Terroir is the key. It is pronounced terwar. Terroir refers to the soil, climate, and topography of a microregion, and pinpoints what makes an ingredient grown in one place taste different from the same ingredient grown in another. But terroir isn't merely rainfall, mineral content, and angles of exposure to sunlight. No matter where we're from terroir is our cultural and historical link to the land, the expression of the land itself and of the people who live there.
The land here in Chula Vista Alabama is very hilly with plateaus. We're in the foothills of the Appalachain Mountains. In fact you can see a small mountain called Bald Rock from the farm. The soil here is sandy from all the sandstone in the area. The soil is also acidic. You can tell its acidic from all the pine trees in the area. Plants can tell you lots of things about your soil. It gets very windy here from time to time.
