There’s a particular kind of magic that settles over Redwood Hill Farm in the fall. Mornings arrive cool and golden, afternoons soften into a warm glow, and the entire property seems to exhale after the busy summer months. Life slows just enough to notice the small moments—and around here, autumn means one of our most cherished traditions: the olive harvest.
We harvested the week of Thanksgiving, which turned the work into a meaningful pre-holiday family gathering. Olive picking is both an art and a labor of love. Most of our olives are hand-harvested—gently raked and shaken from the branches, falling into wide nets spread across the grove floor. It’s slow, quiet work that leaves room for conversation, laughter, and storytelling.

With care, patience, and a beautiful growing season behind us, we gathered 847 pounds of olives.

While the harvest was underway, the rest of the farm was buzzing in its own small, sweet ways. Kaikoa could often be found wandering the property, plucking the last of the apples straight from the tree for a quick snack during his farm adventures. Colton embraced the season in the kitchen, turning those same apples into delicious homemade apple crisp that filled the house with the unmistakable scent of fall.

And as Thanksgiving approached, Rachel gathered olive branches from the trees and paired them with persimmons from the property to create a simple, beautiful table setting—one that reflected the land, the season, and the gratitude we feel this time of year.

Once picked, the olives are transported quickly to the mill. Timing is everything—pressing within hours preserves the oil’s freshness, flavor, and healthful qualities.

Our Capracopia extra virgin olive oil is a Tuscan blend of 5 olive varieties and is more than a product—it’s a reflection of Redwood Hill Farm itself. The cool coastal air, dry summer heat, rich soil, and careful stewardship all shape its character.

Each harvest brings its own expression. For the first 6-8 weeks it is Olio Nuovo, which has a very special character when it is very young. The color is intensely green and the aroma and taste are like fresh olives. Green, young olives (with high polyphenol antioxidant content) produce oil with greater longevity – and greater health benefits. 

and this year’s oil is especially fragrant and bold, with a bright finish that shines when drizzled over fresh goat cheese, dipped with fresh bread, or in your favorite salad dressing recipe.

If you’d like to bring a taste of Redwood Hill Farm into your own kitchen, our freshly pressed Capracopia olive oil is available for purchase online—making it a thoughtful, farm-crafted gift. You can also find it in person during our Spring Farm Tours, where visitors can shop and experience the grove firsthand.

Fall at Redwood Hill Farm is about more than the harvest itself. It’s about family, tradition, and savoring the season in all its forms—working side by side in the grove, sharing meals made from the land, and gathering around a table that tells the story of the year.

As the hills turned green and the days grew warmer, we were thrilled to welcome guests back to our farm for the annual Spring Tour Season. This year brought a wonderful mix of first-time visitors and familiar faces returning to reconnect with our goats and enjoy a day on the farm.

The stars of the season, as always, were our friendly goats! From cuddling with the spring kids to feeding our gentle adult goats, visitors of all ages delighted in the unique hands-on experiences. One of the most talked-about highlights was our hand milking demonstration. Guests loved the chance to see (and try!) this timeless farm tradition, gaining a deeper appreciation for where their food comes from.

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We were especially excited to re-introduce delicious goat cheese made from our very own milk, lovingly crafted by the talented cheesemaker, Omer Seltzer, at Mt. Eitan Artisan Cheese. The cheese made its debut at our farmstand and quickly became a guest favorite. Our farm’s olive oil was much appreciated and tour guests were able to walk through the olive grove. Bouquets and our handmade soap with goat milk soap and olive oil were all available at our farmstand. Many visitors took home a taste of the farm to share with family and friends, or to keep for themselves (we don’t blame them!).

While Kaikoa wanted to personally welcome our tour guests, his daily nap time got in the way. Still, he made sure to do his part behind the scenes, ensuring that every last oak leaf left behind from the tours made it to all the big barn goats, who were more than happy to help with the cleanup.  

We were lucky with the weather this spring—plenty of sunny weekends made for perfect tour days filled with fresh air and happy faces. We did have to cancel one weekend due to rain, but otherwise, the skies cooperated beautifully, adding to another wonderful season.

We wrapped up the season with the annual Farm Trails Bees, Blossoms & Barnyard Baby’s Spring Tour, and it couldn’t have been a more perfect day. Saturday’s casual open house welcomed a steady stream of visitors, cars were lined up at the gate by 11am, eager to explore the farm. Guests strolled through the blooming flower fields, sampled and purchased Mt. Eitan’s artisanal cheeses, and enjoyed one last chance to cuddle with the baby goats. A walk down Apple Blossom Lane along the apple trees in bloom led them to the adult goats. It was a joyful celebration of spring and a heartfelt tribute to Sonoma County’s vibrant agricultural heritage.

Thank you to everyone who came out to visit, support our farm, and share in the joy of springtime with us. Whether you’re a longtime friend of the farm or someone who joined us for the first time, we hope you left with happy memories and that we can welcome you again in the future.

Tis’ the season for Olive Harvest! We are in our 11th year harvesting our five different varieties of Tuscan olive trees and it has become quite the family tradition.

We had to move our harvest date a few times due to this wet winter weather, and ended up starting the morning of Monday, November 18th and finishing in the afternoon on Tuesday, November 19th. Our Olive Harvest crew consisted of Bice family members Jennifer, Scott, Cristi, Nicole, Colton, and Rachel as well as our farm employees Krista, and Carlos. Kaikoa was also able to join in on the picking and sorting duties!

               

This year we used a mechanical olive harvesting rake which allowed the olives to drop on the nets we set below so we could sort and bucket them up. We of course go through and pick any remaining by hand as well. We got into a very good flow and were able to finish just in time to get them to the press!

               

Another family tradition we have is guessing how many pounds of olives that were produced. Every year is different and this year our total came to 1,713 lbs. Two years ago, we produced our all time record of 2,203 lbs. of olives.

We are very happy with this year’s harvest and the olive oil is tasting great! Being completely dry farmed this year the olive oil has deep complexity with floral, herbaceous and peppery notes. In the first 6-8 weeks the olive oil is called Olio-Nuovo and is prized for its fresh and intense flavor. It is available for purchase in our online shop to be enjoyed at your table or gifted for the Holidays. 

From our family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving!