The orange skin of a Blenheim apricot is like tissue paper, and
when you bite through it sweet juice floods into your mouth.
Hollister – The orange skin of a Blenheim apricot is like tissue paper, and when you bite through it sweet juice floods into your mouth.
“It rocks. When you taste it, you can’t get over it,” said Patti Gonzales, owner of Gonzales Orchard in Hollister, which grows 80 acres of the apricots.
Ask anyone who knows apricots, and they’ll tell you that San Benito County’s Blenheims are the best in the world. But despite being the best, Blenheim apricots are quickly fading from San Benito County’s agricultural scene.
In the past decade apricot orchards in the county have dwindled from 4,000 acres to 1,100, leaving only four Blenheim growers in the county, said Mari Rossi, third generation owner of B&R Farms in Hollister, which has been raising the apricots since 1929.
“Quite a few orchards disappeared in the last four months,” she said.
In an effort to raise public awareness of the endangered apricot’s plight, local growers have teamed up with the San Benito County Farm Bureau and some local businesses to hold the third annual Blenheim Apricot Summit on May 14.
Participants in the event will have three choices of activities.
They can take part in a televised cooking class at Dorothy McNett’s Place in Hollister, hosted by Dorothy McNett, who will share apricot recipes, including apricot pie and apricot salsa.
Others may choose to take farm tours at B&R Farms and Gonzales Orchard, where they will learn how the apricots are grown and why they are so unique.
For those who want to stay out of the studio and off the farm, there will be the option of wine tasting at Leal Vineyards.
The day will culminate with a barbecue at Paicines Ranch, which will include local grass-fed beef and free range chicken.
San Benito County’s Blenheim apricot orchards have been fading for the last ten years, falling victim to the bottom line.
Imported Turkish apricots – a more durable, but less juicy and flavorful fruit – are imported for about 50 cents per pound, while Blenheims sell for more than $2 a pound and do not ship well , Gonzales said.
“There’s just no money in Blenheim apricots any more,’ she said
The Blenheim Apricot Summit will be on May 14, but reservations must be made by May 6. Admission is $35. For more information, call Dorothy McNett at 637-6444, or stop by her store at 800 San Benito Street to make reservations.
Luke Roney covers education and agriculture for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or at [email protected]
