Category: Towns

Discover Sonoma County destinations

Jaclyn K. Nesbitt Designs, Santa Rosa. 415-948-1626.

Sonoma Florists Create Drought-Friendly Arrangements

Written for the Sonoma Weddings Issue by Abigail Peterson Photographs by Emily Hagopian Styling by Abigail Peterson and Tamara Apple Shot on location at Annadel Estate Winery California’s weather challenges have proved to be a creative gift for our region’s top wedding florists. While the classic look of peonies and other water-demanding blooms never goes […]

Eye Candy: Sonoma Doctor Seeing Vision of Chocolate

Written by Heather Irwin for BiteClubEats. Eye Candy Chocolatiers: Chocolate is Dr. Sonja Schluter’s happy place.  The Sonoma ophthalmologist spends her days working with patients facing serious vision problems, primarily glaucoma. So her off-time passion for making beautiful chocolate truffles has become an outlet of beauty, precision and, of course, deliciousness. But after 20 years practice […]
Photography by Rebecca Chotkowski.

Petaluma Painter Roberta Ahrens: The Wall is Her Canvas

Whether Roberta Ahrens creates a panoramic mural or an 8-by-8-foot painted canvas, her work is never diminutive. Nature speaks to her in a loud voice, and she translates that inspiration into paintings that are lifelike yet unique. She paints cherubs on ceilings, and lilies, poppies and peonies on cracked linen, bringing vibrancy and boldness to […]
Pliny the Younger line - fans waiting in line for the famous beer release

Pliny the Younger – Live updates from the big beer release in Santa Rosa

Pliny the Younger, Russian River Brewing Co.’s super-hoppy triple India pale ale is coming to town. Its 12th-annual release is expected to bring thousands of self-proclaimed beer geeks — and their money — to downtown Santa Rosa beginning Friday February 2nd. Curious about the whole thing? Don’t want to stand in line? Follow the live […]

Zydeco Music Sensation in Sonoma

Close your eyes and you’d think you were in a bar on a Louisiana bayou. The dance hall is packed. The band plays zydeco, which melds French and Caribbean music styles, with accordions and washboards front and center. Dancers fill the floor, quickstepping and stomping. Beer flows, and the high-energy beat surges through everyone. But […]
Keelyn Walker, right, peeks from under a lion costume while Brook Szczekocki greets guests arriving for a Chinese New Year celebration at the Veteran's Memorial Building in Santa Rosa on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015. The Redwood Empire Chinese Association hosted the event honoring the year of the Ram. (Jeremy Portje / For The Press Democrat)

Events to Celebrate Year of the Monkey in the North Bay

The Chinese will welcome the Lunar New Year starting Feb. 8, and the unpredictable Year of the Monkey promises to be a lot more fun than the last 12 months of the steady, surefooted Goat. Occupying the 9th position on the Chinese Zodiac, the Monkey is curious, mischievous, clever and playful. Those born in the […]
Seaside Chowder with fish, mussels, squid, shrimp, potatoes, bacon, cream, at Seasdie Metal Oyster bar in Guerneville, California on Wednesday, January 13, 2016 (Alvin Jornada / The Press Democrat)

Where to Find the Best Clam Chowders on the North Coast

In New England, a bowl of award-winning chowder can be found around every corner. But honestly, there are not many worthy of the honor. Most arrive at the table in the midst of a perfect storm: either so thick that your spoon stands at attention, or so overcooked the clams taste like rubber bands, if […]
Headstones uncovered over time by volunteers await determination of their proper place at the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery. (Photo by John Beck)

Piecing Together the History of Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery

A few hours past dawn in the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery, John Dennison stood beneath a cluster of oak trees with the rest of the Tombstone Trio — fellow retirees Scott Minnis and Henry Katz — as they surveyed the site of their latest graveyard excavation. “You can hardly describe what it feels like when […]