Elizabeth Olsen attends the ‘Wind River’ photocall during the 70th annual Cannes Film Festival at Palais des Festivals on May 20, 2017 in Cannes, France. (Denis Makarenko / Shutterstock.com)
Where does Elizabeth Olsen like to spend her free time? The answer might be closer to home than you’d expect.
“The last place I travelled to was Sonoma, a trip I’ve taken quite often during the pandemic,” Olsen told Condé Nast Traveller. “My fiancé’s [musician Robbie Arnett] family has a place in St Helena, so we spend a lot of time up there.”
Like her sisters, Olsen started her career as a child actor and has since starred in indie films such as “Martha, Marcy, May, Marlene,” for which she received critical acclaim. Olsen’s fanbase has continued to expand after she landed the lead role as Avenger Wanda Maximoff in the new Disney+ miniseries “WandaVision,” in which she stars alongside Paul Bettany (as Vision). She said her visits to Sonoma County have provided “breathing space” from L.A. and her work; the perfect relaxing destination.
Olsen also mentioned that her favorite spot to sip wine is Ryme Cellars in Forestville.
“Their tasting is this kind of backyard set-up, but with beautiful wines and great people. A lot of Napa Valley feels old and too fancy and too serious for something that should be really enjoyed, but they’re not like that,” Olsen said.
Ryme Cellars, a small lot wine producer, is run by husband and wife duo Ryan and Meghan Glaab. The Glaabs us a number of rare varieties for their wines, such as vermentino, ribolla gialla and aglianico, as well as more traditional grapes such as cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc. Ryme Cellars was recently featured in Sonoma Magazine’s “8 Indie Wineries to Check Out in Sonoma.”
Olsen isn’t the only celebrity who loves visiting Wine Country in their free time. Reese Witherspoon, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Tyra Banks, Drew Barrymore, Salma Hayek, John Legend and Chrissy Teigen among others have visited wineries, restaurants and even attended cooking classes in Sonoma County over the years. Click here to learn more about the most star-studded spots in the county.
The Cornerstone Sonoma marketplace features a series of garden installations by Sunset magazine. (Thomas J. Story)
Cornerstone Sonoma marketplace offers a sumptuous sampling of Wine Country experiences: outdoor art installations, gardens, shops, restaurants and tasting rooms — there’s even an art gallery, which currently houses a collection of Salvador Dalí bronze sculptures and prints.
Everyone can find a little bit of inspiration here. For gardeners and chefs, the edible elements of the Cornerstone gardens will be of particular interest. Here, leafy greens, herbs, fruit and other crops blend into the garden landscape in a way that makes them look deliciously decorative. Raised beds spill over with pretty plants: fava beans, different kinds of kale and collard greens in spring; basil, tomatoes and towering corn stalks in summer.
The Cornerstone gardens offer plenty of proof that edible plants can also be ornamental, an idea that has started to influence landscaping projects large and small.
Stefani Bittner of Homestead Design Collective, a landscape design firm based in the East Bay, designed and installed Sunset magazine’s test gardens at Cornerstone in 2016. The test gardens are divided into distinct garden rooms: the Cocktail Garden, the Farm Garden, the Gathering Space, the Backyard Orchard and the Flower Room.
“For me, the garden is an extension of your living space — it makes sense that gardens give back to you with harvest,” said Bittner, adding that herbs, vegetables and flowers also give back to visiting pollinators, like bees and hummingbirds, and to lucky neighbors.
Border planting in Sunset Test Garden’s Gathering Space at Cornerstone Sonoma. (Samantha Brown)
In Cornerstone’s Backyard Orchard, an s-shaped path is lined with some 20 fruit trees that produce crops at different times of the year, from apricots in early summer to apples in fall. Raised produce beds and fruit trellises frame a greenhouse overlooking a field of wildflowers in the Farm area. And, in the Cocktail Garden, a bay laurel hedge serves as a green wall framing the seating area, while its leaves serve as ingredients muddled into drinks.
Recently, Bittner has been getting lots of requests for edible or “kitchen gardens.” Sometimes she has to steer clients away from thinking that they can grow most of their food themselves. “Farming is a full-time job,” she reminds them.
While Cornerstone’s edible gardens do provide a small yield of food, their main purpose is to be inspirational and instructional. But there is now an effort underway to plant more crops in the outer areas of the Cornerstone property, in place of vineyards. The aim with this expansion is to diversify the crops while also providing fresh produce to onsite Folktable, a new restaurant by Top Chef finalist Casey Thompson.
Cornerstone landscape manager Benjamin Godfrey and the property’s lead organic farmer Christopher “Landy” Landercasper are heading up the new effort. The duo will begin offering informative tours of the gardens every Friday at 1 p.m. starting this week.
Edible gardens for beginners
There are many benefits to mixing decorative and edible elements in your garden design.
“By creating a beautiful space that you want to spend time in, you’ll interact with your plants more,” said Bittner, who likes to blend indoor and outdoor living by creating gardens where clients can “sit next to the harvest” they’ll soon bring into their kitchens.
Bittner offers advice to edible garden novices in The Beautiful Edible Garden (2013 Ten Speed Press), a how-to book that she co-authored with Bay Area landscape artist Leslie Bennett.
Bennett’s Oakland-based firm, Pine House Edible Gardens, designs, installs and maintains edible gardens throughout the greater San Francisco Bay Area. Her work has been featured in Sunset Magazine, Better Homes & Gardens and Martha Stewart Living, among other publications.
Meyer Lemon adds sunny color to gardens. (Kiera Jaffin/Pine House Edible Gardens)
To Bennett, a garden can be “a meaningful and life-impacting space,” which is why she designs each garden with intention and works hard to bring lush green spaces to more people. Since 2018, she has designed and installed a series of low or no-cost gardens for Black women in the East Bay through her project Black Sanctuary Gardens.
“I think the most exciting thing about (small edible gardens) is how much food you can grow,” said Bennett, who enjoys the little bit of extra thought that goes into planning a garden in a small space.
Bennett likes to emphasize the beauty of the plants by contrasting different shapes, textures and colors in her edible garden designs. Bright mustard greens are paired with a dark Swiss chard. Trellised crops, like tomatoes, add height to the design while culinary herbs make for evergreen borders — she likes to let English thyme or oregano cascade over container edges. (She recommends using large containers, and less of them, to help keep the garden space from looking cluttered.)
To add a splash of color during dormant periods, Bennett suggests incorporating prolific producers like citrus trees in large containers, especially the sunny-colored Meyer Lemon. As a filler in those pots, she makes an inspired choice: strawberries!
Sometimes, Bennett will add a few non-edible flowers to frame the food. She currently grows Icelandic poppies in her own garden. Her reason for choosing them is a good one: They make her really happy.
For more information about Black Sanctuary Gardens and to make a donation, click here. Follow on Instagram at @blksanctuarygardens.
Amidst the retail upheaval caused by the pandemic there’s also positive news: new stores are opening in Sonoma County and The Barlow is about to welcome a home decor pop-up shop.
Beginning March 12, San Francisco home goods boutique BaBoo will bring its happy strain of high-style furnishings to the Sebastopol marketplace. After moving from a Pacific Heights location to the San Francisco Design Center, the store has now embarked on a California tour where it will set up several temporary shops.
BaBoo’s first stop on its California tour was Mill Valley. The pop-up shop will remain at The Barlow until May or longer, depending on the response. After that, they have their sights set on quaint Truckee in the Sierras. Then it’s off to Southern California.
The pop-up shop at The Barlow will feature whimsical indoor and outdoor furniture and accessories for the home along with a new collection of fine jewelry and accessories made by artisans from around the world
BaBoo owner Galit Chay is a big fan of The Barlow. She likes the openness of the large white spaces and “the little bits of color” added by the restaurants. She appreciates that the atmosphere is “not too chichi.”
“Sometimes Wine Country can be threatening and people feel like they don’t belong,” she says. “Everybody feels comfortable here (at The Barlow).”
Chay, who is trained in criminal justice and organizational psychology, used to work with at-risk youth in her native Israel. In her spare time, she would make pottery and sculptures to nurture her soul. She knew she wanted to someday work in design.
Maybe seeing life’s challenges up close has influenced the way Chay looks at home decor, as something that should be both beautiful and fun; something that will lift the spirits and reflect who you really are.
“Home is about uncovering yourself,” she says. “The place you can be and do whatever you want.”
BaBoo offers a collection of design pieces that are modern but also playful. This particular blend is Chay’s response to the stark coldness of many ultra modern “museum-style” homes that lack the comfort and warmth she likes to see in a home.
In order to be included in BaBoo’s collection, a design piece needs to spark joy. “I would never bring (home) a piece of art that has some deep, dark meaning. It can be in the museum,” says Chay.
BaBoo’s design pieces have garnered a following. The shop’s felted river rock poufs, for example, provide relaxed seating on one of Sales Force’s “mindfulness floors.” The poufs, which are shaped like river rocks and made by South African fiber designer Ron’el Jordaan, come in different sizes, from one so small it can be held in your hand to large-sized seats. Other popular items include all-rubber poufs with “fur,” stools shaped like animals; even indoor swings.
Chay continues to enjoy meeting and interacting with people in her new role as a design store proprietor. “I love to work with people and talk with people, she says, “They always interest me.” This passion for interpersonal communication and customer service also informs her business philosophy: “I believe in kindness and non-greed,” she says. She will welcome visitors into her pop-up store with world music and chocolates.
BaBoo Pop-up Shop, Suite 130 at The Barlow, 6770 McKinley St., 707-824-5600, baboosf.com, thebarlow.net
The Girl & the Fig will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this summer. (Christopher Chung/ The Press Democrat)
In the midst of the horrifying 2017 Tubbs wildfire, restaurateur Sondra Bernstein responded swiftly, bringing food to a community in chaos. She helped San Francisco chefs organize and transport thousands of meals to Sonoma County. She made hundreds of calls to fellow chefs and fired up her own ovens. She worked tirelessly to feed those in need.
The Tubbs fire was just one chapter in Bernstein’s 23-year-career as a restaurateur, which came to a coda (though not yet a conclusion) this week.
In a message to customers on March 1, she announced she would be stepping back from the daily operations of her signature restaurants — girl & the fig, fig cafe, fig rig food truck, the NoodleSpring pop-up (currently closed), her catering company, cookbook projects and other food endeavors. Longtime business partner John Toulze will take over as managing partner.
It’s been a long ride for Bernstein, who launched her fledgling business in Glen Ellen with her brothers and 17 employees, including Toulze, in 1997. At the time, few understood the bounty available through sourcing from local farms, and few restaurants in Wine Country had become gourmet hot spots. She was a pioneer in making Sonoma a must-visit food destination for travelers around the world.
Though she didn’t mention it in her March 1 announcement, Bernstein’s departure comes a few weeks after the girl & the fig restaurant drew national attention and temporarily closed amid furor over a social media post by a former server. The server, Kimi Stout, said on Instagram she had left her job at the restaurant after being told she could no longer wear a Black Lives Matter face covering. The posting sparked a heated debate that drew both anger at and support for Bernstein, Toulze and their staff.
Bernstein, now in her early 60s, said a change in leadership had long been in the works, but COVID-19 put a hold on plans. The restaurant opened a dining area on the Sonoma Plaza last fall, and since March 2020, girl & the fig has served more than 23,000 chef-made meals to local families and seniors facing food insecurity due to the pandemic.
Over the years, Bernstein has served as mentor to 240 staff, reveled in her incomparable Rhone wine selection, launched a podcast and founded the Sonoma FIG Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to helping aspiring entrepreneurs in farming, food and wine. She will continue to manage the foundation.
The controversy last month may not be the bookend Sondra anticipated at girl & the fig, but it will forever be part of her legacy. Let’s just remember the 23 years of great food, service and local activism that filled the rest of her long, long Sonoma story.
More dining news from Sonoma
Trio of mezze at Layla at MacArthur Place in Sonoma. (Courtesy photo)
Layla Reopens at MacArthur Place: After months of closure during the pandemic, Layla at MacArthur Place will reopen for outdoor dining with a new spring menu that includes herb-crusted lamb chops, cumin roasted carrots, Dungeness crab salad and pappardelle with local wild mushrooms. 29 E. MacArthur St., Sonoma, 707-938-2929, macarthurplace.com
The kitchen area at the home of Alan Good in Petaluma, Calif. on Monday, October 5, 2020.
(Photo: Erik Castro/for The Press Democrat)
When Karen Brown went searching for a property in Petaluma where she and a longtime friend might co-invest and coexist, there was nothing on the market that fit the bill. It was 2013, the nation was coming out of a deep recession, and the pickings were slim. So Brown walked the streets of the west side and ended up beating the bushes — literally — to find her dream home.
The lot she came across one day was so overgrown with acacia trees that she almost missed the house. But there, set on a third of an acre, behind a “no trespassing” sign, was a run-down, abandoned cottage, missing its foundation and perched up on temporary piers, with plywood nailed over the doors. Apart from a possum living in the front room, the cottage hadn’t been occupied in at least 10 years.
But the property was large enough for a second small home, and there was something about the forlorn little cottage that tugged at her heart. Brown came to call it “the little house that cried.”
“It was either going to get torn down, or somebody was going to come along at the last minute and love it,” she says. “And that’s what happened.”
Seeing potential
As the creative director of an educational nonprofit, Brown could see the possibilities. Her friend Alan Good shared her vision. “There’s an old saying about ‘location, location, location.’ That was really clear,” says Good, a horticulturist who for years managed the living roof of the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park. “West Petaluma is a wonderful place to live, and the Oak Hill-Brewster neighborhood is one of the nicer parts of Petaluma.”
The property wasn’t for sale. Brown managed to track down the owners, but it took seven months to finalize the deal. Then, collaborating with Petaluma architect Chris Lynch of MAD Architecture, the friends designed and built a compact accessory dwelling for Good. After that, they set to work restoring the original cottage for Brown with architect Brent Russell, starting with a new foundation.
Alan Good, left, and Karen Brown stand in the doorway of Brown’s home in Petaluma. (Erik Castro/Sonoma Magazine)The kitchen area at the home of Alan Good in Petaluma. (Erik Castro/Sonoma Magazine)
Seven years later, the project is a case study in contemporary downsized living. Rather than building a large home, which could have engulfed the lot, there are two simple white houses designed to fit neatly into the old neighborhood.
Brown’s home in the historic building is about 800 square feet, while Good’s new accessory dwelling is 637 square feet. For their efforts, Brown and Good were granted the highest architectural preservation award by a committee of the Petaluma Museum Association, which praised the project for its “restraint” in staying within the original building’s footprint and maintaining its simple, classic exterior details.
Living small
Brown and Good are close friends but not a couple. The plan allows them to live in community while maintaining their own spaces. Both are fans of living in smaller homes. “I think these small structures are so much in the spirit of our heritage in the area,” Brown explains. “This is all we need. We are two friends who bought the property together so we could hand pick our neighbors. And that neighborly spirit also is a part of the heritage of the area.”
There were few architectural details left in the cottage, but Brown and Good saved what they could, including the front door. In reframing the walls, they left the 2-by-2-inch redwood studs in place and added 2-by-4 pieces next to them to meet new codes.
Brown says she’s not certain when the original main house was built. Zillow says 1900. Old wallpaper that they carefully removed from the walls was backed by old newsprint that appears to be from the late 1890s. “There was one original wall left in the house. The other ones we had to replace because of energy requirements,” Brown explains. “But we bought absolutely as close to the original windows as we could get.”
Brown’s house has only one bedroom. Another room, which resembles a walk-in closet but could once have been a child’s sleeping nook, has been set up as her home office. It’s compact, but the 11-foot ceilings and an 8-foot-wide doorway give the interior a feeling of spaciousness. The kitchen was placed where there had once been an outbuilding, so it looks as if it’s always been there. And Brown added a covered porch when she learned from a neighbor that the original home once had one in front.
For his slightly smaller
home, Good also opted for subtle simplicity. He was inspired by some of the historic old ranch cottages at Olompali State Historic Park, just to the south, opting for understated rustic V-siding to fit with the style of the house.
In siting the house, Good did everything possible to preserve the valley and live oaks on the property. “One of the reasons why my house measured 8 feet from the foundation to the trunk of the nearest tree was to make sure it didn’t interrupt the oaks’ existing root zones,” he said. “It’s great. We didn’t have to remove a single tree, and my house is shaded by mature oaks on the hot and sunny west side.”
Inside, the home feels spacious, with a 17-foottall peaked roof, 10 double-hung windows, and a glass-paneled door. “I grew up in an Eichler home in Walnut Creek,” Good says. “I’m comfortable with an open plan where everything opens into one room. And I like lots of light.” In the ceiling, cedar beams support unpainted construction-grade plywood,
with industrial galvanized tie rods instead of wood beams. Outside, a new garage, which they were required to add, is now used by Good as an art studio.
The little compound is working well for the friends. They have a 25-by-65-foot vegetable garden, fruit trees, and laying hens. “We couldn’t have imagined something like Covid,” Brown says, but given the challenge of living through the pandemic, the shared property is perfect. “We’re separate enough that we each have our own homes, but we trust each other, and we’re close enough that we can help each other out. We can socialize and we have a friend.”
RESOURCES
Architect, Good’s home: Chris Lynch MAD Architecture, madarc.com
Magnolia Wilsonii at Quarryhill Botanical Garden in Glen Ellen. (Cece Hugo)
With all there is to love about Sonoma spring — the greening of vineyards and all those wildflowers —you might miss the gravel path less traveled at Quarryhill Botanical Garden. The former quarry turned world-renowned Asian woodland garden is home to several thousands of exotic plants, some of them critically endangered.
Spring highlights include showy camellias — “hummingbird magnets,” as Quarryhill’s new executive director, Scot Medbury calls them. The camellias’ bright colors inspire a fierce rivalry among male hummingbirds, who dive and swoop to get to the flowers.
And when the garden’s many deciduous magnolias bloom on bare branches in spring, “it’s an arresting sight that kind of floors you,” says Medbury. The rare, bone white Yulan magnolia, which flowers all year long, “would look at home in the hands of Aphrodite,” he explains lyrically.
Magnolia Stellata at Quarryhill Botanical Garden. (Mark Hullinger)
This collection exists as a modern- day ark of conservation, thanks to 15 seed-gathering expeditions to East Asia since the 1990’s, funded by the garden’s late founder, Jane Davenport Jansen. Visitors wind their way through 25 acres of wild shrubs and trees, with ponds, hilltop views, and Tibetan prayer flags to happen upon.
After the rains, ponds swell and water rushes from a couple of mini falls. This year’s drier weather has so far reduced their flow; the babbling brooks are giving off more of a murmur. But the space still enchants with its picturesque foot bridges, rock walls, and resident snowy egret and ducks.
Growing up, sixth-generation vintner and all-around adventurer Katie Bundschu loved working alongside her dad at her family’s Sonoma winery, Gundlach Bundschu. Her dad gave Katie her own short row of vines to care for; they dubbed them “Katie’s Vines.”
These days, Bundschu has a bigger project of her own, the newly launched Abbot’s Passage Winery and Mercantile in Glen Ellen, which features Bundschu’s blended wines alongside a chic collection of home goods and accessories from local, women-owned businesses. Bundschu is aiming for a relaxed, casual wine experience with tasting spots nestled right among the vineyards, as well as outdoor group games like shuffleboard. It all has a bit of a tailgating spirit, which seems right from a vintner who also has an MBA in sports marketing. And the wines are top-notch. “I get to be a little more playful and adventurous by co-fermenting different varietals together,” she says, “whether it’s Chenin Blanc and Verdejo, or Syrah and Viognier, or the Grenache-Syrah-Mourvedre.”
Just east toward Sonoma are “to die for” croissants and cappuccinos from local favorite BAKER & COOK. 18812 Highway 12, Sonoma, 707-938-7329, bakerandcooksonoma.com
Bundschu’s cocktail of choice is a Hawaiian saltedplum margarita called the Li Hing Margarita from the popular STARLING BAR SONOMA. Madcap late-night rounds of Uno and bingo are a bonus. 19380 Highway 12, Sonoma, 707-938-7442, starlingsonoma.com
Her favorite coastal getaway is DILLON BEACH, where she brings her dog Bacchus for a romp. 1 Beach Ave., Dillon Beach, dillonbeachresort.com
Bundschu is inspired by the vast inventory at SIGN OF THE BEAR KITCHENWARE on Sonoma Plaza. “You feel like you could be the best chef ever when you walk in there — ‘I can do all of these things,’” she jokes. 435 First St. W, Sonoma, 707-996-3722, signofthebear.com
For an ideal visit to ABBOT’S PASSAGE, Bundschu says, “First,
I’d have a glass of wine and I’d order a grazing board, with charcuterie, cheese, dips, dried fruit, nuts, and fresh bread. And then I’d shop and buy a hat, and maybe pick up some earrings or a necklace.” 777 Madrone Road, Glen Ellen, 707-939-3017, abbotspassage.com
Napa Valley is home to more than 400 wineries, and every one of them has a way of turning heads. From sweeping vineyard views and lush gardens to stunning tasting spaces and towering castles, picking the most beautiful wineries in Napa Valley is next to impossible. For a taste of some of the standouts, click through the gallery above. Did we miss one of your favorites? Let us know in the comments below.
Any true wine-lover will tell you that it’s what’s inside the bottle that counts. But let’s be honest — a pretty picture of a glass of Sonoma wine on your Instagram can create quite a buzz too. Whether you live in Sonoma County, or you’re planning a visit, we’ve got you covered with Instagram-worthy wineries and tasting rooms. Click through the gallery above for photos and info.
What’s your favorite Sonoma County winery location to photograph? We want to hear it! Find us at @SonomaMag on Instagram, or tag us #SonomaMagazine.
There was a time when Wine Country and kids didn’t pair well. Parents in search of a weekend getaway had to line up grandparents to hold down the fort while they were away. But, in recent years, Wine Country has had a change of tune when it comes to welcoming traveling families. Kid-friendly wineries and restaurants abound. And local hotels offer everything from safaris to robots. Click through the above gallery for Napa County properties that make it great to be a kid (and parent).