quality dairy products
under the Clover Stornetta and Clover Organic Farms brands.
ese
he
The Vella family has made cheese in a stonewalled building on the
historic Sonoma square since the company’s founding in 1931 by
Gaetano Vella. The cultures, the care and the personal hands-on
techniques are the same as they were then.
5. Epicurean Connection
Two
R
Open to the Public:
Call or check websites for regular visiting hours.
Soyoung Scanlan—dairy scientist, music lover, and former
biochemist—gives musical names to her creamery and cheeses.
Her products are designed to reveal the essence of the terroir, or
microclimate, in which the milk and cheese are produced.
Additional Farm Tours
Bodega Goat Cheese
Bodega, (707) 876-3483, bodegaranch.net
Patty Karlin, who taught many of the cheesemakers in
the area, gives tours of her farm, showing her many
sustainable practices and introduces you to her goats.
Call for an appointment.
Straus Home Ranch
Marshall, StrausHomeRanch.com
Learn about Marin’s sustainable agricultural history and anecdotes of
growing up on rural Tomales Bay, while strolling the pastures of this iconic
organic farm, followed by an artisan cheese tasting. Led by Vivien and/or
Michael Straus. Sign up online.
Key to the Cheesemakers
Type of Animal:
FM
Available at
Farmers’ Markets
Goat
F
Farmstead
Sheep
M
Mail Order
O
Organic
Cow
Water Buffalo
Generous support provided by Whole Foods Market,
Marin Convention and Visitors Bureau
and the California Milk Advisory Board
A project of the Marin Economic Forum:
MarinEconomicForum.org
Production: Vivien Straus | Design: Lisa Krieshok
Copy: Elisabeth Ptak | With initial support from Ellie Rilla