Consumer’s guide to fruits, veggies

If you grew up thumping watermelons in the grocery store but aren’t quite sure why, this new booklet is for you.

From the Farm to Your Table: Consumer’s Guide to Fresh Fruits and Vegetables is intended to help consumers select high-quality produce from their grocery store shelves.

It explains why there is more to fruit and vegetable quality than meets the eye. Handy tables show the steps between the field and table, which fruits and vegetables should be refrigerat

ed and which should be stored on the counter, and what to look for when selecting produce.

The guide was written by James Thompson and Adel Kader, both of the UC Davis Postharvest Technology Research and Information Center. Thompson, a UC Cooperative Extension agricultural engineer emeritus, and Kader, a professor emeritus of plant sciences, are both authorities on the appropriate handling of fruits and vegetables after harvest.

The 16-page consumer guide is published by UC Agriculture and Natural Resources and can be ordered online for $7 each or 10 for $42.

Next Wine Flight: ‘Alternative Whites’

Organizers of the Gunrock Pub’s monthly wine tasting events are inviting people to “be bold!” — by exploring the white wines down the aisle from chardonnay.

The “Alternative Whites” program is scheduled for Aug. 5, as part of the Wednesday Night Wine Flight series co-sponsored by the Gunrock Pub and the Cal Aggie Alumni Association’s Vintage Aggies Wine Club.

The wine tastings are scheduled from 5 to 6:30 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month. Admission is $10, and no reservations are needed. The Gunrock Pub is on the south side of the Silo.

Wine selections are made each month according to a different theme, and the featured wines are available for purchase at discount prices. Retired UC Davis enologist Walter Winton serves as “resident wine expert.”

Summertime Wednesday Night Wine Flights are scheduled to wrap up with “Stock Your Cellar,” an evening of good deals during inventory reduction time. Many of the wines will be from previous tastings, the organizers said.

Heirloom tomatoes

Registration is under way for Understanding Heirloom Tomatoes, a half-day program presented by the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science.

The program is scheduled from 1 to 5 p.m. Sept. 26 in the RMI’s sensory theater. The cost is $75, with a $10 discount for UC Davis affiliates. Reservations are requested by Sept. 11, and can be arranged by contacting Karin Hiolle, (530) 754-6349 or khiolle@ucdavis.edu.

Checks made payable to UC Regents should be sent to Karin Hiolle, Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science, 392 Old Davis Road, Sensory Building, Room 1021, University of California, Davis 95616.