5 Weed Products Culinary Cannabis Farmer Aaron Keefer Can’t Live Without

One Monday morning, Aaron Keefer tried to bring the cows home. An unlocked gate allowed some to trample on vegetable crops at Sonoma Hills Farm, where Keefer is the best gardener-farmer-cannabis breeder.

Sonoma Hills Farm, about 30 miles north of San Francisco, is both an artisanal cannabis grower and a culinary garden, orchard and working farm with cattle. Using regenerative agriculture, the cannabis is grown in the sun and organically grown to get the best expression from the plant.

Keefer is officially the farm’s vice president of cultivation and production, a position he took up in February 2020. He was previously known as the head chef of the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group, which also includes The French Laundry in nearby Yountville, which is known for its tasting menus with its exquisite products.

Now Keefer is applying his agricultural know-how to create cannabis by growing about an acre of it in fertile farmland known as the Petaluma Gap. Declared an American Wine Country in 2017, the area is legendary for producing premium grapes under the soothing fog and energizing breeze, 15 miles from the ocean. The terroir also creates a stronger flavor expression in cannabis, said Keefer, a proponent of creating a similar cannabis appellation system.

“We’re trying to grow the cannabis we want to smoke. And if we do, we’re pretty sure everyone else will, ”he told Weedmaps on a recent trip to Los Angeles. The farm’s extremely sustainable practices result in a stronger plant, tastier smoke, and purer high, while the farmland remains richer and cleaner.

Sonoma Hills Farms offers outdoor sun-grown organic cannabis grown north of San Francisco.
(Source: Courtesy of Sonoma Hills Farm)

With the first cannabis harvest in 2020 and the landing of Sonoma Hills Farm products in pharmacies this year, Keefer demonstrated that farmers there can grow connoisseur-quality cannabis without energy-intensive indoor cultivation. It’s a holistic farming model that he would have liked to have adopted to keep other small farms alive.

“Farmers have always grown what makes money. Cannabis is a great example of an income producer for a diversified farm. Grapes have been a great source of income for the past 20 years as wine consumption has increased. Now it’s a monoculture of grapevines, ”he said. But copying his cultivation model may not be easy, given the quagmire of bureaucratic licensing and the constant fear the war on drugs has created.

Keefer said the Sonoma Hills Farm model is helping to destigmatize weeds “by linking it to something very safe,” especially their delicious organic foods used in fine restaurants. During the pandemic, the farm planted 4.5 acres of vegetables. “We gave everything away to our restaurant partners – thousands of pounds of vegetables,” he recalls.

Keefer, a former chef, wants cannabis to be used “as the third pillar of hospitality” alongside food and drink. However, he does not like infusions in food: “As a cook, I find it difficult because I like things to be clean. Cannabis has such a strong taste. ”Instead, after dinner he prefers to try a drag of the farm’s GG4“ settling in ”or as an aperitif, sativa-style orange açai.

While waiting for Mother Nature to use her magic on the latest harvest, Keefer and his crew work to bring a cannabis lifestyle from the farm to the table. To this end, he imagines the farm as a “Mari winery,” a place where guests can see the plant, tour the farm, taste the goods and even meet the cows that come to visit.

Keefer, who has grown cannabis since his youth, shared the five cannabis products he cannot live without.

Sonoma Hills Farms Pink Jesus

As an airy sativa, Pink Jesus carries notes of raspberry and lavender and Keefer loves her for her airy high.
(Source: Sonoma Hills Farms)

“Of course I have to talk about the Pink Jesus, which is our proprietary strain. It comes around October 1st, which is early for a year-round product. I call it the Beaujolais Nouveau of cannabis because it comes down early. It is a wonderful start to the harvest season. I find that it has a rich and fruity taste.

The nose is a bit like raspberries and has a little pink tinge to it. And the high is a wonderful soaring high that levels off into a full body buzz and never really has a dip in the end. You don’t end up having that shaky, confused feeling. It’s a very pleasant high with lots of upward tones. ”

Raw natural rolling papers

Keefer is a joint smoker, and when he rolls you up he reaches for RAW.

“First of all, the RAW Rolling Papers are… I don’t use the big, massive ones. If you have good weed, you don’t need huge papers. “

Mason jars

“There are preserving jars in my must-have arsenal, too. I think cannabis storage is incredibly important. Just like wine, it needs to be in a controlled environment to maintain its nose and taste. I keep mine in the glasses in a cool, dark place without high humidity. “

Kalya extracts

“For extracts … my preferred product is Kalya Extracts. Everything they do is of the highest quality. They don’t have their own cultivation, but they work with all the different growers. They are pretty picky about what they extract. I think the name means perfection in Sanskrit. That is their pursuit. I think they really bring the product to a climax. “

Rose joys

“For edibles, I really like Rose Delights. I think they make some of the best edibles out there. You make a turkish treat. They are low in strength, around 5 milligrams [THC] each so you can choose how much you want. The approach to it is like a Michelin star restaurant. They curate cannabis and the fruits for it and come up with some cool flavors.

You also work with chefs, developing a recipe and sourcing the ingredients like a chef. You have with us and with world famous chefs like Enrique Olvera. worked together [on the Poached Pear in Chile Ancho Sativa Rosin Gummies]. Even their packaging is super nice. ”

Selected image courtesy of Sonoma Hills Farms. Graphic by David Lozada / Weedmaps