Those who are familiar with the concept of terroir and the importance of place, along with its intricacies – climate, soil, terrain, sun exposure – hail the legendary Mendocino County for its long growing season, ideal climate and its ability to inspire lush, towering growth patterns in the right sungrown genetics.
That’s what brought Livicated Farm’s Jeremiah Woodard out west to chase his dream of raising tall trees in the Emerald Triangle.
Woodard, an East Coast native who went from being an indoor cultivator to discovering a passion for outdoor farming before making the move, knew of the Triangle’s reputation well before he traversed the country – first landing a job with Fetzer Vineyards before breaking ground on his passion project.
Woodard spends long days in the fields at his farm, thriving among the vineyards of Redwood Valley, where the long growing season allows him to sow sativas that stretch to the sky with their gangly arms and indeterminate growth patterns. Count his delicious Vital Grapes among those genetic sativa crosses perfectly suited to the Mendocino terroir.
A featured flower in the curated Farmer’s Reserve line from Flow Kana, Vital Grapes was originally called Ital Grapes – a reference to the Rastafarian culinary concept of Ital, or natural, organic living and eating. It’s a delicious cross between Chem Cookies and Banana Punch, with frosty, chunky flower offering a scrumptious mix of pungent fuel and musky fruit aromas and sweet, round mouthfeel. The overall effect is that of soothing stress relief and dreaminess, without sleepy sedation.
While we didn’t intentionally pair this flower with any wine for this issue, we highly suggest mingling the two, as these grapes would be right at home with the fruit of their neighborly vines out of Redwood Valley.
This article was originally published in the September 2021 issue of California Leaf.
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