Weekend of May 17-19, 2013 in Sonoma County

Planning on visiting in mid-May on the 17th though the 19th? Well, sit down, strap in, and hold on! It's gonna be a busy weekend!

Image from tastealexandervalley.org

Amgen Bike Tour of California - The final leg of the race begins Sunday morning in SF and ends in downtown Santa Rosa Sunday afternoon. BTW, this event leaves SF in the morning about the same time as the Bay to Breakers foot race--this won't be a good time to be driving through.

James Family Cellars Winemaker Dinner - Saturday in Rohnert Park. 

Lagunitas Beer Circus - Sunday afternoon at Lagunitas Brewery in Petaluma. Bet you've never been to a beer circus before.

Mazzocco Winery Winemaker Dinner - Sunday evening at Dry Creek Kitchen in Healdsburg.

Salute to American Graffiti - Much of the movie was filmed in Petaluma and this is the 40th anniversary of the film. The highlight will be the Saturday downtown cruise. Hopefully, there will be a '58 Chevy or two.

Santa Rosa Rose Parade - On Saturday, a local tradition since the late 19th century.

Sbragia Winemaker Dinner - Friday night, Inn at the Tides, Bodega Bay.

Sonoma Historic Motorsports Festival - At Sonoma Raceway. A weekend of old race cars. Many cars will be visiting Sebastiani Winery in Sonoma on Saturday evening.

Taste Alexander Valley - A weekend open house of food and wine at 30 wineries.

Wine Country Gran Fondo - Saturday in Sonoma. Bicycling is the main event, but it's a day long celebration of wine and food, too. 


Weekend weather? Sonoma County has lots of micro-climates, but figure upper-70s on Saturday to mid-80s on Sunday. Sounds perfect. Come and visit us!

Sonoma County Events - Summer 2013

Following are wine-focused and non-wine events during June, July, August, and through Labor Day Weekend in Sonoma County California for 2013. There are many others at specific wineries during the summer -- check with your favorites.

Mid-summer in Sonoma Valley

Wine-themed events 

June

8-9  Russian River Valley Passport to Pinot
Wine, food, and music at about two dozen Russian River Valley wineries. Info

23  Pinot Family Reunion
Afternoon tasting and an evening dinner. Info

July

4  Many wineries are closed. Others will close early for the holiday. The best place to be is in the Sonoma town plaza for the annual 4th of July Parade and Celebration.

6  All American Zin Day
Grilled meats and Zinfandel in Dry Creek. Info

August

2-4  West of West Wine Festival
In Sebastopol. It's all about west Sonoma County cool climate wines with winemaker dinners, seminars and a tasting. Info

17  Grape to Glass
A Russian River Valley pre-harvest party. Wine, food, dancing with winemakers and grape-growers. Harvest is coming so it's their last chance to have fun until November! Info

24  Taste of Petaluma
Local wines, beers, foods along with art and entertainment. Info

Salmon anyone? Bodega Seafood Festival

24-25 Bodega Seafood, Art and Wine Festival
Arts, crafts, food, live entertainment. Info

30-Sep1  Sonoma Wine Country Weekend
"A wine, cuisine, and cultural event" presented by Visa Signature--check their website for discount tickets. Info


Non-wine events
Although you'll find wine available at most of these. 
After all, it's the wine country and we don't want to miss an opportunity to let you sample our wares.

June

Peggy Sue Car Cruise

1-9 (begins May 31)  Healdsburg Jazz Festival.
1   Beerfest. Northern California's micro-beer scene.
2   Ox Roast Community BBQ in the Sonoma Plaza
6-9 Peggy Sue's All American Car Cruise. Hundreds of old cars highlighted by a Saturday evening cruise in downtown Santa Rosa.
14   Huichica Music Festival at Gundlach-Bundschu Winery.
15-16 Sonoma County Hot Air Balloon Classic. You have to get up early for this one!
16  Father's Day car show at Julliard Park in Santa Rosa.
19-23 Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma. Evening concerts, ugly dog contest, destruction derby.
21-23 NASCAR at Sears Point Raceway/Infineon/Sonoma Raceway/whatever it's called now. If you're going to Sonoma or Napa this weekend stay away from the racetrack--there will be huge traffic jams.
22 Michael McDonald at the Rodney Strong Winery summer concert series.
22-23 Sonoma Lavender Festival in Kenwood. Lots of purple. Local wineries will be pouring.
22-23 Russian River Rodeo and Parade in Duncans Mills.

July

Lunch at the fair while checking out the racing form

4  Lots of fireworks shows on or near the 4th. The big one is at the county fairgrounds in Santa Rosa. 
13 Wine Country Big Q. Barbecue, beer, and music sponsored by the Kansas City Barbecue Society. Sounds like a perfect summer afternoon.
20-21 Civil War re-enactment in Duncans Mills.
25-Aug11 Sonoma County Fair. Rides, corn dogs, concerts and thoroughbred horse racing.
26-28 NHRA Nationals at Sonoma Raceway.

August

1-11 Sonoma County Fair continues.
4  Dwight Yoakam in concert at Rodney Strong Winery
17-18 Wings Over Wine Country air show at the Sonoma County Airport.
23-25 Indy Cars at Sonoma Raceway.

Ongoing   

Tuesday: Farmers' market in Sonoma. Farmers' market and kids outdoor movies in Windsor, concerts in the Healdsburg plaza
Wednesday: Farmers' market in Santa Rosa at the Vets Building and at the Wells Fargo Center, Santa Rosa downtown market, Wines & Sunsets at Paradise Ridge Winery, Petaluma evening Farmers Market
Thursday: Wine Down Thursdays at Santa Rosa Vintners Square, St. Francis Winery outdoor film festival
Friday: Cloverdale Farmers' Market and music in the plaza
Saturday: Farmers' Markets in Sonoma, Santa Rosa, Petaluma and Healdsburg. Music in Montgomery Village, Santa Rosa.
Sunday: Music in Montgomery Village, Santa Rosa.

What wine with junk food?

May 11th is Eat What You Want Day. We all know what that means. It's all about the junk food that tastes soooo good and is soooo unhealthy.

We're talking doughnuts, chili dogs, potato chips, Oreos, and all the other things we stuffed our faces with when we were 12 years old--before we had a primary care physician to tell us to only eat raw green beans dipped in vinegar or we will die an early, horrible death.

So naturally we should decide on what wine to go with your day of pigging out. It's tough to come up with a single wine because there are so many different flavors here. Though it boils down to sugar, animal fat, and salt, I suppose. My best guess would be a cheap sparkling wine. Nothing over $7 a bottle otherwise you'll look like a snob at the doughnut store in the morning (most doughnut shops do not charge corkage BTW). If you go to your local Burger King order the secret combo #13. It's not on the list, but it's a Whopper, fries, and a glass (a Solo Cup actually) of Two Buck Chuck.

Sonoma's "anti-highway 29" wine road

Highway 29 is the main artery running through Napa Valley. Anyone who has been there knows the string of tasting rooms, fancy eats, and traffic--lots of traffic. There must be about one hundred wineries along that stretch of road.

A world away from that crowd is Highway 116 in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County. The stretch of 116 between Sebastopol and Forestville is the main section for wine lovers. This is a cooler micro-climate so you'll mostly find cool climate grapes such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah.

The road is known locally as the Gravenstein Highway named for the apples that used to be the predominant crop here before wine grapes took over.

Sebastopol. A nuclear free zone!

 
Heading north along 116 from Sebastopol to Graton then Forestville 

Hook & Ladder Winery has a tasting room in Sebastopol. They make a little bit of everything from Gewurztraminer to Zinfandel. 

Balletto Winery is is a couple miles east on Occidental Road. They are known for estate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Hanna Winery has a tasting room near Balletto. They are known for Sauvignon Blanc and heavy-duty reds from Bismark Mountain Vineyard.

Merry Edwards
One the most most respected
winemakers in Sonoma County
Image from merryedwards.com

Taft Street is just west on Occidental Road. Lots of different wines from all over the county at decent prices.

Merry Edwards is all about Sauvignon Blanc and vineyard-designated Pinots.

Red Car has three price tiers of wines and specialize in Syrah.

Dutton-Goldfield is known for balanced Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Dutton Estate (yes, the Dutton family name is popular around here). Chardonnay and Pinot.

Lynmar is off 116 on the bumpy Frei Road. Once again, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. They have an in-house chef so you can get a picnic lunch or pizza. (Check their web site for details).

Iron Horse Vineyards is off 116 on Ross Station "Road" (it's not much of a road). Great sparkling wines and view.

Hartford Family Winery is NW of Forestville on Martinelli Road. Chardonnay, Pinot, and Zinfandel. Soft, higher alcohol, pricey, and they have a cult following.

Restaurants

Sebastopol - Cafe Claudio, Hopmonk Tavern, K&L Bistro, King Falafel, Starlight Wine Bar/Restaurant.

Graton - Underwood, Willow Wood

Forestville - Farmhouse

Image from momsapplepieusa.com

Other Food Stops

Mom's Apple Pie - Lunch sandwiches and maybe the best pie ever.

Kozlowski Farms - A family farm and store started just after WWII. Apple cider, apple pie, jellies, mustard, BBQ sauce, etc. They will ship. Don't miss it!


Link:  Taste Route 116
 

A healthy lifestyle with wine

People in the wine biz like to mention that moderate consumption of red wine is good for you. It's because of antioxidants and resveratrol are supposed to be good for your heart. Cocoa beans are claimed to lower blood pressure. Hops may help in fighting diabetes and cancer.

So it seems a steady diet of Cabernet, chocolate truffles, and India Pale Ale and you should live forever.

Remember you heard it here first.

A new study (sponsored by an adult beverage company) claims drinking Champagne will help improve your memory. I just can't remember where I saw that article ...

You never know what scientists will discover in the future. Following is a scene from Woody Allen's 1973 movie Sleeper where he wakes up in the distant future.

Oh oh, wine prices are heading up

As was predicted with a shortage of wine and increasing demand it was going to happen.

2012 saw an overall decrease in wine production mostly because Europe has a terrible season with the smallest crop in 50 years. Locally, the good news was California's crop size was way up with near perfect weather (after a few bad years).

A study reported in the L.A. Times said restaurants have upped their prices about 8% in the last few months. Besides the wine shortage this is probably another sign the recession is ending as businesses are beginning to feel they can finally raise prices.

The squeeze will be on the lower end of the market too, as the bulk wine folks have had it easy finding juice during the recession. Their sources are drying up. Even Two Buck Chuck is now $2.50!

Diet Wine

It's no secret that most women in the Western World think they are too fat. Estimates put the U.S. weight-loss industry at a $20 billion yearly business.

Wine producers want a piece of this. After all, Bud Lite and Coors Lite are the top selling beers in the U.S. (No, I don't know why either).

Light wines are aimed at women figuring they are the ones usually looking to cut calories with a side benefit of cutting alcohol consumption (lighter wines have lower alcohol levels). The calories come from alcohol and any residual sugar left in the wine. Most table wines are dry (no residual sugar from the fruit) so the calories are all from the alcohol.

A typical table wine is about 14% alcohol. Light wines come in about 8%. The calories in a five ounce glass of "regular" wine is under 100. So if you do the math you can see the saving isn't huge. But I've seen people add Diet Coke to their rum so I guess it makes people feel better to think they're doing something healthy.

Treasury Wine Estates, owners of Beringer, Chateau St. Jean, Meridian, and many others, launched Little White Lie a few years ago. That diet wine failed in the market place. This year they tried again with Skinny Vine and the sales are off to a good start. There's Slim Chardonnay, Thin (white) Zin, and Mini Muscato. Yes, the names are damn cute. You can guess who they are aimed at in the market. That's why I'll never be able to buy one and try it. I'm not going to be caught buying something called Skinny Vine Mini Muscato. I don't want to put my manhood into question.

Diet wines are big business in the UK. Maybe they'll catch on in the U.S. next.

No thanks. I'll take a nice manly glass of Petite Sirah

Been to Napa? The locals thank you!

Why? Because they appreciate the annual $1.4 billion pumped into the economy!  Wouldn't you?

Based on visitor surveys nearly nearly three million out-of-towners spent almost one-and-a-half billion dollars in 2012 while visiting Napa Valley. (Other estimates put the number of annual visitors as high as four million). About two million of those folks were there for one day only so we can guess they reside in the S.F. Bay Area.

The best news is the vast majority said they will return.

Two-thirds of employment in Napa County is wine-related. No surprise!

First time visiting Sonoma County?

When you travel somewhere new it's easy to not understand the geography and other things peculiar to the area. So if you're making your first trip to Sonoma County this might help with a few things people often don't understand about the region.


Travel Times Between Wineries

Sonoma County is big enough to have significant drive times within the county. Plan enough time at each stop to enjoy yourself without rushing and allow for travel time.  For example, the drive time between a couple popular wineries, Ferrari-Carano in northern Dry Creek Valley and Viansa in the Carneros region in the south is over an hour.

In planning appointments don't do something like, "1pm at Winery A, 2pm at Winery B, and 3pm at Winery C." You can't do it that quickly even without travel time. You're on vacation! Relax and spread out the visits.

Number of Wineries to Visit Each Day

You will be drinking the equivalent of one glass of wine at each winery unless you share tastes with someone. Six glasses of wine during the day will probably put you over the legal limit for driving. Four winery visits a day is ideal.

Planning Some Down Time

If this is more than a two-day trip have some other activities planned in the middle. Your palate, and maybe your liver, will thank you. Start over fresh and you'll better enjoy the winery visits.

Know What You are Looking for in Wine

Whether you are planning your winery stops ahead of time, or like most, ask the locals once you get to town, it's good to know what you want in a winery as there are hundreds to choose from!  So what's important? Looking for Pinot Noirs you won't find back home, nice views, free tastings, inexpensive Chardonnay, tours, small, family-owned wineries? Try to figure out what that is to help you or someone else help you choose.

Planning on How to Get Your Wine Purchases Home
 
Some go in saying, "I'm not going to buy any wine this trip."  Hah! You will fall in love with some wine(s) you will never see again after you leave and will just have to get some.

If you are not from California know if it's legal for wineries to ship to your state. Or maybe you know someone in a nearby "legal" state that can take your shipments for you. If so have their address available. You can ship from wineries or take your purchases to a local UPS store and have them shipped home. Shipping a couple bottles isn't very economical--it's best to ship at least a half case (six bottles) to make the shipping cost worthwhile.

When shipping to be sure someone will be home when the wine arrives. It's federal law that an adult must sign for the wine. Maybe ship to your place of business.

Lunch

There are actually quite a few folks that will be out wine tasting and all of a sudden, at maybe 2 pm, realize they're starving. They haven't planned ahead to be somewhere to eat or to have a deli sandwich with them. Most winery tasting rooms do not carry food items. Plan ahead!

I've had folks come in (to a tasting room) and actually be upset because there isn't anything to eat. Others come in asking for a cup of coffee. Huh?


Speaking of eating... 
Remember, you came to Sonoma County primarily to eat and drink. It's okay. You can lose weight when you get home!

We'll see you soon

It's Pig in a Blanket Day!

April 24th is a day of dual celebrations. The more well-known holiday is Secretary's Day, now called Admin's Day by the politically correct police.

But the holiday related to food and wine is Pig in a Blanket Day. The "pig" being a sausage or hot dog; the "blanket" is a crescent roll or, more traditionally, a pancake. This, of course, leads to the question, "What wine with a pig in a blanket?"

Image from foodnetwork.com

Whether sausage or dogs the food will be fatty and salty. Sausages may be spicy. This is crying out for an off-dry sparkling wine, either white or rosé. If that's too fancy for you then find a (cheap) Riesling. 

Maybe surprise your favorite admin assistant today. Enjoy!

The Destination Winery

In the 1970s, just as California wine growth was really taking off, a visitor to Sonoma or Napa had a couple dozen wineries to choose from. Now that number is in the hundreds. That's why visitors often ask, "What wineries should I go to?" It's a daunting task just to pick a few for any traveler interested in wine.

On the other side of this, for the winery owners and managers, the problem is equally daunting. How do you get the visitors to choose you over all the others? It can be name recognition, tasting room location, architecture, views, freebies, etc. Heck, it might even by the wine!

Then once the visitor is there, how do they keep them around long enough to spend lots of money? This is where the destination winery comes in. This is a place where you are going to want to spend a couple hours or even all day. How do they get you to do that? The best example of a destination trip would be Disneyland.

The top destination winery in Sonoma County is Francis Ford Coppola's. Besides the Coppola name to get you in there's a restaurant, a full bar, sometimes there's music, and even a swimming pool! Hang out at the pool, rent a cabana, order some drinks, buy some wine to take home. You get the idea.

Wineries with a smaller budget might do it with things like sit-down tastings, food, live music, and various special events to get you to stick around and spend money.

The latest to enter this foray will be Valley of the Moon Winery in Sonoma Valley. A sort of under the radar winery with a beautiful building and mediocre wine. They were under the Korbel umbrella for many years without much attention from the owners. It was sort of stale. They've been purchased by a local wine executive, meaning a businessman, not a vintner or a winemaker. There are big plans costing a fair amount of money. It all centers around the experience and finding ways to get visitors to hang out for awhile. So far I've only heard about the visitor experience and nothing about the wine so we'll see where they are in a year or two.

Francis Ford Coppola Winery
Come on in! Buy some wine!
Rent a cabana. Hang out at the pool all day.
(Instead of going to other wineries and spending money there)

Wine Industry Expands in Michigan

Wine consumption, wine making, and the resulting tourism in wine regions doesn't just happen in California (or WA, OR, and NY).  Michigan has a growing wine area in the NW part of the "mitten" near Traverse City. That part of the state has long been known for cherries and while we all like cherry pie that doesn't bring in many tourists--though Traverse City does host the National Cherry Festival! That brings the question, what kind of wine with cherry pie? I'm guessing Pinot Noir.

This may seem like a strange place for a growing wine industry. Fruit grows here because of the moderating effect of Lake Michigan and the 30 mile long Grand Traverse Bay. The water temperature changes more slowly that the air temp so spring is delayed, helping prevent frost issues, and fall is extended because the lake has not yet cooled off. This is all great for growing fruit in a narrow band near the water. Though it's got to be a hearty group of grape farmers as the last freeze is typically mid-May and the first of the autumn is mid-October.

Michigan wine sales rose six percent last year. The state has over 100 wineries now. Vineyard land has doubled in the last ten years. My only experience with MI wine was a very nice Pinot Gris.

According to michiganwines.com there are one million tasting room visitors each year. Napa sees over four million. Still, that's a lot of folks eating in local restaurants and staying in local lodgings. In a state with a failing economy it's good to see a bright spot with tourism.

It's a beautiful area if you've never visited.

Image from michigan.org