CULINARY & WINE EDUCATION

The North Bay offers some of the world’s best sources of food and wine. When our area’s culinary and viticultural experts offer to share their knowledge, it can create some extraordinary opportunities for learning. Take a class at a local maker source or dedicated teaching facility and broaden your food and wine expertise. Here are some suggestions.

CULINARY

MARIN
Cavallo Point, Sausalito
The lovely Cavallo Point resort at Fort Baker in Sausalito offers destination-focused cooking classes for the public in their state-of-the-art cooking classroom. All classes include a mix of demonstration and hands-on cooking instruction followed by a meal.
CavalloPoint.com

Mon Reve
Chocolate and pastry expert Pooneh Yamini teaches popular hands-on dessert classes at Mon Reve Dessert Art studio at the Mill Valley Lumber Yard. Book in-person classes or virtual experiences for private parties and corporate events.
MonReveDesserts.com

Wild West Ferments
Learn the art of fermentation at Wild West Ferments' hands-on workshops at their fermentation studio inside West Marin Culture Shop at Point Reyes Station. Classes cover the science, nutrition and history of fermentation as well as hands-on fermentation techniques that you can continue to cultivate at home.
WildWestFerments.com

SONOMA
Artisan Baking Center
This state-of-the-art culinary education facility and R+D bakery in the beloved Keith Giusto Bakery Supply in Petaluma offers classes for every level. Learn to make classic French sourdough, Roman-style pizza, hand-shaped Italian pasta, laminated pastry dough and more. Instructors include renowned bakers and cookbook authors. Half- and full-day classes available.
CentralMilling.com/abc

Relish Culinary Adventures
Relish brings together talented chefs and fabulous cuisine at a variety of related rural locations to create one-of-a-kind authentic cooking classes, culinary tours and catering services. Topics vary from Wine Country cuisine and ethnic specialties to cheesemaking, wild mushroom foraging and more.
RelishCulinary.com

Lala’s Jam Bar & Urban Farmstand
Leslie Goodrich of Lala’s Jams teaches the basics of jam making in the kitchen at her Petaluma urban farmstand, covering fruit-to-sugar ratios and hot water bath processing and finishing with a finished jam and recipe to take home.
LalasJams.com

Wind & Rye
Community-driven culinary workshops hosted in a lovely Sonoma County farmhouse kitchen. Chef- and artisan-led classes run from baking and herbalism to family classes and advanced culinary workshops followed by a shared meal.
WindAndRye.com

NAPA
Fatted Calf
Fatted Calf at Oxbow Public Market offers small, hands-on classes in topics for which the artisan butcher and charcuterie shop is renowned, from whole hog and whole lamb butchery to sausage making and salumi.
FattedCalf.com

CIA at Copia
At CIA’s lovely Napa food and beverage hub next to Oxbow Market, summer classes cover a wide array of topics from Mediterranean and Mexican cuisine to grilling and Wine Country cooking, and even a look into recipes from Julia Child’s Kitchen. Series and professional programs, as well as wine instruction, are also available.
CIAFoodies.com

WINE

NAPA
Napa Valley Wine Academy
This award-winning wine school offers online and in-person courses for wine enthusiasts at every level—from beginner to master classes. Students gain confidence and authority in discussing wine, develop accurate tasting skills and learn from instructors trained by NVWA and WSET.
NapaValleyWineAcademy.com

Bay Grape
Certified sommeliers and life partners Josiah Baldivino and Stevie Stacionis have established Bay Grape as a favorite hangout among Napa locals. It is part wine shop, part wine school and all-around fun place to learn about wines from all over the world. They offer a blind-tasting class on the first Tuesday of every month and a rotating “pop-up” tasting room for small, up-and-coming wine producers in the region.
BayGrapeWine.com

Back Room Wines
Napa locals and visitors can attend weekly wine tastings at Backroom Wines—Wine Store & Bar every Friday from 3:30 to 7:30pm. Some Fridays are “blind,” while others offer a theme of the week. No reservations are required and everyone is welcome. These tastings are a great way to kick off a weekend and learn about wine from all over the world.
BackRoomWines.com

SONOMA
Odyssey Wine Academy Located in Healdsburg’s Bacchus Landing, the Odyssey Wine Academy caters to both enthusiasts and professionals with classes ranging from simply enhancing an understanding of wine to professional certification courses including in-person WSET Level Awards 1-3 and the WSET Level 1 Award in Sake. Classes in English and Spanish.
OdysseyWineAcademy.com

Meadowcroft Wines
The wine blending workshops at Meadow-croft tasting room in Sonoma’s beautiful Cornerstone Gardens teach the nuances of wine with a unique sensory experience. Learn the characteristics of individual wine varietals then blend them to create your own wine, which you cork to bring home.
MeadowcroftWines/wine-blending-experience.com

Sonoma’s Best
Every Thursday at 4pm, a gang of wine lovers gathers at cozy Sonoma’s Best Wine Merchant for the weekly themed wine tastings. Sommelier Todd Jolly oversees the crowd and gently guides tasters through the differences and nuances of wines worldwide, as well as small, local producers.
Sonomas-Best.com