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by Taber Ward

Sonoma County: The land of Champagne, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Merlot, Zinfandel…and goat milk?

 “Goat milk and grapes” may seem like an odd couple, but the centuries-old history of these products as a pair is as logical as the more popular “wine and cheese” platter.

 Most people think “Bucheret and Chardonnay” or “garlic-chive chèvre and Sauvignon Blanc,” when they plan a palate-teaser. But Sonoma County -- self-proclaimed “Premier Wine Destination of California” -- has leveraged its grape crops and goat population as an opportunity to host both wineries and one of the U.S.’s most successful goat dairies and creameries: Redwood Hill Farm. Tucked into the hilly pleats of Sebastopol, among vineyards, oak woodlands and Gravenstein apple orchards, Redwood Hill is a vestige of the changing North Bay landscape. The modern winery topography of Sonoma County is a new incarnation of what was once a small-dairy speckled pastureland, but plummeting milk prices forced farmers to cede much of their arable land from livestock farms to the more profitable vineyard mono-crops that now blanket the terrain.

A different breed of dairy

As dairy farming flailed, innovative ideas and flavors emerged from the brainstorms of savvy artisans and entrepreneurs who redefined “dairy.”  Thirty-eight year industry veterans Redwood Hill exemplifies the novel niche with award-winning goat milk-based cheeses and yogurts that have become staples for natural-food buyers.  According to Agricultural Marketing Resource Center, trends in goat milk and cheese sales are up as consumers are drawn to their easy digestibility, high protein, and low cholesterol and calorie content. (December 2005)

Redwood Hill’s farm manager Scott Bice manages this natural-foods market’s top yogurt producer. In winter months -- when many goats are pregnant and the darker, colder, wetter whether diminishes milk yield -- Redwood Hill can’t produce enough goat milk to meet demand and is flooded with calls from customers asking for the yogurt, he reports.  In response, Redwood Hill has distributed “Goats on Maternity Leave” signs to retailers and a yogurt container lid that explains that goats rest during the winter.

Goats Galore!

Scott’s parents established Redwood Hill in 1968 to sell goat milk.  Early on, milk arrived at customer’s doors in glass bottles, a personal if more inefficient mode than today’s trucked products that sell through an intermediary retailer. Scott’s sister, Jennifer, assumed the farm’s reins in 1978 and started to show the goats and sell value-added cheese products. Scott explains that the family “got into this business for the goats – then needed to make money!”  There are four different breeds of goats at Redwood Hill: Nubians, Sanaans, La Manchas and French Alpine; and each of these has unique qualities that add to the creaminess, flavor and consistency of the award winning products produced at Redwood Hill.

Jennifer, owner of Redwood Hill, is also head cheesemaker and manages the business with Scott, Farm Manager, and Marty, Assistant Farm Manager. Steve manages the dairy; Jolene manages the herds; Sharon, sister to Jennifer and Scott, heads PR; and students are a great help -- current interns have one-year commitments before returning to their native Costa Rica and Ecuador. 

Although the humans on the farm manage their business capably and thoughtfully, the goats run the show at Redwood Hill. Sunning, lounging, bleating and skipping, the kids rush the fence to peer at passersby and twist their heads through the boards, eager for attention and even affection from their doting owners and visitors.

Approximately 160 goats are milking now; Scott hopes to build this number slowly to 800, so the Bices are seeking a farm with more pastureland and larger facilities where they can produce high-quality milk ensured by conditions of cleanliness, good diet and lifestyle for the goats, convenience, and natural biodiversity.

Farewell to Furry Friends!

As I pull out of the driveway and meander back down the hillside to the valley floor, I happily anticipate my dinner of Redwood Hill’s Three Peppercorn chèvre, fresh heirloom tomatoes and an avocado-schmeared slab of bread.  And, to experience and celebrate the bountiful Sonoma farmland, a glass of wine is most appropriate.  

Redwood Hill Products are available Saturdays at The Ferry Plaza and Berkeley Farmers’ Markets; Whole Foods; and most natural and health-food stores. For details visit www.redwoodhill.com

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