Oregon Ale Trail

Oregonians love fine beer: They drink four times more craft and artisanal beer than the average American. And they have plenty to choose from. Oregon, the second-largest grower of hops in the U.S. after Washington, is home to nearly 60 breweries. (Portland alone had 30 at last count.)

Oregon’s breweries are nearly all in the western part of the state. Just outside Portland, in the suburb of Troutdale, is Liberator Brewing, a pub that online watering-hole compendium Pubcrawler.com’s users have ranked as the top brewpub in Oregon. You don’t have to drink on an empty stomach at Liberator; its seasonal menu emphasizes local produce. Farther upriver, you’ll find the Full Sail Brewery in Hood River, which won gold medals for its amber, India pale ale, and wassail at this year’s World Beer Championships, and offers afternoon tours. (For a sneak peek at the view from the brewery, check out Full Sail’s webcam.) If you’re more of a coastal person, drive down the Pacific shore to the fishing town of Newport. The slightly touristy Rogue Ales brewpub has a vast selection of beer on draft, and a bed-and-beer upstairs. (Each room comes with two 22-oz. bottles of Rogue Ale and Rogue pint glasses.)

Vermont Cheese Trail

Cheese has been made in Vermont since 1810, when William Jarvis of Weathersfield shipped over two Holstein cows and a bull from Holland. Today, Vermont’s cheesemakers produce about 70 million pounds of cheese a year.

Most are tiny farms producing a few dozen pounds every day or two, from small herds. These artisanal cheesemakers are scattered all over the Green Mountain State, from the far north, near the Canadian border (Lake’s End does both goat and cow, while Hope Farm produces a sheep’s milk Tomme), to the southeast (Vermont Shepherd, in Putney).

The most recent version of the Vermont Cheese Council’s map lists 38 cheesemakers, who work with cows, goats, sheep, and even water buffalo: Woodstock Water Buffalo makes yogurt and mozzarella and claims to be the only water-buffalo creamery in America. Twenty-two farms, mostly in southern Vermont, are open to visitors, although several ask that you call in advance. The largest cheesemaking operation in the state is probably also the most recognizable: Cabot Creamery, in Cabot, is open year-round for guided tours. And don’t forget that in Vermont, dairy products don’t just mean cheese—Ben & Jerry’s is located up in Waterbury.

Fresno County Fruit Trail

Why go to Fresno, California, when its produce comes to most Americans? Fresno County grows more fruits and vegetables than any other county in the nation, nearly $5 billion a year of table grapes, almonds, oranges, tomatoes, plums, nectarines, olives, berries, and peaches. It’s home to the country’s biggest raisin producers, including lunch-box favorite SunMaid, as well as David, one of the top marketers of sunflower seeds.

The Fresno County Fruit Trail includes four dozen farms, farmers’ markets, produce stands, and agricultural processors who welcome visitors from May through September. You can pick your own strawberries and blueberries, or take a hot-air-balloon ride over the acres and acres of orchards. Or you can attend one of dozens of local festivals that have partnered with the trail, including Coalinga’s Horned Toad Derby, the Swedish Festival in Kingsburg, and Kerman’s Harvest Festival.