Rancho Azul y Oro ~ Surviving the Dream

For those of you following our escapades and adventures, the rancho has been attempting to oversee and manage the remodel the ranch house, whilest the management occupy outer buildings, nurture the crops, net the grapes, determine adjustments due to the drought, and begin harvesting, picking, and processing one of our earliest crops, the table grapes.  We've learned how to dehydrate fruit and have actually produced some rancho raisins, and over 100 jars of one of our fan favorites, our Tequila Pepper Grape Jelly. Tequila Pepper Grape Jelly Finally, ranch bisquits that worked! In the meantime, we've also been attempting to create some new recipes -- some have been winners and some have been not-so-great.  For some great recipe ideas to use with our products or just some foodie inspiration, check out the Rancho's Pinterest page, and click on the Recipes folder http://www.pinterest.com/ranchoazulyoro/. In the meantime, we are hurdling toward the wine g...

We have been waiting with baited breath for harvest to begin.  The drought has caused challenges to a grower of anything.  This is the first year since 2005 that we have not had cattle grazing the property.  We lost most of our olive blossoms during a late April storm, and lost most of the Zinfandel in June due to the incredible onset of heat and heavy, hot sustained winds.  The workhorses of the ranch, however, are the Petite Sirah and Cabernet, which were looking amazing -- so amazing, in fact, that we sewed the nets shut.  We were concerned that animals desperate for food would go after them -- and go after them they did. Despite the netting, our Petite Sirah began disappearing at an alarming rate, so it was suggested by other farmers to purchase electric netting.  It is, however, a race against time to get the netting delivered.  In the meantime, a game camera was set up to attempt to capture (of only by photo) the culprit.  It was coyotes...

It would really be nice to say that there just isn't time to get things done because the construction of the ranch house is ongoing, but the grapes and all things growing at the rancho did not get that memo. We are cruising into August with all things colliding.  The new and improved rancho dwelling is slated to finish up, and movers have been scheduled for Labor Day Weekend?  Will it finish on time?  Wouldn't it be nice to think that?  It seems unlikely, but we'll err in favor of optimism.  So while we are all busy working on final "To Do" lists for the rancho construction, we are spending every other waking hour working on the grapes and tending to the olives.  As we reported earlier in the year, due to a storm in April, we lost most of our olive blossoms and we will not have a large enough crop for olive oil this year, but that does not mean we will not be picking and brining olives for eating, come October-November.  The 120 new little olive tr...

Just thought I'd share a variation on pesto that I've devised for you to dip some bread or rolls in, to accompany that summertime BBQ. Arrugula/Parsley Pesto 1 garlic clove 1/4 tsp. lemon juice 1/4 cup parsley 1 cup arrugula 1/4 to 1/2 cup of olive oil (preferably Azul y Oro's) pint of sea salt parmesan cheese pine nuts Place garlic, lemon juice, sea salt in blender (or food processor or use emulsification blending stick) and pulse, just to get the ingredients mixes.  Add parsley and arrugula, pulse again.  Begin to drizzle in olive oil until it begins to achieve a pesto-like consistency.  Add parmesan cheese and pine nuts.  Pulse once or twice more. Serve with warm, crusty bread for dipping.

As followers of our blog have realized by now, so far, this is not our year.  We have experienced numerous roadblocks thrown in our way, from working around our existing construction to different standards of excellence on the part of those we've chosen to work with us in achieving our goals.  However one views it, there has been a lot going on at the rancho, and yet, our focus remains on completing the construction of the ranch house, nurturing our newly planted 120 olive trees, continue to nurture our existing vines and olives, and moving forward with our business plan. The latter is the most difficult goalpost.  Weather does not cooperate.  When weather cooperates, pests do not, and worst, still, people one depends upon do not cooperate.  My father always said, the moment can defeat you or define you.  We have chosen to let this year define us, not defeat us. To that end, amidst all the chaos and rubble, we are announcing the release of several new p...

 During a recent marketing discussion, a person asked me how we got into the condiment business.  The condiment business???  I must have missed the point with my marketing approach. "No," I replied, "we're in the olive oil business."  The conversation continued.  "You produce oil, right?"  Yes. "You're producing flavored oils, right?"  Yes. "You produce vinegar, right?"  Yes.  "You produce specialty seasonings, right?"  Yes.  "You produce jams and jellies, right?"  Yes.  "So you're in the condiment business."   As we are preparing to roll out -- yes, you guessed it -- an entire line of specialty seasonings and flavored oils, that thought has been reverberating in my head repeatedly.  Are we in the condiment business?  I suppose we are.  We hadn't intended to be.  How did this happen? Here in wine country, the first thing the dreamers start with, of course, is wine grapes.   Very quickl...

We're taking Walt Disney's advice to heart and have begun doing.  What is it that we're doing?  Well, after three months of diligent effort attempting to obtain our Construction Permit for the renovation of the ranch house, it was finally received on Friday, March 21.  Couldn't you hear the shouts for joy from there? While we waited all winter for rain, it seemed the rain waited until the construction permit was issued. Progress has been swift, though.  The entire two ends of the home have been deconstructed, about 21,000 pounds of concrete and stucco have been removed, and numerous architectural, construction, and decorative details have commenced. One might wonder, "Isn't it awful for the ranchers to reside there during the construction?"  The simple answer is yes -- but we are ranchers, so like all ranchers accustomed to adverse conditions, we have moved to The Barn (did you really expect me to say we were living on the Range or Prairie?).  We then...