The Event Click here for a detailed schedule

The ‘alchemy’ of fermentation is truly the fundamental impulse in biology, serving humans for millennia as a generative force creating an abundance of gifts we could not live without.

The Freestone Fermentation Festival is a celebration of this miracle, weaving together dynamic presentations and interactive demonstrations on how fermentation works, with the opportunity to taste some of its more spectacular results: breads, cheeses and much more – all hosted in the scenic valley of Freestone in Western Sonoma County.

Master Fermenters of every kind will gather to share their wisdom. See exhibits on how fermentation works. Sample breads, cheeses, miso, pickles, sauerkraut, natto and kombucha. Learn about making fermented foods and drinks in hands-on classes which will reveal many aspects of fermentation and how our diverse participants make it work for them. Feel fermentation at work by dipping your feet into a cedar enzyme bath.

Three keynote talks will be given by leaders in fermented food and cultural ferment.

Also participating is Transition Town, Ceres and Go Local, all creating their own ‘ferment’ of local movements with global implications, right here in Sonoma County!  

Enjoy an entire afternoon and evening of wonderful musical performances from samba to bluegrass, rock, and the Hubbub Club Grassroots Radical Guerrilla Marching Band. Local gourmet food producers will offer delectable lunch options.

The entire event is set on the beautiful campus of the Salmon Creek School two miles north of Freestone. Indoor activities will take place in their new, first-in-the-state, LEED-Certified meeting facility. Tour this new green building, the organic school gardens, or choose a nature trail through redwoods.

Be sure to stop in Freestone for our Open House with a visit to Wild Flour Bakery, a garden tour at Osmosis Day Spa Sanctuary's meditation garden, a taste of wine at Freestone Vineyard’s new Guest Center, and an inside look at Enduring Comforts. We’ll be welcoming visitors with tours and talks at these well-known landmarks.

Read this wonderful article that tells the bigger story of fermentation.

Click here for a detailed schedule