http://www.sacbee.com/livinghere/story/2331026.html
Mountain air gives Placer-grown mandarin oranges their marvelous taste
By Chris Macias - cmacias@sacbee.com
Published: Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009 - 12:00 am | Page 1D
Last Modified: Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009 - 8:51 am
PENRYN The air carries an extra crispness and a whiff of citrus here, 700 feet above the Valley. Sloping citrus groves line the hillside at Highland Orchard in the heart of Placer County's mandarin country.
Mandarins hang like bright orange ornaments in these orchards, but by year's end, the trees will be bare again. The growing season is short and the public's appetite voracious for this signature Placer commodity.
It's harvest crunch time for mandarin growers, some of whom consider their orchard work a calling: the Aguilar family of Highland Orchard, for example, and the Snows from Snow's Citrus Court in Newcastle.
"Mmmm the fruit seems really good this year," says Tony Aguilar Jr., sampling a freshly picked mandarin. "We all really love what we do. We're very fortunate."
Mandarins grow in many parts of California the Golden State is the nation's second-biggest producer of the oranges and in Placer, they are a point of local pride. These hills are today's true citrus heights: A combined 507 tons of mandarins and oranges were harvested in 2008, and the mandarin crop completely sold out.
The sweet, tangy fruit will be celebrated Friday through Sunday at Auburn's Gold Country Fairgrounds during the Mountain Mandarin Festival. You'll find bins upon bins of mandarins, plus cooking contests and demonstrations. Even a mandarin queen will be crowned.
"Our growers have great pride," says Karen Spencer, spokeswoman for the Mountain Mandarin Festival. "The mandarins have such a distinct flavor, and it's the kind of agricultural product than can grow well on just a few acres or 50 acres. It just does well in the hills."
'It's mountain grown'
A different sort of mandarin queen can be found in Newcastle. Just take a drive, amid the fallen crimson leaves, a couple of miles down Powerhouse Road till you see the sign for Snow's Citrus Court.
Look for the lady in the bright orange hat and green shirt. That's Ralene Snow, and she's here to preach the goodness of Placer County mandarins.
"We're Placer County people," says Snow. "And we always say that our fruit is Placer-grown."
Mandarin trees thrive in this environment. Placer's hillside orchards provide the easy drainage that mandarin trees crave, and the cool foothills air helps nurture fruit that's extra-vibrant in color and taste.
"Our foothills fruit just tastes different," says Snow, strolling through her orchard. "It's mountain-grown, where the cold air gives it a more intense flavor. Here, go ahead and pick one. Don't they just have a nice zip?"
They do taste great, like nature's version of Sweet Tarts.
Snow and other Placer growers specialize in Owari satsumas, a seedless mandarin variety known for its juiciness. Plus, mandarins are effortless to peel so easy, it's tough to eat just one.
"My daughter eats them like M&M's," says Snow.
She and her husband, Larry, have 250 mandarin trees and sell their fruit at local farmers markets plus Whole Foods and Raley's stores. They hold out 20 percent of their crop to produce a line of gourmet dressings and marinades. You'll find other Placer growers using mandarin as a key ingredient of marmalades and barbecue sauces.
"Any citrus is going to enhance other ingredients," says Snow. "So we knew we could do something with mandarins. It's a no-brainer. There's just a lot of tasting involved and making sure the balance is right."
Long days of harvest
At Highland Orchard, they're hauling bins of mandarins and harvesting at full speed. The next couple of months will be filled with 12-hour workdays and seven-day weeks for the Aguilar family. You'll even find Tony Aguilar Sr., 87, helping tend the 12 acres of mandarin orchards in jeans and a CAT ball cap.
The Aguilars have tended this Penryn land since 1947, and Tony Sr. knows how citrus has defined the greater Sacramento region. For many years, before legendary frosts and housing developments decimated orchards, the area was awash in orange groves inspiring such city names as Orangevale and Citrus Heights.
"In 1888, this was called the Placer County Citrus Colony," says Tony Sr., pointing down the hill toward Penryn and Loomis. "This was all farming, hundreds of acres. It was mostly navel oranges growing around here; then the frost of 1932 came and wiped it all out."
Pears and stone fruits became the crop of choice for Placer County farmers before blight ruined it in the mid-1960s. Mandarins have been especially popular since the early 1990s.
So popular that it's the perfect time to celebrate and scarf on some mandarins again.
"We've got the warm days and cool nights, plus this wonderful water from the Sierra Nevada," says Tony Aguilar Jr. "People are going to get some nice, quality fruit at the festival this year."
