Things To Know About Sonoma County

When you visit somewhere new it's always nice to be prepared. Because, you know, Sonoma County ain't like Dallas or Chicago or... So here are a few items you may not know about or be flat out wrong about when it comes to Sonoma County's version of wine country.

Beer and tacos? Yes!

Beer Country
It's not just wine any more. There are 25-30 breweries in the county. Don't know the exact count as a couple new ones have just opened. Russian River, Lagunitas, and Bear Republic are the big ones, but there's lots more to sample.

Cannabis Country
Some folks coming from less fortunate states are seeking out local dispensaries. If you think it's all hippies, well it's mostly old folks looking to relieve aches and pains. And maybe make that old Led Zeppelin record sound great again.

Cheap Eats
Every meal doesn't have to be fancy and carry a high price tag. There's great Mexican food and a lot of excellent burger joints. In fact, the locals vote for the best burger every year and it can be quite controversial. Here's a cheeseburger article that just came out today.

Cheese
There is a thriving artisanal cheese industry in western Sonoma and Marin counties. There's ever a cheese trail map.

Coffee
Do yourself a favor and save Starbucks for when you get back home. Instead try Acre, A'roma Roaster, Flying Goat (my personal favorite), or Taylor.

"Mowing" a vineyard in winter

Cows and Sheep
Remember I mentioned cheese? Depending where you are in the county you will find lots of these critters, sometimes in the roadway.

Dining
If you read the tourist articles you'd think all the great food is in Healdsburg and maybe some in Sonoma. The bigger towns of Petaluma and Santa Rosa have lots of great dining and even the tiny places like Graton, Geyserville and Guerneville have top-notch eats.

Directions
Whether it comes from a local person or from your map app know that the shortest route isn't always the best. There are some narrow, windy, beat up roads in the county where a safe speed is 20-30 mph.
Also, when returning to San Francisco many want to take a slight detour out to the Pacific Coast Highway and go that way without looking at the driving times. Example: Healdsburg to SFO is about 1-1/2 hrs via US101 depending on traffic. Going over to the coast and taking Highway 1 all the way is about 3-1/2 hrs.

Farmers Markets
Pretty much every town, big or small, has at least one. Summer and autumn are the best times, of course, but many are year 'round.

Festivals and Parades
There are lots of them, some a little quirky (see Lagunitas Beer Circus), many involve wine (surprise!), and most are in the summer and autumn months.

Riverfront Regional Park, near Healdsburg

Hiking
Work off that wine and food in one of the state or regional parks. There's lots of good hiking from fairly level to strenuous. If you're going for a hard hike pick one with a good view at the end, such as Hood Mtn. Bring water!

Lodging
It's not all expensive hotels. Rooms are less expensive it you don't mind driving a bit. Cheaper yet are the camping and RV parks in the area.

Petaluma
Right off US101, but a few miles from the wineries this small town offers a lot in the way of dining, shopping, night life, and breweries. Okay, good night life by Sonoma County standards -- it's not exactly San Francisco.

Pronunciations
Bodega (boh-day-gah), Cotati (coh-tah-tee), Graton (gray-tin), Guerneville (gurn-vill), Healdsburg (heeldz-burg) Sebastopol (si-bas-tuh-pole though some locals call it si-bas-tuh-pool).

STS
That's the abbreviation for the Sonoma County Airport (sometimes the locals call it the Santa Rosa Airport). So yeah, you don't have to fly into San Francisco or Oakland. You can land minutes from the nearest winery or brewery.

Traffic
Yes, we have it, especially what we call the 101 corridor. US 101 is about it for getting north-south so commuters, travelers and shoppers are all here. Lots of other roads will be busy, too.

West Sonoma County road

West County
What the locals call anything west of Santa Rosa. Don't miss it. There are wineries though not as many. There are water sports, redwoods, and the Pacific coast.

Wine Regions
It's not just about convenient tasting in Healdsburg or Sonoma. It's not just Sonoma Valley. Don't miss Alexander, Dry Creek and Russian River Valleys. Alexander Valley tends to be less crowded on busy days.

Wine Tasting
It's a marathon, not a sprint. There are over 400 of them. Don't try to get to them all. Have a plan and choose three or four a day with lunch in between.