Mendocino Sea Salt and Seasoning Company—
Life is a Circle

Story by Debbie L. Holmer

Of all smells, bread; of all tastes, salt.
—George Herbert, English poet (1593–1633)

On a rainy cold Saturday, the day after Christmas, I drove down to Point Arena to interview Lora and Bob La Mar. I was greeted by their dog Freckles and with warm hugs from the La Mars. Lora and Bob La Mar’s Mendocino Sea Salt and Seasoning Company is the only traditional saltworks farming natural sea salt from the ocean off the Mendocino Coast.
They craft their salt (in a building just down the driveway from their home in Point Arena) using the English tradition of gently simmering sea water to form hollow pyramid-shaped crystals. They do this naturally, through reduction and evaporation of sea water. How they actually craft their salt is very guarded, so I did not see the salt production itself. But first, before I talk about Lora and Bob, here are a few little tidbits of information about “salt”—which has played an important part in world religion, economics and of course, history.

This ‘n’ that about salt
Where mineral salt has been readily obtainable it has long been mined. Some salt mines in the world go back at least to the Iron Age. However, it has not been readily obtainable everywhere and the alternative coastal source has also been exploited for thousands of years. The principle of the production is the evaporation of the water from the brine of the sea. In warm and dry climates this may be done entirely by solar energy, but in other climates fuel must be used.

Ancient or medieval salterns could be established where there was access to a market for the salt; a gently-shelving coast, protected from exposure to the open sea; a cheap and easily worked fuel supply, preferably, the sun; preferably, another trade such as pastoral farming and tanning so that it and the salt could each add value to the other in the form of leather or salted meat. In this way, salt marsh, pasture and saltworks enhanced each other economically. This was the economic pattern in the Roman and medieval periods around The Wash, in eastern England.

Salt has been worth its weight in gold, literally, from the days of the Roman Empire through the European spice trading of the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries, when salt traded one-to-one for a pound of gold. More recently, in 1930, the British government in India imposed a salt tax, and Mahatma Gandhi and thousands of followers walked 240 miles to the sea to collect their own salt and protest the tax.

In The Saltmen of Tibet, a stunningly beautiful 1997 Swiss documentary, director Ulrike Koch follows the incredible physical and spiritual three-month journey undertaken each year by nomadic tribesmen on the Himalayan plateau to harvest salt from the holy lakes of the Changtang region. For these nomads, sea salt is still the primary currency, just as it was in China and India more than two thousand years ago.

Sea salt is a finishing salt, added after cooking to brighten the flavor of food. Though salt is salt (containing approximately twenty-four hundred milligrams of sodium per teaspoon), sea salt has fewer crystals per teaspoon than table salt or kosher salt—and, therefore, less sodium.

Today, sea salt is perhaps one of the biggest national gourmet obsessions. These days, a restaurant worth its salt will have a cellar of sea salt on the table: no twentieth century salt shaker will do.

Before salt
As Bob La Mar puts it, “Before salt,” he worked for most of his adult life as an Alaskan bush pilot. He flew a Beaver on floats in the Southwestern Region, Southeast and in the Interior. Employed by various lodges to take high-end clientele into the bush to hunt and fish, Bob said it was a “privilege to have a front row seat to experience the most spectacular and wild land America has to offer.” He was also employed by the U.S. Park Service as a law enforcement ranger/pilot in Alaska. He flew for gold mines, performed glacier flights, did mail runs to remote bush communities and had his fair share of a few “mishaps.” He would work the season in Alaska and return to his home just north of Fort Bragg.

While all this was going on, Lora was married to another man, managed a successful design and construction business, and was busy raising two children on a horse ranch she and her husband owned in California’s Central Valley. To earn a living after her divorce, Lora converted the ranch and gardens into a successful outdoor wedding venue location, called Forget Me Knot Ranch in Hickman, California.

Enter eHarmony!
Lora and Bob met five years ago via the eHarmony website. Both were frustrated with the small pool of potential partners in their respective remote towns. After their initial introduction through eHarmony and months of getting to know each other over the phone, their first date was a picnic on the lawn in front of the Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Lora and Bob say that it was a magical day for them. Surrounded by dogs, family (Lora has two children—a son and a daughter, and two grandchildren—Luke, age seven and Lilly, age four) and friends, they were married two years later on the beach in Anchor Bay just north of Gualala.

They sold Bob’s farm north of Fort Bragg and bought a country home in Gualala. Lora placed the care of her ranch in the hands of her son and daughter-in-law.

Lora and Bob La Mar’s love for the ocean led them to start a sport fishing business in Point Arena on California’s rugged north coast. When government fishing closures forced them to shut their doors (their opening season was the first time in California’s history salmon season was closed to all take!) they looked for another way to share the Mendocino Coast with others.

The answer came in the form of an all-purpose seasoning Lora originally created to give as Christmas gifts. The seasoning was so good; she had requests for it all year long. But how to combine her coveted seasoning recipe with Bob’s love of the sea was to be a challenge.

This was solved when a chance visit to a gourmet food store in San Francisco sparked the idea of blending Lora’s seasoning with Bob’s handcrafted sea salt. Inside that shop was an entire wall devoted to artisan sea salts. Lora says,
“We looked at each other, raced back to the truck and headed for home!” Knowing how clean our Mendocino ocean water is, they just assumed their salt would be equally as wonderful.

Lora and Bob work well together, their love and admiration for one another shines through during my interview as does their passion for their product. It is most definitely an equal partnership. It’s an exciting time for them. Their products have been well-received and now they are hoping to expand.

Crafting the salt
Of course, it was quite a process figuring out how to craft the salt. They thought to themselves, “How hard can making salt be?!” They were soon to find out. Their first batch was so bad it tasted like bleach! As in their marriage, they once again turned to the Internet, scouring the ‘net for salt-making techniques. Lora purchased every high-end sea salt she could find and they compared each homemade bath to gourmet salts from Portugal, France and the Mediterranean. Lora says, “We had salt everywhere! In our hair, the living room, a fine dusting over the dogs. People in town must have thought we had a horrible case of dandruff.” “Crazy, mad salt scientists we were,” Bob adds.

One day and simply by accident, Bob had the heat in the salt pan turned down lower than usual. “Returning a few hours later,” Bob says, “instead of forming around the edge of the pan (evaporation) or on the bottom (hard boil) the salt formed in a series of hollow pyramids creating a thin sheet of ice on the surface. I tasted it and the flavor was rich and slightly sweet. We learned that this crystal sheet does not form during the entire process. It only forms right at the onset. That is why we missed it. I have to play the heat to get the desired crystal shape. Too much heat and the crystal is too small. Too little heat and it forms on the bottom of the pan.”

Bob crafts their product by “painting” the salt with just the right amount of heat for the right amount of time. “What we get,” Lora says, “is a full-bodied, rich-tasting salt that has a distinct crisp, clean flavor and texture. After draining, the crystal remained hollow and crunchy.”

Finally, Lora and Bob felt like they were on to something. Nobody gives up their cooking secrets and salt farmers are no exception. However, they were able to glean from some websites that the method they stumbled upon is the traditional English method of making salt. Once they had the method down, they started taking their boat out (the Fair Chase) to various depths off the Mendocino Coast and take saltwater samples to craft their sale.

The La Mars found that between three to five miles offshore gives them their best crystal. It also gives them water that is gin-clear and as pure as it can get.

Extracting sea salt from ocean water
The La Mars first collect pure ocean water off the Mendocino Coast from aboard their boat, the Fair Chase. Their harvest locations are carefully selected over deep undersea canyons that are known for producing strong upwelling.

The seawater is then simmered until delicate crystals of salt begin to appear on the surface, then grow and sink to form the salt bed.

The young salt is then raked, drained and gently layered into open evaporating pans. It is at this point that the true distinctiveness of their sea salt is shaped. Knowing exactly how much heat to apply at this stage of the process is an art and must be carefully monitored. The result is a light crystal reminiscent of a snowflake with a crisp feel and a complete lack of coarseness or bitter aftertaste.

Their products
Sea salt—Because of where the La Mar’s salt is gathered and how they harvest it, their salt possesses a delicate taste and graceful texture. Its icy, flaky grain allows it to crumble quickly when applied to food at presentation. Since their salt crystals are light and hollow, the use of a salt grinder is not necessary. You can actually crush the crystals between your fingers, a pleasing feel that only adds to the anticipation of what is to come.

Nori sea salt—What better way to complement their handcrafted sea salt than to add edible seaweed! The taste of nori (made with local seaweed) reminds one of the scent of crashing waves on a rugged coast. The La Mars blend three different grades of nori and toasted sesame seeds to create a subtle “briney” and nut flavored salt. Nori salt is a wonderful complement to lighter flavored foods such as fish, poultry, rice, potatoes and vegetables.

Seasoning Sand—Their all-purpose Seasoning Sand begins with the same natural goodness as their original product. The coveted recipe for the seasoning created by Lora uses only natural ingredients (garlic, onion, brown sugar and black pepper) and their own handcrafted sea salt. It’s a marvelous flavoring for fish, meats, pastas, salads, crab or poultry.

The Sea
Each glass jar of handcrafted sea salt or Seasoning Sand is uniquely packaged using a design of scallops as their trademark—their family crest (La Mar means “the sea” in French). Bob and Lora La Mar offer their sea salt and products at the local Gualala and Mendocino farmer’s markets (this year they’ll be adding Fort Bragg). In addition to being discovered by Sea Ranch’s chef, they’ve also been “discovered” by Glendeven Inn in Mendocino and the Farmhouse Inn in Sonoma, and Cultivate in Sebastopol. Lora and Bob are exploring blending such products as local wild mushrooms, such as dried wild chanterelles and king boletes with their salt in the near future.

Mendocino Sea Salt and Seasoning Company’s salts have a sweet, crisp flavor and a wonderful texture. Salt has been used as money, making pottery, has ignited wars and was essential to preserving foods and, as in the case with Lora and Bob, serves as a delicious marriage of Lora’s passion for cooking and Bob’s enthusiasm for the ocean. Their life is a circle in which they laugh, celebrate life and each other, have faith in all around them, continue to seek wisdom, dance and oh yes, dream.

Lora and Bob La Mar’s Mendocino Sea Salt and Seasoning Company is located now in Point Arena, California. Their mailing address for the business is P.O. Box 1154, Gualala, CA 95445 and they can be reached by phone at (707) 882-1742. For online ordering go to their website at www.mendoseasoning.com and e-mail them the order (their e-mails are listed on the website), or order by phone (see above number), or visit www.foodzie.com. They love to talk “salt,” so questions are always welcome.

The cure for anything is salt water; sweat, tears or the sea.
—Isak Dinesen (1885–1962)

Recipes
Lora’s Garden Pea Salad
(A summer salad that can be made the day before.
A flavorful side dish to take to a picnic or potluck.)

1 bag frozen petite peas, thawed and drained
1 small can sliced mushrooms, drained
Red onion, sliced very thinly (add to your taste)
1–2 tablespoons mayonnaise

Combine peas, mushrooms and onion. Add 1 tablespoon mayonnaise, add more if necessary. Careful, it doesn’t take a lot. Finally add Mendocino Sea Salt Seasoning Sand, approximately two teaspoons, adding more or less, according to your personal taste. Stir before serving.

Mendo “Sand” Chips
(Warning note from the writer: I sampled these and they are addictive!)
These can be made the day before. Served alongside grilled vegetables that have been tossed with olive oil and Seasoning Sand, this pita treat makes a flavorful appetizer. And did I say they are addicting?

1 package plain pita bread
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove pita from package, cut each in half, and split each half (butterfly open pattern). Place split pita on baking sheet, bake ten to thirteen minutes (times vary based upon your oven) until very crisp. Remove from oven, brush with olive oil. Dust with Seasoning Sand.

Easy Blackened “Sand” Fish
Fish of your choice (works well with our rockfish here on the coast, but can be used with any other fish, scallops, abalone, etc.)
La Mar’s Mendocino Seasoning Sand
Fresh lemon or lime
Butter
Olive oil

Sprinkle both sides of fish/seafood liberally with Seasoning Sand. Heat one tablespoon of oil and one tablespoon of butter in pan, (cast iron works great) on medium-high. Get really hot! Add fish to pan (cook approximately eight minutes per one-inch of fish, four minutes per side.) Fish should form a lovely golden brown caramelized color on each side. Remove from pan. Squeeze fresh lemon or lime over fish. The juices that form after sitting are a wonderful flavoring over rice.

Feodora’s Yum Yum Chicken Dish
Here’s a recipe shared by Feodora from San Francisco, who loves Lora and Bob’s Seasoning Sand. (Amounts are approximate. “I am more of an intuitive cook,” she shares.)

Heat up coconut oil (three tablespoons) in large pan. Add chopped onion (two medium), one teaspoon turmeric, two teaspoons ground coriander seed, heaping teaspoon of tamarind, heaping tablespoon minced garlic.

Cook until onion is transparent or browned. Add one pound chopped chicken thighs. Cook all together until chicken is cooked through.

Add one-and-a-half cups cooked brown rice, two tablespoons ponzu (Eden brand), quarter teaspoon black winter truffle oil, juice of two fresh limes, two teaspoons agave nectar. Stir until rice is heated through.
Mix in a large handful of mixed raisins and nuts (raw sunflower seeds, sliced almonds and pine nuts).

Remove from heat and finish with a generous sprinkling of La Mar’s Seasoning Sand.

Stress-buster using sea salt
There are many folks who believe that using sea salt aids in the quality of sleep, energy and concentration levels, weight loss, and even nail and hair growth. Sea salt bath therapy is believed to help reduce infection risks and rejuvenate the minerals and toxins in our body.

At the end of the day—get a big bottle of the purest drinking water you can find.

Turn on relaxing music.

Light at least one candle and keep it near the tub.

Start up a steamy bath.

Add a cup of sea salt and relaxing scented oil such as lavender, rosemary and peppermint to the bath. (If you have a headache also add marjoram).

Soak in your sea salt and oil soup for at least ten minutes.

Finish off your bottle of water (at least sixteen ounces) as you soak.

Focus on the candle and the moment. Forget the day—it’s over and you’ll never see it again.

Sea salt facial
For a stimulating facial, mix equal parts of sea salt and olive oil. Gently massage the face and throat with long upward and inward strokes. Remove the mixture after five minutes and wash with mild soap and water.

Salt is born of the purest of parents: the sun and the sea.
—Pythagoras (580–500 BC)

Note: Lora La Mar is in the process of gathering recipes from customers and hopefully will receive enough (along with her recipes) to create a cookbook. If you have a recipe or idea that you would like to send to them, they’d love to see them.