Jamie Evans is not your typical sommelier, but typical isn’t a word that fits into Evans’ descriptive vocabulary. After spending over ten years in the business and connoisseurship of wine, having refined her palate to a T, Evans put her love of cannabis in the spotlight and “The Herb Somm” came into being.

With a focus on education, nutrition, and delectable food and cannabis terpene pairings, this is one somm who has set herself apart from the pack.

Created in March 2017, The Herb Somm was made to teach people new to cannabis, those who are deeply ingrained in the culture, and anyone, anywhere in the middle about the best practices for incorporating the plant in and around a plethora of recipes. An expert in cannabis and food pairings, Evans was invited to be co-editor of our own Cooking Journal and its companion poster.

As the burgeoning business of cannabis spreads like wildfire, keeping it real and unique is a feat in itself. The idea of experiencing cannabis on this elevated level, with careful attention paid to each terroir and the food it is meant to enhance and a deep appreciation for the farmer or farmers who created the herb and other ingredients, is indeed unique and in deserving of a spotlight.

Though born and raised in Truckee, California, the master pairing expert and educator has deep roots that reach to South Dakota farming country. Aside from the agricultural blood coursing through her veins, Evans developed a deep passion for the land and its miraculous productions while earning a degree in Wine and Viticulture at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

A lover of travel, she continued expanding her knowledge of wines and pairings while exploring different regions where she studied viticulture in greater depths at The University of Adelaide, Australia and The Engineering School of Enology at Changins, Switzerland. This worldly experience contributes to her methods as it does her attitude toward food, cannabis, wine, and life itself. Her joie de vivre comes out in her Herb Somm blog, bringing the latest in cannabis news, foods, and beverages.

One year after The Herb Somm was born, the blog took off with a new endeavor she called Thursday Infused. The weekly post is a gourmet series that focuses on different Bay Area chefs and edible makers. The educational sessions focus on healthy lifestyles that incorporate cannabis, with the safest ways to use edibles and other cannabis offerings highlighted.

As part of The Herb Somm’s mission, they also donate a portion of any event-related revenue to local 501(c)(3) nonprofits providing healthy food to Bay Area residents. These hand selected nonprofits focus on creating organic, sustainable, high-yielding urban and backyard gardens.

Dubbed as one of Wine Enthusiast Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40 Tastemakers” in 2018 and as a “2018 Innovator” by SevenFifty Daily, The Herb Somm is carving out a niche that’s not only succeeding, inspiring, and thriving, it’s innovating and teaching others that there’s more than the standard slew of ways to imbibe in cannabis. The gourmet, health-focused, flavor-rich foods and terpenes paired by Evans delight and will hopefully encourage you to explore The Herb Somm concept yourself.

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by Mary Schumacher

Photos by Scott McDermott for Wine Enthusiast & Haiikuu Design