You may have noticed, perusing the garden-fresh produce at the farmers markets, how much of it comes from the bountiful Yolo County, just over the hill from Napa.

This month Copia is taking a closer look at all the good things, food- and wine-wise, that hail from that agricultural trove.

Copia is hosting a first-ever Discover Yolo County festival Saturday and Sunday. It’s a chance to sample a wide variety of wines from the Yolo County appellations of Capay Valley, Clarksburg and Dunnigan Hills, where wineries are producing  chenin blanc, chardonnay, grenache blanc, petit sirah, pinot noir, rosé, sauvignon blanc,  tempranillo, viognier and sparkling wines. Try them with Yolo’s bounty of nuts, olives, oils, cheeses and dried fruits as well as its renowned organic fruits and vegetables.

Saturday features walk-around tastings of Yolo wines and foods from 1-3 p.m, in addition to activities that include a “Taste the Terroir” soil bar. Art works by Yolo County artists Marie Therese Brown, Philippe Gandiol and Diana Jahns will be on display. 

On Sunday, there will be a tomato evaluation, in addition to cooking demontstrations. The weekend culminates in a village-style feast served in Copia’s gardens on Sunday, 1-3 p.m.

Agriculture is the primary industry of Yolo County, one of the original 27 counties when California became a state. Its name is derived from the native Poewin Indian word “yo-loy” meaning “abounding in the rushes,” although its 661,760 acres comprise alluvial fans, flat plains, and basins, rolling terraces and steep uplands used for dry-farmed grain and range. Nearly 85 percent of Yolo’s 150,000 people live in the county’s four major cities — Davis, West Sacramento, Woodland and Winters.

Yolo’s role in agriculture was emphasized in 1906, when the University of California chose a 780-acre farm belonging to Jerome Davis to establish university farm as part of the College of Agriculture. The Davis farm has since become a separate campus of the university and has received worldwide fame for its research and education work.

Here’s the weekend lineup of activities:

Saturday, July 28

Get Corny!

10:45-11:30 a.m.

Learn ways to use summer’s sweet corn as Pru Mendez, chef-owner of Tucos Café and Wine Shop and a passionate advocate of local farms and produce, shows you how to cook dishes like Corn Blinis with Multiple Toppings, Cold Corn Chowder and Corn Pudding Soufflés. Limited seating.

Included with admission.

From Cool Delta Breezes to the Hot Dunnigan Hills:

Making Wine in Yolo’s Diverse Conditions

11:45 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Panel discussion

Join a panel of four Yolo vintners as they discuss the diversity, challenges and excitement of winemaking in this emerging wine region.

Included with admission.

Taste of Copia—Yolo County

1-3 p.m.

Walk-around wine and food tasting

$20 (includes admission)/$15 member

Walk-around participants: Berryessa Gap Winery, Bogle Vineyards and Winery, Buckhorn Catering, Capay Valley Vineyards, Carvalho Family Wines, Crew Wine Company, Dancing Coyote Winery, Ehrhardt Estates Winery, Heringer Estates Hill, Stone Olive Oil, La Tourangelle, California Olive Oils, Mariani Nuts, Putah Creek Winery, R.H. Phillips Wine Co., Riverdog Farm, River Grove Winery, Rominger West Winery, Six Hands Winery, Traverso Wines, Tuco’s Wine Market and Café, UC Davis, Wilson Vineyards, Yolo Vineyards and Olive Oil Company.

Taste the Terroir Soil Bar

2-3 p.m.

Wine and, yes, soil tasting. Step up to the soil bar and smell, touch and even taste soils from diverse Yolo County vineyards with Dave Smart, UC Davis Soil Scientist and Professor of Viticulture and Enology. Sample wines made from grapes grown on each of the soils presented. Program limited to 30. $15 (includes admission)/$10 member.

Bogle Winery 2004 Petite Sirah Port

3-3:45 p.m.

Jody Bogle discusses how their Petite Sirah port is made, and a pairing of both the 2004 Petite Sirah and Bogle’s non-vintage port with a variety of foods, including cheese and chocolate. Program limited to 30. $15 (includes admission)/$10 member.

Sweet and Savory Flatbreads from the Wood-Fired Oven

3:15-4 p.m.

Join Rachel Levine, executive chef for Nugget Markets, Inc., as she cooks both savory and sweet flatbreads in Copia’s outdoor wood-fired oven. Limited seating. Included with admission.

Sunday, July 29

Skewered, Ground and Seared:

Cooking with Yolo’s Pastured Beef and Pork

10:30-11:15 a.m.

Melanie Bajakian-Pickerel, co-owner of the famed Buckhorn Steak & Roadhouse in Winters, shares creative tricks of the trade used in their celebrated meat dishes using Yolo’s pastured beef and pork. Limited seating. Included with admission

Heirloom Tomato Taste Test

11:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

Talk and tomato sensory evaluation

Swirl, sniff and sample wineglasses filled with brilliantly hued tomato slurry in this extraordinary workshop. Ann Noble, creator of the Wine Aroma Wheel, and Professor Emerita, UC Davis Enology Department, evaluates Yolo County-grown heirloom tomatoes, recreating in depth last year’s Capay Valley event covered by the New York Times. Program limited to 30.

$15 (includes admission)/$10 member.

A Village Feast, Yolo Style 

1-3 p.m.

Multi-course alfresco lunch with wine in the Edible Gardens to celebrate the abundance and diversity of Yolo County’s food and wine, accompanied by live music.  $65 (includes admission)/$55 member.

Menu: Seasoned Almonds Roasted with Almond Oil and Rosemary; Mixed Olives; Grilled Pain au Levain with Roasted Red Pepper Spread; Mixed Heirloom Tomatoes with Green and Purple Basil and Olive Oil; Grilled Yolo County Lamb with Thyme and Rosemary; Grilled Eggplant, Peppers and Summer Squash; Boiled Yukon Gold Potatoes, Green Beans, Carrots, Gold and Red Beets with Aïoli; Rustic Fruit Tarts of Fig and Stone Fruits

Wines: Sparkling Wine Apéritif; Selected Rosé, White and Red Wines

The Cheese Course: Pairing with Yolo County White Wines

3:15-4 p.m.

Discover Yolo County’s light and full-bodied dry white wines paired with the diverse cheeses of Northern California. Anya Fernald, Director of Events for the California Association of Family Farmers (CAFF) and a certified cheese taster trained in Italy, will be your guide. Limited seating. Included with admission.