Drove down Pescadero way to Phipps Farm for some blackberry picking. Stopped by a few fruit stands along the way and eyed the local harvest.
Grabbed a bunch of heirlooms at the unbeatable price of buy 2 pounds, get one free. Ate almost all of them as soon as we got to the farm.
Mr. Bluebird's on my shoulder...
Koperski found his best friend.
Even though we were in a sort of twilight zone berry wise (olallieberries being over and blackberries not quite ready) we still managed to gather a goodly amount.
You just have to keep a lookout and not mind the prickly bits and the hunching over and after a while you get into a pleasant routine.
Spent a couple hours at the farm then rolled back into town for afternoon cocktails at Duarte's Tavern. A local landmark since 1934, the bar felt like it hadn't changed in years and the jukebox sounded the same. We definitely have to make it back for dinner sometime.
Got home after sunset and decided to try my hand at the art of jam making. Found the simplest recipe possible and lo and behold, we're all stocked up with delicious blackberry jam. Almost time to start canning for winter...
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Picking time? Phipps Farm and Country Store is down Highway 1 in the quaint little town of Pescadero, home of the best bread I've ever eaten. Found this out by stopping into Norm's Market for picnic supplies just seconds after a golden batch of artichoke herb bread came out of the oven. It was still hot and I swear it had to be one of the most delicious vittles ever. Complimented with jalepeno mustard, fig jam, anchovy stuffed olives and goat cheese (Norm's has everything) we managed to eat our way through 3 whole loaves. One of the nice things about Phipps is the picnic area; its nothing special, but its always pleasant to sit and eat at a wide wooden table and they didn't seem to care about our bottle of wine. The rest of the place is a bit strange with oddly mangy animals missing feathers and/or teeth and smells to match. The berry picking is awesome though and once we were out in the field there were hardly any people and everything smelled warm and country-like. Even with most of the blackberries not quite ripe we still managed almost two pounds of fruit and that doesn't take into account the half pound that went straight into my mouth.