Later this week the California Artisan Cheese Guild will be hosting their 4^th Annual California Artisan Cheese Festival in Petaluma, CA. There will be some serious posts in the next few weeks so I want to keep this one pretty light. So with that in mind I am introducing my first contest with sponsored PRIZES!!!!!!!!

Below is a crossword puzzle where all the clues relate directly to the festival and the cheese vendors at the festival and their products. I’m not trying to trick anyone – all of the answers are readily available online. OR come to the festival and ask the producers themselves! It’s going to be Sunday, fun day on March 28 too with tons of cheese makers, wineries, breweries, etc at the Artisan Cheese Marketplace. Tickets are still available and include:

*  One 3 hour session, Artisan Cheese Marketplace
* Cheesemaking and Chef demos
* Author book signings
* Insulated Cheese Tote Bag and Festival Wine Glass
* Shopping at i Leoni’s gift table

All for only $45 per person!

In order to have a chance to be the lucky (randomly chosen) winner, you must email me (contact (at) cheeseplatesf (dot) com) the answers to the clues no later than 9 pm April 1. Winner (and answer key) will be posted up on April 2.

Our sponsored prizes are from Rustic Bakery and Cypress Grove. So get workin’ to possibly win some delicious Humboldt Fog, Truffle Tremor and snappy Rustic Bakery crackers!

There are some hot updates about our sponsors after the puzzle!

Cypress Grove recently added more awards to its roaster by winning best of category for Humboldt Fog and Midnight Moon at the 2010 World Cheese Awards in Wisconsin! Way to go Cypress Grove!!!

Rustic Bakery is opening its second outlet in the vacant site of the former Skully’s Bakery & Café at 1407 Grant Ave. in Novato. It’s anticipated to open in July, and will offer coffee and espresso, baked goods, and breakfast and lunch foods including croissants, soup, salad and sandwiches. There’s a nice article about Rustic Bakery in the Novato Advance.

About Rustic Bakery:
Rustic Bakery was created to address the growing Artisan Cheese market in the United States. Seeing that there were no handmade Artisan crackers available to compliment the increasingly sophisticated cheeses being produced, the founders of Rustic Bakery decided to develop a line of organic flatbreads in 2005.

Rustic Bakery flat breads are baked by hand with organic grains and seeds, using local ingredients whenever possible. The flat breads are all low in fat, high in fiber and full of nutrients making them naturally good for you.

About Cypress Grove Chevre
Cypress Grove Chevre is the leading producer of fine American goat cheese including the top-selling American artisanal classic, Humboldt Fog, which recently won a Gold Medal at the UK’s Guild of Fine Food 2009 World Cheese Awards. Founded in 1983 by Mary Keehn, Cypress Grove continues a tradition of innovation by introducing original American cheeses to the marketplace, such as its newest addition, Truffle Tremor, which in 2009 won first-place honors at the American Cheese Society competition and a coveted sofi™ award from the National Association of Specialty Food Retailers (NASFT). Cypress Grove was also awarded Outstanding Product Line at the 2007 Fancy Food Show in New York. Based in Arcata, CA, where the Redwoods meet the Pacific, Cypress Grove’s award-winning family of products can be found at fine retail outlets and restaurants across the country.