Page 134 – Sonoma Magazine

2 Sonoma County Wineries Named Among 10 Best in the US

August 2022

By Sonoma Magazine Staff

Outdoor tasting at Bricoleur Vineyards in Windsor. (Courtesy of Bricoleur Vineyards)

USA Today has announced its annual 10Best Readers’ Choice travel awards, highlighting “the best of the best” in categories such as food and drink, hotels and things to do. Among the winners this year are two Sonoma County wineries.

Windsor’s Bricoleur Vineyards and Healdsburg’s Orsi Family Vineyards were named among the 10 Best New Wineries of 2022 — Orsi came in on No. 8 and Bricoleur on No. 9. Nominees within this category, like other 10Best categories, were chosen by a panel of USA Today experts. Readers were then allowed to vote once per category, per day, for four weeks before the contest closed and the winners were announced.

“After opening the doors of our first dedicated tasting room and winery in Healdsburg only one year ago, we couldn’t be prouder of this accolade,” said Bernie Orsi, owner of Orsi Family Vineyards.

Orsi, whose roots trace to Italy’s Lucca region, began his winemaking career by planting Sangiovese and Montepulciano grapes 25 years ago. His winery and tasting room, located in the former Geyser Peak Winery just west of downtown Healdsburg, serves 11 estate-grown, limited production Italian wines, including rare varietals such as Biancolella, Schioppettino and Negroamaro. (The winery’s 2018 Schioppettino was awarded Double Gold and Best of Class in The Press Democrat’s 2022 North Coast Wine Challenge.)

Food and wine pairing at Bricoleur Vineyards in Windsor. (Paige Green)

Estate Sauvignon Blanc with Mussels and Roasted Estate Beets at Bricoleur Vineyards in Windsor. (Courtesy of Bricoleur Vineyards)

Mark and Elizabeth Wall Hanson and daughter Sarah Hanson Citron opened their Bricoleur visitor center in 2020, just before COVID-19 ground tastings and group gatherings to a halt. They had transformed a horse ranch with vineyards into an outdoor haven for visitors, with a lake, culinary garden, rose garden and a shaded pavilion.

As it turned out, Bricoleur’s outdoor setting was ideal for pandemic-times tastings and the winery soon earned recognition for its food and wine pairings. The new Rooted tasting experience pairs small-plate courses with estate-grown wines from the Russian River Valley vineyard and the Hanson-owned Kick Ranch in the Fountaingrove AVA. The current menu includes Kick Ranch Sauvignon Blanc with Organic Fennel Nage with Mussels and Clams; and Estate Pinot Noir with Anson Mills Organic Spelt Risotto, local mushrooms and smoked bacon lardon.

“I’m so proud of our team,” said Mark Hanson about the USA Today 10Best award. “Our chefs are so creative and, working in sync with our farmer, they’ve crafted innovative estate-to-plate dishes that complement our wines … and our hospitality team welcomes every guest like family.”

Stone Ashe Vineyards in Hendersonville, North Carolina, took the No. 1 spot on USA Today’s 10 Best New Wineries list. See the full list here.

Sofia Englund and Linda Murphy contributed to this article.

Bricoleur Vineyards is open 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Thursday – Monday by appointment only; reservations can be made by visiting bricoleurvineyards.com or by calling 707-857-5700. 7394 Starr Road in Windsor, bricoleurvineyards.com

The Orsi Family Vineyards tasting room is open 10:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Thursday – Monday. Reservations and walk-ins are welcome. 2306 Magnolia Drive, Healdsburg, 707-732-4660, orsifamilyvineyards.com

Sonoma’s Layla Restaurant Takes a Time Out

August 2022

By Heather Irwin

The patio at Layla restaurant at MacArthur Place in Sonoma. (Courtesy of MacArthur Place)

The upscale Layla restaurant at MacArthur Place in Sonoma is temporarily closed.

Brunch, lunch and dinner service are on hold, although guests of the hotel can have breakfast at the restaurant. Layla is slated to reopen “before Labor Day weekend” according to publicists, with a new menu from Executive Chef Jordan Hoffman. The Bar at MacArthur also is closed to outside visitors but remains open for guests.

Outdoor dining area at Layla restaurant at MacArthur Place in Sonoma. (Karyn Millet/MacArthur Place)

Breakfast at MacArthur Place Hotel and Spa in Sonoma. (Emma K Creative) — Breakfast at MacArthur Place Hotel and Spa in Sonoma. (Emma K. Morris)

The renovated hotel and spa have been through a tough few years, after the parent company, IMH Financial Group, entered into bankruptcy protection in 2020 and COVID-19 temporarily closed the restaurant.

In 2021, the restructured property reopened with significant changes to the Layla menu and a covered outdoor dining space.

29 E. MacArthur St., Sonoma, 707-938-2929, macarthurplace.com

Beloved Food Booth Missing from This Year’s Sonoma County Fair

August 2022

By Heather Irwin

Ibleto’s Spaghetti Palace’s polenta was tasted during the Food Scramble at the Sonoma County Fair in 2011. (Crista Jeremiason)

Camouflaged in fake grass and artificial flowers, Art Ibleto’s famous Spaghetti Palace at the Sonoma County Fair sits idle this summer, without marinara-doused polenta or its king.

Once the highlight of the county fair and the foundation of “The Pasta King” Ibleto’s food empire, the age-worn booth festooned with a red, white and green Italian motif was an annual destination for generations of fairgoers. Located near the Hall of Flowers, it was also the summer kingdom of the Italian-born cook, who held court in an air-conditioned backroom for more than 45 years with fellow royalty including philanthropist Henry Trione, Clover-Stornetta founder Gene Benedetti and winery owner Saralee Kunde.

But after the death of the 94-year-old patriarch in 2020, and his wife and helpmate Victoria in 2019, the Palace’s future is uncertain.

“Mom and dad are gone. This year, it would have been just me and my brother,” said Annette Ibleto-Spohr, who has taken over much of her father’s business — catering, partial ownership of a Rohnert Park restaurant and retail sales of pasta and sauce in the years since Ibelto’s death. Mark Ibleto, her brother, runs a private cut-and-wrap butcher shop for the fair’s market animals.

“This was always a family thing, and we all had our parts,” said Ibleto-Sphor, who had spent summers at the Palace since she was a child. She worked with high school friends at the booth, then hired her children’s high school friends, often giving them their first job.

“Some of the people had been there forever, but something just had to give. It was a hard call (not to open), and I didn’t make it easily. I just couldn’t take it on this year,” she said.

In the past, a collection of family friends and relatives from as far as Italy came to pitch in.

Art “The Pasta King” Ibleto takes it easy on the opening day of the Sonoma County Fair in 1992. (Kent Porter/The Press Democrat)

The Spaghetti Palace was one of a handful of local restaurants that serve food at the fair each year. Longtime fair destinations like Old Mexico and Willie Bird Turkey are no longer part of the lineup, nor is Guy Fieri’s pizza and garlic fry truck. National concession companies now crowd the field with artery-clogging wonders like fried Twinkies, lobster french fries and funnel cakes. Flashing 20-foot signs atop state-of-the-art mobile kitchens make the rustic Spaghetti Palace look like an artifact.

Ibleto-Spohr hopes to reopen the Spaghetti Palace next year, but without her father at the helm and in the face of ongoing difficulties in the food business, she’s taking it one day at a time.

“He was the face and the boss,” Ibleto-Sphor said of her dad.

18 Sonoma County Restaurants Only Locals Know About

August 2022

By Heather Irwin

The Special Pizza with house made fennel sausage from the Fig Cafe in Glen Ellen. (Photo by John Burgess/The Press Democrat)

Even in tourist destinations like Sonoma Wine Country, there are plenty of off-the-map eateries where locals congregate. Chances are you won’t hear about them in the guidebooks, but locals know where to find the tasty stuff. Click through the above gallery for some of our favorites.

Peek Inside a Refreshed Ranch House in Sonoma, Listed for $2.25 Million

August 2022

By Karen Kizer

The modern, single level ranch-style house, with its signature wide eaves and low-pitched roof, is ubiquitous in California. Today, homeowners often renovate these homes in ways that make them very different from the original. Modern farmhouse style is one popular option, with a more steeply sloped roof, board and batten siding and no eaves.

But isn’t there something worth preserving in the ranch-style design?

Kurt Neubert decided to give his 1970s ranch home in Sonoma an update without getting rid of its signature design elements. The result is a reminder that reinvigorating a property sometimes does the trick just as well as a complete remodel. The 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home is now listed for for $2,250,000.

Stunning style begins curbside at this Sonoma home. Neubert, who has traveled extensively in Mediterranean countries, opted for an earthy, olive green exterior color —moldings, window trims and all — with just an accent of white along the roofline. Painted this color, the home blends seamlessly with the surrounding landscape, with its salt-and-pepper rocks and olive trees.

The front door, painted a contrasting black and with a large window and sidelight window panels, is a bold and elegant focal point. Black half-cylinder sconces and modern house numbers are other attractive exterior accents.

The windows in the front door allow plenty of natural light into the home. The property’s mature olive trees create privacy and take centerstage in the front yard, where Neubert chose a minimalist, low-water landscape design with pebbles, aloe vera and a few succulents. Limestone squares in symmetrical patterns and paths add visual interest to this area.

“My home is a place where I like to relax my eyes. This is part of the aesthetic of the house,” says Neubert, who previously co-owned a wholesale furniture business in San Francisco’s Design Center. After long days in the showroom, where he examined various patterns and textures, he preferred to come home to subtle hues and designs.

The simplicity of the home’s exterior and its front yard continues inside, with an expert curation and mix of materials, including French oak floors, Italian porcelain tile in the kitchen and Jerusalem tile in the bathroom.

Quartz blend countertops in the kitchen are more affordable than solid quartz, but equally attractive. A Brazilian granite face modernizes the fireplace, and walls painted white, from floor to ceiling, create a feeling of spaciousness.

Neubert opted to keep the original kitchen cabinets, refreshing them with a new coat of paint. He then added low-cost handles, which he found on Amazon for 99 cents per piece.

“Don’t be afraid to mix inexpensive with expensive,” advises Neubert. “Pick things you really like … Expensive things will set the tone.”

A few carefully selected furniture pieces throughout the home in “high performance fabrics”— like Kravet Couture mohair, and microfiber on the dining room chairs — make the interior design really sing.

In the backyard, the pool is a standout — it was resurfaced with an aggregate material containing teal quartz and is surrounded by glass tile that sparkles from the pool lights at night. The color of the pool, says Neubert, is “a nod to the Aegean Sea.”

Click through the above gallery for a peek inside the home.

This home at 789 Cordilleras Drive in Sonoma is listed with Daniel Casabonne of Sotheby’s International Real Estate. For more information, call 707-939-2222 or 707-494-3130; email daniel@casabonnerealestate.com or visit sothebysrealty.com

Nature Takes Center Stage in Sea Ranch Home Listed for $1.2 Million

August 2022

By Karen Kizer

Sonoma County’s Sea Ranch continues to attract homebuyers with its modernist architecture that blends effortlessly with the surrounding coastal landscape.

Among current listings in the oceanfront community is a home on Deer Trail, built in 2003 in a style that emulates that of the iconic Condominium 1, one of the original buildings designed and constructed here in the 1960s by a group of UC Berkeley architects. Their mission was to transform a 5,200-acre sheep ranch on the Sonoma Coast into a modernist residential community that was “light on the land.” Walls of oversized homes that disrupt the coastline and block the ocean view, like those on the Southern California coast, were banned from The Sea Ranch masterplan.

The home on Deer Trail was designed by architect Earl Carlson, who built several houses for his family in The Sea Ranch. Carlson used a classic post and beam construction for the home, which features dramatic sloping rooflines with gray siding; signature design elements of Sea Ranch dwellings. The home has two bedrooms, one bathroom and a detached office. It is under contract for $1,200,000.

Solar panels and windows that allow for “passive solar gain during the day,” according to listing agent Hanne Liisberg, add to the home’s eco-friendly qualities. An electric vehicle hookup will power the new owner’s car and a Tesla heating system backup help prevents power outages.

White walls with blonde wood trims and fir doors add warmth to the interior of the home, while modern railings and black fixtures create a more contemporary feel. The rooms are sparsely furnished with a few pieces of furniture and simple adornments, allowing the redwoods that surround the home to decorate the interior, via large windows. Simple touches enrich the space, like an outdoor copperhead shower and cork floors that add a softness to the upstairs rooms.

Click through the above gallery for a peek inside the home.

This home on 41454 Deer Trail is listed with Hanne Liisberg and Company in The Sea Ranch. For more information, call 707-785-3322, or email info@liisbergandcompany. liisbergandcompany.com

Sonoma Magazine Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Gala at Buena Vista Winery

August 2022

By Julia Green

Debbie and Jacob Yarrow attend the Sonoma Magazine 10th Anniversary Party at Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma, CA. The event took place on July 28, 2022. (Photo by Charlie Gesell)

Close to 200 readers, advertisers and editorial staff of Sonoma Magazine gathered on July 28 at Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma to celebrate the magazine’s 10-year anniversary.

Sonoma Media Investments, helmed by CEO Steve Falk, purchased Sonoma Magazine “10 years ago, almost to the day,” Falk said at the gala. “We’ve just been rated the number one magazine of its size in the country. What better place to be 10 years later than the place where we launched the idea?”

Many readers in attendance credited Sonoma Magazine with broadening their Sonoma County horizons as it continues to inform the community of a wide variety of events, as well as highlighting hidden spots for tourists and locals alike.

After moving to Sonoma County from Iowa five years ago, the executive director of the Green Music Center, Jacob Yarrow, and his wife, Debbie, found Sonoma Magazine a “fast introduction to what was going on in the county”.

Steve Falk and Abigail Peterson talk at the Sonoma Magazine 10th Anniversary Party at Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma, CA. The event took place on July 28, 2022. (Photo by Charlie Gesell) — Steve Falk, CEO of Sonoma Media Investments, and Abigail Peterson, Sonoma Magazine editor-in-chief, talk at the Sonoma Magazine 10th Anniversary Party at Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma. (Photo by Charlie Gesell)

When Michele Garber, the founder of a plastic surgery advising company, moved to Santa Rosa during the height of the pandemic, she found the magazine to be a helpful virtual guide to the county, when the actual county was less safe to explore. “The magazine lets me know who’s who, what’s going on,” she said.

Gala guests said that it was Sonoma Magazine’s continued dedication to displaying the beauty of the community — through its writing and photography — that continues to make them fans of the magazine.

According to publisher Steve Childs, the credit goes to Sonoma Magazine editor-in-chief Abigail Peterson, who led the magazine to its 2021 Folio Award for Editorial Excellence and its 2022 City and Regional Magazine Award for General Excellence.

As the Sonoma County sun set over the magazine’s gala, Peterson commented, “I think we’ve really brought the pages of the magazine to life tonight.”

Video from the gala event, by Julia Green.

David and Diane LaMonica, owners of Salt and Stone Restaurant, enjoy a bite to eat in front of the fountain at the Sonoma Magazine 10th Anniversary Party at Buena Vista Winery in Sonoma, CA. The event took place on July 28, 2022. (Photo by Charlie Gesell)

Click through the above gallery for more photos from the gala.

Discover Sonoma’s Scenic Backroads Like a Vintage Race Car Driver

August 2022

By Carey Sweet

Sonoma County is well known for its scenic backroads, snaking over mountains, around bucolic farms, ranches and endless vineyards, then out to the Russian River and the glorious Pacific Ocean. Spectacular views abound, and one of the best ways to take it all in is with a race car.

A vintage race car, to be exact, such as the 1958 Porsche Speedster owned by Dave and Natalie Hagan of Calistoga. Or the 1955 Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider owned by Charles and Gail McCabe of Napa. Or any of the more than two dozen classic motorcars owned by enthusiasts who travel to Wine Country for each spring’s Napa Valley 750 road rally.

(It’s called the Napa Valley rally to designate the tour’s host resort, Harvest Inn in St. Helena, but it also covers Sonoma and Mendocino counties, as well as a jaunt into Davis in the Sacramento Valley region).

Over five days, the car collectors tour in dramatic, movie-style convoys all across the northern California region, exploring remote byways and the California 1 Highway. Along the way, they make numerous stops at picturesque wineries, quaint cafés, landmarks, and high-end restaurants. In all, the trip covers 750 miles, starting and ending each day at Harvest Inn.

Classic car enthusiasts travel to Wine Country for each spring’s Napa Valley 750 road rally. (Everett Lederer)

These small but mighty cars go fast, and with their lean, racy frames, feel like they’re flying as they hug the skinny, winding pavements. So here’s an even better idea for folks timid behind the wheel: Hitchhike with a professional driver, like I did.

My guide politely ignored when I dug my foot into the floor mat by the passenger seat, making futile attempts to brake. He assured me that his car wouldn’t lift off the earth as it zipped around curves, and suggested I hold on to the dashboard’s safety handle if I felt particularly buoyant.

And he reminded me that truly, we weren’t speeding – not much, anyway. Rally participants have to honor policies that keep everyone safe on the road. It’s not a race, we all agree.

A scenic tour on Sonoma’s backroads

Next year’s Napa Valley 750 rally is slated for March 26-31, with entry open to anyone with a snazzy sports car built before 1972. But if you don’t happen to have your own classic wheels, you can still enjoy a rally-worthy adventure on your own.

The Napa Valley 750 team has mapped out a detailed course for a single day adventure through Sonoma County, which you can embark on any day of the year. You can drive your own car or rent a fancier version from Turo. A recent check for bookings via the Santa Rosa Airport found a variety of sexy beasts, including a 2021 Tesla Model S, a 2022 BMW X6, and a 2021 Audi A4.

The tour begins in St. Helena, traveling through Calistoga, Santa Rosa, Forestville, Occidental, Freestone, Valley Ford, Tomales, Marshall, Pt. Reyes Station, Olema, Petaluma and Sonoma. It covers 125 miles. Find a map of the route here: tinyurl.com/4vjwbx3p. And be sure to stop along the way to soak up each of these unique destinations.

Click through the above gallery for more details and the perfect pit stops.

New Tasting Room Enlivens Sleepy Stretch of Petaluma Boulevard

August 2022

By Tina Caputo

The Brooks Note tasting room in downtown Petaluma. (Gary Ottonello)

The Brooks Note winery tasting room tasting room has been open for almost a year, but many locals and visitors have yet to discover this hidden Petaluma gem.

Set along a stretch of Petaluma Boulevard better known for auto body shops than fine wine, this bright and modern space is less than a 10-minute walk from downtown.

Garry Brooks and his wife, Joanne Note Brooks, opened the tasting room last August. Garry left his job in IT business management in 2004 to pursue winemaking and went on to work at Sonoma County’s Ravenswood Winery, Kosta Browne and Dutton-Goldfield before launching his own pinot noir label in 2012.

In 2018, with several vintages under his belt, Garry set out to find a home for Brooks Note. The search brought him to a 100-year-old building in Petaluma that originally housed a Studebaker dealership. For Brooks, its proximity to the downtown area and to some of his favorite Petaluma Gap vineyards sealed the deal.

“I’ve been making wine from this area for as long as I’ve been in the business,” he said. “And there’s such an amazing vibe in Petaluma, between the music and the art and the food.”

Transforming the space into a modern tasting room was no simple effort. In the process, the couple peeled back layers of paint to expose the ceiling’s original wood beams and reused the building’s original materials when they could.

The result is an open and inviting tasting room with stylish lounge and table and bar seating. The space is also home to the Brooks Note winemaking facility, which includes a solar-cooled barrel room and a production area that doubles as an indoor crush pad.

Tasting reservations at Brooks Note are appreciated, but not required. Visitors can choose between three flights of five wines each, including current releases, single-vineyard wines and pinot noir-only selections. Each flight, from $30 to $75, includes a plate of local cheeses and charcuterie. Wines include pinot noir, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon, syrah and a Rhône-style red blend.

“Stylistically, my wines are a little bit more restrained,” Garry said. “I make my pinots in a very similar way to when I was at Kosta Browne, but we pick the grapes when they are a little less ripe. I really want there to be a balance of fruit and herbal flavors.”

The goal, he said, is to treat the grapes with respect so a sense of place emerges in the wines.

Garry also likes to keep things approachable in the tasting room. In addition to offering tasting flights and wines by the glass, Brooks Note hosts live music from 6 to 8 p.m. every other Friday.

“People can think of wine as elitist,” he said. “But we try to create an environment where people feel welcome to come in.”

Open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day. 426 Petaluma Blvd. N., Petaluma, 707-981-8470, brooksnotewinery.com

The Lounge at Little Saint Opens in Healdsburg

August 2022

By Heather Irwin

The Lounge upstairs at Little Saint in Healdsburg features live music. (Emma K Creative)

The Lounge at Little Saint, the upstairs music and performance venue at Little Saint, has officially opened, with free live music every Thursday night and ticketed events throughout the week.

The expansive second floor at the former SHED space includes a 12-foot-by-16-foot stage, outdoor patio and bar, specialty cocktails and seasonal bites from Chef Bryan Oliver.

Cocktail from Little Saint in Healdsburg. (Chad Surmick/The Press Democrat)

Upcoming musical acts include Langhorne Slim on Sept. 6 and Lucy Dacus on Nov. 15, along with wine tastings, private dinners and book signings with thought leaders.

Tickets and details about The Lounge at Little Saint are at littlesainthealdsburg.com. 25 North St., Healdsburg, 707-433-8207.