The award-winning Benzinger Family Winery of the renowned Wine Cave (shown here) for private dinners with carefully paired foods just forked over $100,000 US for its winning bid for just three bottles of Sangiacomo Vineyards wine. The latter has been a member of Sonoma Valley’s wine-growing community for 75 years, while the former are relative…
Do you feel that each summer is getting hotter than the one before? Well, global climate experts at the National Academy of Sciences are predicting that California’s $2.9 billion wine industry could be in jeopardy by the end of the 21st century because of continued warming affecting grape crops in Napa, Sonoma and Santa Barbara…
In a few weeks, we’ll all be treated to the best of two worlds: chocolate and wine. Wine Country Chocolates & Truffles will be located in the Jack London Village Shopping Center in the town of Glen Ellen, surrounded by literally hundreds of local Sonoma County wineries. At its chocolate tasting bar, visitors can “enjoy…
My friend Virginia designed the beautiful Web site for a newly renovated wine house in the heart of Sonoma Valley. The Terra Meade House sits on 6 rolling acres with two small vineyards and orchards, a gourmet kitchen, a formal English rose garden, children’s play structure, seasonal creek, an 8-person hot tub, gas grill, fire-pit…
I kick myself for having never visited the Gloria Ferrer Champagne Caves, which is only 30 minutes’ drive northwest of my home. But maybe I’ll get up there July 22 and 23 for the Catalan Festival of Food, Wine and Music. It costs $40/per person but that includes fastastic Spanish cuisine from a number of…
Here’s a worthy cause worth a story… Blues singer Curtis Salgado was the inspiration/catalyst for “Jake,” John Belushi’s character in “The Blues Brothers”. Carlos is very ill and is in need of a liver transplant. An Online Benefit Auction includes items of interest to Sonoma wine lovers: 2 Papapietro-Perry Pinot Noir items and 2 nights…
Vintage wine, fine cuisine and classic car afficionados can all enjoy a few days at the races as the 20th Anniversary Jaguar Wine Country Classic zooms into Sonoma on June 3rd and 4th. Your ticket includes a souvenir program, entry into the COPIA Wine Coutnry Pavillion and the chance to see 300 of the finest…
Christopher Sawyer is the sommelier-in- residence at the Carneros Bistro & Wine Bar at the Lodge at Sonoma boutique hotel in this quaint town. But when he’s not working there, he’s the personal sommelier for such Bay Area luminaries as the family of Gordon Getty (oil, that is, black gold, Texas tea) in San Francisco…
Can California wine country say “Cheese”? You bet, any way you want it — creamy, nippy, crumbly or raw. At a recent stay at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa, my taste buds were teased with some sublime state-grown dairy delicacies. The guide to my gustatory adventure was Chef Bruno Tison, the property’s executive…
We wish you a very happy Thanksgiving enjoyed with good food, friends, family and your favorite wine! If you’re in northern California and looking for a great way to work off some extra calories after a big turkey dinner then head to the 21st Annual Holiday Open House of the Heart of Sonoma Valley Association…
Travelers to Cape Cod can find a little taste of wine country atmosphere amidst the sand dunes by visiting Truro Vineyards of Cape Cod. The winery is located in North Truro, almost all the way to Provincetown at the end of the Cape. Winemakers Kathy Gregrow and Judy Wimer founded the winery in 1992 after…
I spent my childhood summers in the town of Sonoma, long before it became a world-class wine growing area. Even then, the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa was a classy oasis in this bucolic setting and a place to escape the heat. Today, it’s a 5-star resort owned by The Fairmont Hotel chain blessed…