September 19, 2014 – Quickly becoming one of the main events on the local food calendar, the 2nd annual San Benito Olive Festival on October 11 near Hollister promises to be bigger, better and more accessible than the first celebration last fall.
“The festival shines a spotlight on San Benito County’s culinary agriculture and premier food artisans,” said founder and president Kathina Szeto. “We had such positive feedback after the first festival that we think it helped change the image of our area to a very welcoming place and raise our profile among visitors.”
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Szeto and the rest of the festival board of directors paid close attention to surveys conducted following the inaugural San Benito Olive Festival. “We found people really loved being able to talk to the olive growers and learn about the nutritional value of olive oil, but we also heard requests for more olives to eat and a bigger VIP tasting tent,” she explained.
So this year the festival is moving to a larger location at historic Bolado Park—long home to the San Benito County Fair and the annual Saddle Horse Show & Rodeo—just eight miles south of Hollister. The park has beautiful picnic grounds and the added attraction of an equestrian museum, which will be open to festival-goers providing an additional heritage element.
The star of the show, however, is the ancient olive in all its forms. Seven local olive growers will be on hand, including award-winning brands like Brigantino and Oils of Paicines. New this year is an “olive bar” for oil and balsamic tasting and sampling fresh cured olives.
Also new this year is an olive education booth, sponsored by Pintello Comedy Theater of Gilroy—so expect it to be both informational and fun. Festival-goers can stop by to learn all about how to grow olive trees, the different varieties and tastes, as well as the nutritional benefits of olive oil.
Salinas cardiologist Jerry Ginsburg and his wife Dr. Barbara Rever—who own Oils of Paicines—will also be there to explain the ways olive oil helps the human body and why they decided to get into the olive business.
One of the main attractions is a continuous series of live celebrity cooking demonstrations, including Eric Carter from the Cabrillo College culinary program, Yahoo chef David Boswell, local recipe icon Dorothy McNett, Hollister chef Mike Fisher and the hilarious SakaBozzo team from the Gilroy Garlic Festival.
Organizers expect attendance to increase from 1,400 to 2,500 this year, as the San Benito Olive Festival becomes better known throughout the region. So they’ve added a second entertainment area with acoustic acts and folk dancers in the picnic grounds, while the main stage will feature bigger, crowd-pleasing groups like Mr. O’s Jazz Band, Shiloh, Retrospect and the Flashbacks.
Hollister food companies like B&R Apricots and Marich Chocolate will be taking part in their second Olive Festival, but there will also be loads of new local food vendors, artists and garden artisans, such as Pageo Lavender Farm, AcquaCures Organic Botanicals and the True Olive Connection from Santa Cruz.
The VIP wine tasting tent—one of the festival’s most popular features—has doubled in size, with space for more local wineries and returning favorites like Calera and Pietra Santa. But if you’re more of a beer person, the Olive Festival has you covered this year, featuring craft brews from Hollister’s own Grillin and Chillin Alehouse, as well as Santa Cruz Aleworks.
This is an event that strives to get the entire community involved. Based on the model of the Gilroy Garlic Festival, profits are shared among the community groups who provide volunteers to run the gourmet celebration. More than two dozen community groups are involved, including two Rotary Clubs, YMCA, CASA, San Benito County Arts Council, San Benito County Historical Society, Hollister Fire Department, the Downtown Association and Slow Food San Benito Bounty.
Tickets are available in advance online for $20/adults, $10/children ages 5-12, and $35/admission + VIP wine tasting.
www.sanbenitoolivefestival.com
About the author
Deborah Luhrman is publisher and editor of Edible Monterey Bay. A lifelong journalist, she has reported from around the globe, but now prefers covering our flourishing local food scene and growing her own vegetables in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
