upcoming workshops
Milk Fermentation as a Path of Sensory Rehabilitation.
Join Trevor Warmedahl, The Milk Trekker, for an incredible educational experience that reflects on his years of travelling around the world studying milk fermentation. He has recently written a book and we are honored to host him at the West Marin Culture Shop in Point Reyes Station. May 9th & 10th - 10am-5:30
Over two days, students will learn how to ferment milk into two probiotic forms that can easily be made in a home kitchen and require only milk, mason jars, and the knowledge that will be transmitted.
Drinkable kefir is a mesophillic or room-temperature fermentation that can be flavored and bottled, sometimes getting a light kombucha-like fizz and alcohol content.
Yogurt is thicker, involves a higher temperature thermophillic fermentation, and can be drained through cheesecloth into labneh, which is more like a spreadable cheese.
These workshops require no previous experience and are designed to appeal to a wide audience of chefs, cooks, foodies, and the gut-health crowd as well as cheese makers, mongers, and fans. Those already involved in fermentation (bakers, picklers, brewers, winemakers, and other fermentistas) will discover common ground and strengthen their own crafts through an expanded microbial awareness.
By comparing yogurt and kefir to other fermentations such as kombucha, sourdough, beer, wine, and lacto-fermented veggies, the conversational, classroom-style sessions demystify these sour milks that can also serve as starter cultures for cheesemaking. Over the course of two days we will explore the S.C.O.B.Ys (Symbiotic Community Of Bacteria and Yeast) that serve as the cultures for these fermented foods. The practical means of cultivating and maintaining these heirloom starters will be taught. Students are encouraged to take yogurt and kefir grains home with them, which can be used indefinitely and shared freely.
The workshops are mainly discussion focused, as the demonstration and hands-on work of making the ferments is quick and simple. Where we will get to engage our bodies is in the emphasis on using our senses to guide us in these fermentations, as we taste, smell and watch milk transform from a sweet liquid to a thicker sour state. I refer to this as sensorial rehab because too often our senses have become overstimulated, numbed, atrophied, and neglected through modern living conditions and general disconnection. My teachings and these fermented foods serve to help people learn to reclaim and exercise their senses in order to remember how to let our bodies guide us in how we cook, eat, and live.
Lear more about Trevor, his new book and Sour Milk School at https://www.sourmilkschool.com/
Learn the basics for making your own delicious and nutritious Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Pickles and more! Maggie Levinger, co-founder of Wild West Ferments, will share her knowledge and skills from 20+ years of study and practice of fermentation. In this workshop we will get a glimpse of the rich history, cultural significance, science and nutrition of fermentation. The first portion of the class will be a presentation followed by Q&A. The latter portion of the class will be for hands-on experiential learning during which you will all get to create a ferment to take home with you. Our goal is to impart confidence and excitement for your DIY fermentation adventure.
Join us for a hands-on and fully immersive workshop, diving deep into the magical world of fermentation spotlighting koji, an ancient fungi used to make miso, soy sauce, and sake.
Join us for a fun informative pasta making workshop in Point Reyes. Maria learned to cook in Italy and will bring us an authentic experience. After we work together to create beautiful pasta, we will cook it and eat it together! In addition to pasta skills Maria will be sharing lots of her Italian language for those of you that want to brush up on your skills.
Give the gift that keeps on giving! This gift card can be used toward any future workshop.
Refund and Return Policies are as follows:
For food products: If you’ve received something that you are unsure of please write to us and we will help figure it out. We offer a satisfaction guarantee, if a product comes from us and is not right or good when you receive it, we will refund you. Sometimes, products are actually perfectly fine and we can help dispel concern and confusion. But if something is truly off, we will refund the price of the product and the shipping, or offer a replacement.
For workshops and experiences: We offer a refund, less 20% admin fee, if you cancel your attendance 10 days or more before the event. We offer a credit for future workshops, less 20% admin fee, if you cancel your attendance 7-9 days ahead. If you need to cancel within 7 days it is worth reaching out to us, but we cannot guarantee any amount of refund. If we have a waiting list and can fill your spot, we can offer a refund, less 20% admin fee, up until the day before the event. You are always welcome to fill your spot yourself, essentially selling your spot to someone else. We will need 24 hour notice so that we can get materials list to the new attendee so that they can come prepared to class. Thank you for your support and understanding, we are a small business and cannot continue to offer workshops without this policy being in effect.