From pick-your-own fruits to artisanal cheeses, oils and wine, the Central Valley offers a cornucopia of tasty products, and agricultural tourism opportunities abound.
Bakersfield
Murray Family Farms' (661.330.0100) 400 acres yield 1 million pounds of fruits and vegetables annually, and the Murrays display over 170 varieties—or you can pick your own. Tours, hayrides and a petting zoo are also available.
Davis
Visitors to UC-Davis might tour the school's cattle (530.752.1200) and viticulture (530.752.0380; http://wineserver.ucdavis.edu) operations, lunch on beef from the campus processing facility and take a vineyard tour.
In addition, the Grange Restaurant (916.492.4450) lets visitors shadow chef Michael Tuohy on his weekly farmers market run, then dine on the fare at Grange.
Fresno
Many Fresno restaurants incorporate local produce and fruits, plus visitors who want to go sample area wines can visit Milla Vineyards (559.277.1656).
Merced
Hilmar Cheese Company (209.667.6076) in Hilmar is the West's largest cheesemaker, a dairy wonderland where 640-pound "crates" of cheese take shape while visitors enjoy ice cream. On Merced's Yosemite side is the Fruit Barn (209.385.2222), which offers fruits, nuts, vegetables and deli sandwiches.
Modesto
The Sciabica family's fourth generation continues to create olive oil at Sciabica's Oil of the Olive (800.551.9612), which offers tours, while nearby Ceres is home to Classic Wine Vinegar Co. (209.538.7600), which features tastings. Snack fans will enjoy the Blue Diamond Almonds (800.987.2329) store, while Fiscalini Cheese (209.545.5495) milks 2,500 Holsteins to create handmade cheese. Meanwhile, Oakdale Cheese's (209.848.3139) Dutch-descended owners craft artisanal Goudas amid a picnic area and petting zoo. Finally, Beekman Honey (209.667.5812) in Hughson offers tastings of estate-bottled honey and honey wine.
Stockton
Although nearby Lodi is now known as a wine region, places in Stockton such as the Fruit Bowl (209.931.1196) and Clements Ridge (209.759.3850) focus on fresh fruit and vegetables, supplementing them with baked goods, olive oils and wine tastings.
Visalia
Tulare County emphasizes dairy and stone fruit, so visitors should consider touring the Bravo Farms Cheese Factory (866.898.6455) in Traver to see its award-winning cheddar being made.
Similarly, Three Sisters Cheese (559.562.2132) in Lindsay demonstrates how mere milk becomes 20-pound artisanal cheeses. Planners who want to plant groups amid orange groves can head to Historic Seven Sycamores Ranch (559.798.0557) in Ivanhoe.