Top 100 Wines: Other Whites

By Sonoma Magazine Staff

Anaba Wines
2012 Turbine White Rhone Blend Sonoma Valley
$28
A blend of near-equal parts Grenache Blanc, Viognier, Marsanne and Picpoul Blanc, this is a juicy wine that tastes of anise, almond and caramelized oak, kept bright and light by a deftaccent of lemon zest. (VB)

Donelan Family Wines
2013 Venus Roussanne-Viognier Sonoma County
$48
Viognier adds a whisper of succulence to Roussanne. The blend is aged in a combination of stainless steel and neutral oak cooperage, to maintain freshness and flavor without compromising on complexity. The wine shows honey, jasmine and lemon zest aromas and flavor, with
pleasant dried herbs in the background. (VB)

Imagery Estate Winery
2014 Pine Mountain Cloverdale Peak Wow Oui
$27
A blend of Sauvignon Blanc and a kiss of Muscat, a streak of racy lime runs through this nervy wine, from start to finish. Its excellent acid structure is moderated by a subtle sweetness on the finish. High scorer at the North Coast Wine Challenge. (LM)

Lasseter Family Winery
2013 Voilà Sonoma Valley
$46
An unusual (for Sonoma) blend of Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Musque Sauvignon Blanc, it has figgy, steely aromas and a vibrant palate of pineapple, papaya, yellow stone fruit and a hint of citrus. Lip-smacking. (LM)

Leo Steen
2014 Saini Farms Dry Creek Valley Chenin Blanc
$18
Leo Steen Hansen, a Danish sommelier who moved to California in 1999 to make wine, found the rare Chenin Blanc vineyard in Sonoma to produce this wine. Its white flower, green tea and honey aromas lead to a crisp, juicy mouthful of citrus and pear fruit, with a pleasant saltiness. (LM)

Marimar Estate
2014 Don Miguel Vineyard Russian River Valley Albariño
$32
Succulent, dry and light, this estate-grown wine is refreshing from start to finish, with jasmine, apple and white peach character unveiling in voluptuous, textured layers. (VB)

Pride Mountain Vineyards
2012 Viognier Sonoma County
$42
From a producer that consistently excels with the variety, this wine is fermented and aged in both stainless steel and neutral oak. Comehither aromas of night-blooming jasmine and white flowers lead to a concentrated, viscous palate of peach, pear, honey and almond. (VB)

Valley of the Moon Winery & Vineyards
2013 Sonoma County Pinot Blanc
$15
Outstanding at any price, this super value offers rich tropical fruit, tangerine and white peach aromas and flavors, a juicy midpalate and crisp, mouthwatering finish. Produced by Madrone Family Estate in Glen Ellen. (LM)

Unique Food Trends in Sonoma County

By Carey Sweet
The egg trend is big at Bird & The Bottle. Here Cheesy Grits with Grilled Hen of the Woods Mushrooms, Cured Egg & Spicy Schmaltz. (Photo: Loren Hansen Photography)

In the ever-frenetic world of modern restaurants, a chef is only as good as his last dish. Fickle diners get bored, and food trends move so quickly from fried chicken to kale that, increasingly, chefs are pushing limits to keep a buzz around their kitchen.

It has become such a daily thought in menu planning that these days, even wacky works. Adventure, it seems, stokes appetites.

Few in food-centric Wine Country know that better than David Blomster, owner of Dick Blomster’s Korean Restaurant in Guerneville. Operated as an evening pop-up in the ramshackle circa-1945 Pat’s diner on Main Street, Dick’s has been clobbering the culinary envelope since it debuted in 2012, with hard-to-explain dishes like braised chrysanthemum leaves tossed with hot chiles, maitake mushrooms and black bean sauce, or a humble hot dog chow mein.
“Dino kale and Pop Rocks did not work,” Blomster said, reflecting on an opening month salad of crispy Dinosaur kale and flying lotus root chips sprinkled in Pop Rocks candy. “But surprisingly, cheese, rice and peanut butter works pretty well together.”

Just as surprisingly, perhaps, customers are eating the crazy stuff up. On weekends, his cozy 78-seat café serves up to 700 diners a night, and so Blomster is opening a second location later this month as a pop-up in Don Taylor’s Omelette Express in downtown Santa Rosa. On the menu: a fried PB&J sandwich coated in pancake batter and topped in vanilla ice cream and Pop Rocks, plus a rice bowl with KFC (Korean fried crack) — soy-ginger chicken, egg, seaweed and gochujang fermented chile paste.

It is still the time of quinoa, anything artisanal, fried eggs or gourmet beans on absolutely everything, plus kale-kale-kale everywhere, as it has been for several years.

But now, alongside trendy small plates, open kitchens, communal tables and everything organic, we want Sonoma County seaweed (kombu) in our chicken noodle soups, kimchee in our burgers and milk whey in our cocktails. The more unusual the eats, the better.

It’s not just for fancy restaurants, either. Avant-garde is nothing new for upscale restaurants — the French Laundry’s red chile-spiked coconut milk tapioca atop mango sorbet, anyone? Yet now, the out-there combinations are de rigueur at even the most casual places. At Casino in Bodega, for example, the tiny kitchen behind the dark bar and beer-perfumed pool tables sends out nightly changing dishes that include a lofty mixed roast of Berkshire pork loin, cheek and rib decorated with Spanish roja garlic, roma de tigres and anise hyssop.

Roma de tigres are striped red and orange tomatoes he found at a local farmers’ market, explained Casino chef Mark Malicki. “The Latin American lady called them ‘tiger tomatoes’ in Spanish, and I thought it was cool,” he said.

“I like to put things on the menu people might not recognize, because it helps start a dialogue with their server and creates kind of a bond.”
At Santa Rosa’s new bistro-style Bird & Bottle, which opened at the end of September, chef Mark Stark sends out curious inventions like kimchee latkes and pickled gulf shrimp served with Korean chile buttered southern Saltine crackers. And for brunch service rolling out in a few weeks, he’s playing with a pork belly monkey bread.

“It’s always been my philosophy to pair the unusual with the usual,” said Stark. “There are certainly adventurous diners, but I also feel that a chef can grow a guest’s trust level by delivering consistently good food.”

Chef Dustin Valette is such a proponent of that philosophy that at his new Valette Restaurant, which opened in Healdsburg in March, he has a “Trust Me” section of the menu. Here, diners throw caution to the wind and let him create whatever dishes he fancies, in a minimum of four courses. That has resulted in unique bites such as squid ink-painted puff pastry with steamed scallops in a Champagne beurre blanc, alongside already creative menu listing options like deconstructed Nicoise salad of ahi, olives, cucumber, chive, 64-degree egg and olive oil “snow.”

The snow is extra virgin olive oil mixed with cold refined tapioca starch, for a delicate powder that tastes like oil without the heaviness.

“Dining out isn’t just calorie consumption,” said Valette. “I want to create things people can’t make at home. All chefs are trying to stand out from the crowd, and I do it with new techniques and uncommon ingredients. From bottom restaurants — even Burger King is doing a black bun (tinted with A.1. sauce) for Halloween — to top tier chefs, we don’t have to follow the rules anymore.”

Of the 100-plus diners he serves even on weekday nights at his 49-seat rustic-chic eatery, Valette estimates at least 40 percent order the Trust Me menu, with that number approaching 100 percent on some weekend nights.

Still, such unusual plates as Bird & Bottle’s matzo ball ramen dashi soup or chicken fried oysters with shiso leaf and spicy mayo can be a hard sell, local restaurateurs agree.

“As a chef, I like to expose guests to new flavors and different food items, but sometimes it is a challenge to get them to order those,” said Stark. “I have found it works to pair an unusual item with a familiar preparation, for example, buffalo style sweetbreads. Or I take something like kimchee that might be unfamiliar, and serve it with something more familiar like latkes and sour cream.

“Hopefully the thought process for the guest is, ‘I know I like latkes, maybe I’ll like kimchee as well.’”

Valette tries to draw on nostalgia and a touch of whimsy for some of his more elaborate dishes. A brand new menu item, for example, creates a pavé of crunchy granola base layered with duck confit, cocoa nibs, goji berry, toasted oat and a granola top, all compressed. It’s served with a cocoa nib crusted roast duck breast with pickled goji berry, cashews and endive salad atop a plate painted in hibiscus gastrique.
Calling it a granola bar instead of pavé stirs childhood taste memories and approachability, he explained.

Sometimes, too, chefs realize that, like that kale and Pop Rocks, an idea simply isn’t going to float.

“I really wanted to present some sort of preparation using cockscomb, but I’m not sure if our guests are ready for that,” Stark laughed. “I haven’t gained their trust yet. Maybe in a couple of months, I’ll deep fry some.”

Blomster, meanwhile, believes diners find the joy — and humor — in his recipes as much as they do with his other Guerneville business, Studio Blomster art gallery.

“Everything I do, I approach as art, including my restaurant adventures,” he said. “People are entering a new mannerist period now where we organize, break classic rules and invent new context. I mean, I’m a Midwestern Caucasian man serving Korean food in a historic diner in a wonderful, generous, accepting, rural, west coast, hippie, junkie, yuppie, gay river town.”

For any chef wanting to nail another remarkably strong food trend, there’s even a sustainable factor in using offbeat ingredients, Stark said.

“For me, the desire to present new food items for our guests to enjoy really comes from a place of respect for the raw ingredient, whether that ingredient is an octopus or an artichoke,” he said. “With the rising cost of food and the scarcity and overproduction of certain species, we as cooks need to embrace total utilization and respectfully use the whole animal. I say, if you want to call yourself ‘green,’ sauté some sweetbreads, pickle a tongue, braise some oxtail or grill a fish collar.”

And at the end of the day, even the most fashion-forward chefs recognize the classics are important, too. So Blomster also offers Korean staples like kimchee fried rice topped in a golden yolk sunny-side-up egg, and the beloved Americana Shake ‘N Bake pork chop with braised greens and apple sauce.

Stark sends out Bird & Bottle signatures like fried chicken with Chinese Mumbo hot sauce, or wood grilled whole fish sprinkled in gremolata and vinegar.

“Even as a chef, I still like to just eat, without having to figure out what I am eating,” Stark said. “We try to have a balance of familiar on our menus as well as the opportunity for the guest to try something different.”

Top 100 Wines: Meet & Greet David Ramey

By Linda Murphy
David Ramey’s 2013 Pedregal Vineyard Ramey cabernet sauvignon was one of the best wines in the Press Democrat 10 year cabernet tasting. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat)

He’s produced wine at Simi, Matanzas Creek and Chalk Hill wineries, and Dominus and Rudd estates, all of which benefited from his experienced gained at the Moueix family’s famed Château Pétrus in
Bordeaux, France.

Yet David Ramey found his final winemaking home in Healdsburg, with Ramey Wine Cellars, where he produces spectacular Chardonnays from Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast and Carneros, sturdy Syrahs from the Petaluma Gap, and Cabernet Sauvignons from Napa Valley.

ctj0918_DavidRamey1Two of his wines are in our Top 100 — the 2012 Ramey Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay and 2012 Rodgers Creek Syrah — although other Ramey wines could have easily made our list.

In 2013, Ramey and his wife, Carla, purchased Westside Farms in the Russian River Valley, their first owned vineyard; additional Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs are in the pipeline from this site on Westside Road.

Ramey is one of California’s most cerebral and science-based winemakers (his graduate degree thesis was on volatile esther hydrolysis, or how aromas evolve in wine), but also had the marketing smarts to start Sidebar Cellars, a line of lower-priced wines (around $25) that includes a bright and racy Russian River Valley rosé, Lake County Sauvignon Blanc and unusual Kerner white wine from Lodi.

The Rameys’ daughter, Claire Ramey-Pejovic, joined the winery in 2013 and has brought youthful savvy and energy to the business. Her brother, Alan, is a new addition to the team.

Top 100 Wines: Chardonnay

By Sonoma Magazine Staff

DeLoach Vineyards
2012 Ritchie Vineyard Middle Reach Russian River Valley Chardonnay
$50
This wine from one of Russian River Valley’s star sites is rich and decadently creamy in vanilla and apple-crisp character, balanced by refreshing acidity and bright citrus and apple fruit. Oak plays a supporting role, adding depth and mouthfeel. (VB)

Dutton-Goldfield Winery
2012 Dutton Ranch Rued Vineyard Green Valley of Russian River Valley Chardonnay
$55
Warren Dutton planted the Rued Vineyard in 1969, to a clone that has tiny berries and intense flavors. His son, Steve, and winemaker Dan Goldfield, produce this sumptuous, layered wine from this vineyard. It has caramel aromas, mouth-filling citrus, poached pear, stone fruit and guava flavors, and a bracing mineral finish. (LM)

Flowers Vineyard & Winery
2012 Camp Meeting Ridge Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
$70
It’s delicate and ethereal, with great verve. Meyer lemon, lemon curd, oyster shell and pleasant salinity express the growing conditions in a mouthwatering way. Vines planted just 2 miles from the Pacific impart a distinct sea-air salinity. (LM)

Keller Estate
2012 La Cruz Vineyard Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
$33
This vineyard-designated, estate-grown wine from the Petaluma Gap opens with a bouquet of floral jasmine. It’s very fresh and inviting. The palate offers elegant minerality and succulence, with a hint of dried herbs. It’s medium-bodied and mouth-filling, but never overbearing. (VB)

Long board Vineyards
2013 Rochioli Vineyard Russian River Valley Chardonnay
$54
From a stellar vineyard comes this well integrated wine that’s medium-bodied and beautifully textured, with minerality, rich Gravenstein apple and honey flavors, bright acidity and complexity that suggests long-term cellar aging. (VB)

MacRostie Winery & Vineyards
2013 Sangiacomo Vineyard Carneros Chardonnay
$44
Winemaker Steve MacRostie has worked with Sangiacomo grapes since 1987 and can be counted on to produce elegant, nuanced Chardonnays from there. The lush, juicy 2013 has notes of Meyer lemon, green apple, baked bread and oak spice, with a slightly creamy texture and bright acidity. (LM)

McIlroy Cellars
2013 Russian River Valley Chardonnay
$20
Chardonnay prices have soared recently, so bravo to McIlroy for not following suit with this bottling. Produced in a bold, oaky style, its toast and caramel character complements the vibrant apple, pear and citrus fruit. (LM)

Patz & Hall
2013 Dutton Ranch Russian River Valley Chardonnay
$44
Floral, round and decadent, this wine is made from some of the appellation’s oldest plantings of Chardonnay, and the vine age lends a subtle complexity and depth. Fresh peach and melon flavors are supported by vanilla and anise notes. (VB)

Paul Hobbs
2013 Richard Dinner Vineyard Sonoma
Mountain Chardonnay
$70
Super-rich, dense and intense, with honey, crème brûlée and vanillin character framing the ripe yellow stone fruit and citrus flavors. Mouthwatering acidity keeps this substantial, full-flavored wine fresh and refreshing. (LM)

Pfendler Vineyards
2013 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
$38
From the high reaches of the Petaluma Gap comes this succulent white made by Greg Bjornstad. It’s rich without being heavy: a balanced and refined expression of Chardonnay with svelte layers of peach tart and lemon custard, and a zesty Meyer lemon finish. (VB)
Ramey Wine Cellars
2012 Ritchie Vineyard Russian River Valley Chardonnay
$65
For all its power and richness, it has fabulous freshness and balance. Meyer lemon, mango, papaya and citrus flavors meld beautifully with
toasty oak and a creaminess from aging on the spent yeast cells. From Kent Ritchie’s 40-year old Chardonnay block. (LM)

Red Car Wine Co.
2012 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast
$35
This minimally oaked wine combines exotic floral aromas and a creamy mouthfeel with dry, fresh-squeezed grapefruit and tangerine flavors. Perfectly delicious as an aperitif, it also has structure for service at the table. (VB)

Roche Estate Winery
2013 French Oak Reserve Carneros Chardonnay
$38
Beat every other wine to win Best of the Best at the 2015 North Coast Wine Challenge. It’s rich, creamy and beautifully balanced, with oak in the background and juicy apple, pear and tropical fruit flavors. Complete and complex. (LM)

Sonoma Coast Vineyards
2012 Gold Ridge Hills Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
$30
Earned its 97-point score at the North Coast Wine Challenge for its intense citrus, peach and melon fruit, brisk acidity and underlying oak character that supports, yet does not overwhelm, the brilliant fruit. (LM)

Top 100 Wines: Sparkling

By Sonoma Magazine Staff

Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards
2004 Late Disgorged Carneros Cuvée
$70
A full-bodied and super-creamy wine with yeastiness and toasted almond accenting the fleshy yellow stone fruit and citrus flavors. Rich and voluptuous, it’s a decadent expression of traditionally made California bubbly. (LM)

Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards
2007 Carneros Royal Cuvée
$37
First served to Spain’s King Juan Carlos and Queen Sophia during their visit to California in 1987, this sophisticated sparkler is deep and mouth-filling, with a toasty brioche character that comes from extended aging in the bottle. Green apple and citrus flavors and bracing
minerality keep it fresh, yet it has extraordinary concentration and complexity. (LM)

Iron Horse Vineyards
2010 Green Valley of Russian River Valley
Wedding Cuvée
$42
A tremendous sparkler year in and year out. The 2010 vintage is a blend of 74 percent Pinot Noir and 26 percent Chardonnay — the winery’s take on blanc de noirs. Peach, raspberry and blood orange flavors star, with bracing acidity on the long, brisk finish. (VB)

Iron Horse Vineyards
2010 Green Valley of Russian River Valley
Classic Vintage Brut
$42
This Pinot Noir-Chardonnay blend shows the Pinot side in its coppery-pink color and hints of wild berry and cherry. But it’s not effusively fruity, instead precise and refined, with brioche, baked apple, honey and spice complexity gained from four years of aging on spent yeast. (LM)

J Vineyards & Winery
Sonoma County Cuvée 20 Brut
$28
Judy Jordan created this nonvintage bubbly to celebrate J’s 20th anniversary (she founded it in 1986 and sold the winery to E. & J. Gallo
in 2015). It delivers frothy Meyer lemon and green apple flavors, subtle yeastiness and a gentle kiss of sweetness. (LM)

Top 100 Wines: Introduction

By Sonoma Magazine Staff

Sonoma can grow just about any wine grape — And does. With its incomparable range of wine types and styles, There’s no reason to look elsewhere for a great bottle. Here are our favorites from 2015, each one Sonoma-grown.

by Linda Murphy with Virginie Boone

Wine tasting is no different than movie watching. Neither is based on science, but rather on individual taste, perception and emotion.
She enjoys romance flicks, he prefers action films. She likes Pinot Noirs with firm structure and earthiness, he goes for ripe, juicy, richly flavored Pinots. There’s no right or wrong, just personal preference.

Roger Ebert could love the same film that Gene Siskel trashed. It works that way with wine, too. So by default, our selections for the Top 100 Wines of 2015 are subjective and experiential, yet also well informed. We worked very hard to come up with 100 bottles that we stand behind for quality, price range and availability that will please most palates. Sure,
tasting wine is fun and convivial, but evaluating wine to be recommended to Sonoma magazine readers is serious stuff.

Don’t see your favorite wine on the list? Then look for it on on our coverage of world-class wines that have very limited — or no — availability. Which winemakers might you not know about, but should?
They’re here. Looking for a great vintage? Check. Science might one day be able to tell consumers precisely what wine they will love before they taste it. Until then, we have humans with distinctly individual senses of smell, taste and vision, to do the work for us. One of wine’s finest qualities is that it stimulates conversation. Our Top 100 Wines of 2015
list will likely do that. Let us know what you think.

Note:
Initials after each wine description are for reviewers Virginie Boone (VB)
and Linda Murphy (LM). Wines produced in Sonoma County, from Sonoma County grapes, are legally required to include “Sonoma
County” on their labels. For brevity, “Sonoma County” has been omitted
from the wine names.

2016 Good Food Awards Finalists

By biteclub
Bellwether Farms whole milk ricotta is a finalist in the 2016 Good Food Awards

This year, more than 260 food purveyors/crafters from around the country have been tapped as finalists in the 2016 Good Food Awards.

From nearly 2,000 entries in 13 categories — from cider and cheese to pickled foods and charcuterie — the finalists “exemplify the country’s diverse and deep-rooted food traditions” according to organizers.

It’s a nail-biting few months before the winners are announced Friday, January 15, 2016, at Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture. Here’s who made the cut…with locals in red.

BEER
(512) Brewing Company, (512) Pecan Porter, Texas
Almanac Beer Co., Farmer’s Reserve Citrus & Golden Gate Gose, California
Back Forty Beer Company, Back Forty Beer Company Paw Paws Peach Wheat,Alabama
Bluejacket Brewery, Whiskey Barrel-Aged Double Mexican Radio & Impromptu,District of Columbia
Eel River Brewing Company, California Blonde Ale, California
Fish Brewing Company, Wild Salmon Pale Ale, Washington
Fort Point Beer Company, Manzanita, California
Fullsteam Brewery, Brandy Barrel-Aged First Frost, North Carolina
Headlands Brewing Company, Pt. Bonita Pilsner, California
High Water Brewing, Aphotic Imperial Porter, California
Jester King Brewery, Bière de Blanc du Bois & Reposé, Texas
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales, Maracaibo Especial, Michigan
Lakefront Brewery, Inc., Growing Power Organic Farmhouse Pale Ale & Organic Beer Line Barley Wine, Whiskey Barrel-aged & New Grist Ginger, Wisconsin
Ninkasi Brewing Company, Dawn of the Red India Red Ale, Oregon
Pike Brewing Company, Pike Wood Aged Kilt Lifter, Washington
Port City Brewing Company, Optimal Wit & Port City Porter & Monumental IPA,Virginia
Reuben’s Brews, Robust Porter, Washington
Rising Tide Brewing Company, Daymark, Maine
Rogue Ales & Spirits, Rogue Farms Fresh Roast, California
Rolling Meadows Brewery, Barrel Aged Abe’s Ale, Illinois

CHARCUTERIE
Avalanche Cheese Company, Pork and Goat Finocchiona, Colorado
Black Pig Meat Co., Coppa, California
Blackberry Farm, Salume Toscano & Finocchiona Salume & Guanciale, Tennessee
Charlito’s Cocina, Salami Picante, New York
Cure Cooking, Dry-cured Aged Country Bacon, Nebraska
Dickson’s Farmstand Meats, Parisian Ham, New York
Fork in the Road Foods, Uncured Black Forest Ham, California
Fortuna’s Sausage Company, Pepperoni, Vermont
Fra’ Mani Handcrafted Foods, Soppressata, California
Island Trollers, Troll Caught Albacore with Jalepeno & Troll Caught Albacore with Habanero, Washington
JACüTERIE, Saucisson Provençal & Finocchiona, New York
JM Stock Provisions, JM Stock Tasso Ham, Virginia
La Quercia, Speck Americano, Iowa
Lox, Box & Barrel, Celtic Seafare, Gravlax style King Salmon, Texas
Nduja Artisans, Finocciona, Illinois
Olympia Provisions, Rigani Loukaniko, Oregon
Real Good Fish, Smoked Carmel Canyon Black Cod, California
Red Table Meat Co., The Royal & Pork Queen & Coppa, Minnesota
Regalis Foods, Columbia River Smoked Steelhead Trout Roe, New York
Sante Restaurant & Charcuterie, 5 Spice Duck Prosciutto & Tasso Ham, Washington
Underground Meats, Summer Sausage, Wisconsin
Wooden Spoons, Pork Rillettes, California

CHEESE

Alemar Cheese, Bent River, Minnesota
Ancient Heritage Dairy, Isabella, Oregon
Avalanche Cheese Company, Hand Bandaged Cheddar & Cabra Blanca, Colorado
Bellwether Farms, Whole Milk Ricotta, California
Blackberry Farm, Singing Brook, Tennessee
Cowgirl Creamery, Red Hawk & Inverness, California
Cricket Creek Farm, Maggie’s Round, Massachusetts
Farms for City Kids, Tarentaise & Ashbrook & Reading, Vermont
Firefly Farms, Cabra LaMancha & Moo and Blue, Maryland
Garden Variety Cheese, Moonflower, California
Goat Lady Dairy, Lindale & Providence, North Carolina
Goldin Artisan Goat Cheese, Chaumine & Tomme de Vignes, Oregon
Jacobs and Brichford Farmstead Cheese, Adair & Briana, Indiana
Jacobs Creamery, Bloomy, Washington
James Ranch Artisan Cheese, Belford, Colorado
Many Fold Farm, Garrett’s Ferry, Georgia
Maple Hill Creamery, Whole Milk Yogurt, New York
Milton Creamery, Prairie Breeze, Iowa
Pennyroyal Farm, Reserve Boont Corners, California
Prodigal Farm, Field of Creams, North Carolina
Pugs Leap, Samson, California
Rogue Creamery, Flora Nelle & Rogue River Blue, Oregon
Sequatchie Cove Creamery, Coppinger, Tennessee
Tomales Farmstead Creamery, Teleeka, California
Uplands Cheese, Pleasant Ridge Reserve, Wisconsin
Winter Hill Farm, Tide Line, MaineCHOCOLATE
Areté Fine Chocolate, Camino Verde 75% Dark Chocolate, California
Brasstown Chocolate, Ecuador 75% & Belize 70%, North Carolina
Charm School Chocolate, 70% Dark Belize, Maryland
Creo Chocolate, Purely Dark, Oregon
Dick Taylor Craft Chocolate, 70% Bolivia, Alto Beni, California
Escazu Artisan Chocolates, 70% Piura Blanco, Peru, North Carolina
Fruition Chocolate, Bolivian Wild Harvest 74% & Nacional Dark Milk 68%, New York
Just Good Chocolate, Madagascar 70%, Michigan
Lonohana Estate Chocolate, Kanahiku 70% Dark, Hawaii
Nathan Miller Chocolate, Gingerbread Bar, Pennsylvania
Patric Chocolate, Triple Ginger & Browned Butter Bar & Red Coconut Curry, Missouri
Ritual Chocolate, Mid Mountain Blend & Belize 75%, Utah
Rogue Chocolatier, Jamaica & Tranquilidad, Massachusetts
SPAGnVOLA, SPAGnVOLA 70% Single- Estate Dominican Republic & SPAGnVOLA 75% Single Estate Dominican Republic, MarylandCIDER
2 Towns Ciderhouse, Traditions Riverwood, Oregon
AeppelTreow Winery, Barn Swallow, Wisconsin
Argus Cidery, Malus Cuvée & Perennial 2013, Texas
Art + Science, Wild Perry, Oregon
Big B’s Hard Cider, Pear Supply & Orchard Original & Grizzly Brand, Colorado
Eaglemount Wine and Cider, Ginger Cider, Washington
Eden Ice Cider Company, Brandy Barrel Heirloom Blend & Sparkling Semi-Dry & Sparkling Dry, Vermont
Ela Cider Company, Stone Silo, Wisconsin
Eve’s Cidery, Albee Hill 2014, New York
Finnriver Farm & Cidery, Firebarrel, Washington
Foggy Ridge Cider, Handmade, Virginia
Shacksbury, Lost and Found & Farmhouse, Vermont
Snowdrift Cider Co., Cornice & Red,

COFFEE

Abundancia Coffee, Kenya AA Blue Mt, Oregon
Bird Rock Coffee Roasters, Panama Esmerelda Estate, Lino Lot Natural, California
Blue Bottle Coffee, Guatemala El Injerto, New York
Commonwealth Coffee, Kenya Nyeri Gachatha Lot #160 AA & Panama Carmen Estate Washed Geisha,Colorado
Equator Coffees & Teas, Panama Finca Sophia Gesha, Marin, California
Evans Brothers Coffee, Kenya Gatundu Karinga AB, Idaho
JBC Coffee Roasters, Finca La Mula Panama Geisha, Wisconsin
Joe Coffee Company, Ethiopia Guji Yabitu Koba, New York
Kickapoo Coffee Roasters, Organic Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Idido Cooperative,Wisconsin
Klatch Coffee, Kenya Karatu, California
Mudhouse Coffee Roasters, Finca La Mula CAC Reserve Geisha, Virginia
NEAT Coffee, Kenya Gachatha, Connecticut
Noble Coffee Roasting, Ethiopian ‘Hama’, Oregon
Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters, Panama Carmen Geisha, Texas
Olympia Coffee Roasting Company, Ethiopia Adame Garbota, Washington
Onyx Coffee Lab, Colombian Granja la Esperanza Margaritas Natural, Arkansas
Red Whale Coffee, Elida Geisha, San Rafael, California
Ruby Coffee Roasters, Ethiopia Guji Uraga, Wisconsin
Speckled Ax Wood Roasted Coffee, Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Hafursa, Maine
Spyhouse Coffee Roasting Co., Suke Quto – Ethiopia, Minnesota
Square One Coffee, Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Adado, PennsylvaniaCONFECTIONS
American Spoon, Chocolate Fudge Sauce, Michigan
Amy E’s Bakery, Peanut Brittle, Oregon
Ashby Confections, Fresh Orange Sour Strips & Salty Desert Heat, California
Askinosie Chocolate, Hey, Hey Chocolate Hazelnut Spread, Missouri
Batch PDX, Batch Bar & Twicks Bar, Oregon
Bees & Beans, Honey Bar Reserve, Oregon
Bixby & Co., Nutty For You, Maine
Black Dinah Chocolatiers, Maine Mint Truffle, Maine
Ethereal Confections, Blood Orange and Vanilla Bean Meltaway, Illinois
Farm Chocolate, Panforte in Dark, Sebastopol, California
Fat Toad Farm, Fat Toad Farm Original Goat’s Milk Caramel Sauce, Vermont
French Broad Chocolates, Hazelnut & Almond Dragee, North Carolina
JJ’s Sweets Cocomels, Palm Sugar Cocomel, Colorado
Katherine Anne Confections, Cucumber Cooler Caramel, Illinois
Lake Champlain Chocolates, Apple Cider Caramels, Vermont
Little Apple Treats, Rose and Cocoa nib Caramels, Sebastopol, California
McCrea’s Candies, Black Lava Sea Salt Caramels, Massachusetts
Neo Cocoa, Toffee Nib Brittle, California
Nosh This, Lavender Crack, California
Sapore della Vita, Caramel Sauce & Torrone & Totally Fudged- Chocolate Fudge Sauce,Florida
Serendipity Confections, Chocolate Covered Butter Caramels with Fleur de Sel,Wyoming
St. Croix Chocolate Co., Wild Grape and Peanut Butter Bar, Minnesota
Videri Chocolate Factory, Sugarplum Ganache Bonbon, North Carolina 

HONEY
Ames Farm Limited, Honey Comb, Minnesota
Bee Girl, Bee Girl Honey, Oregon
Bee Local, Bee Local Sauvie Honey & Bee Local Coastal Mountain Honey, Oregon
Bee Squared Apiaries, Rose Honey, Colorado
Bees’ Needs, Fabulous Fall, New York
BHealthy BHappy, Spearmint Infused Honey, Arizona
Bloom Honey, Orange Blossom, California 

Gene’s Sausage Shop, Raw Honey, Illinois
Gold Star Honeybees, Gold Star Honey, Maine
Hall’s Honey, Honey, Nevada
Hani Honey Company, Raw Creamed Wildflower Honey, Florida
Honey Bean Farm, Wild Wetland Honey, Massachusetts
Mikolich Family Honey, Sage and Wild Buckwheat, California
MtnHoney, Comb Honey Chunk & Sourwood Honey & Wildflower Honey, Georgia
Organic Mountains, Sourwood Honey, Georgia
Posto Bello Apiaries, Honey, Maine
Sequim Bee Farm, Honey, Washington
Simmons Family Honey, Saw Palmetto Honey, Georgia
State Street Honey, Raw Honey Peninsula Blend, California
Swarm Chasers Apiaries, Comb Honey, Georgia
Two Million Blooms, Raw honey, Illinois
UrbanBeeSF, Tree Blossom Honey Quince & Tree Blossom Honey Nopa, California
Waxing Kara, Spring Honey, MarylandOILS
Apollo Olive Oil, Sierra & Mistral, California
Berkeley Olive Grove 1913, California Mission Blood Orange, California
Calivirgin, Calivirgin Jalapeno-Garlic Olive Oil, California
Clif Family, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, California
Coppal House Farm, Sunflower Oil, New Hampshire
Grumpy Goats Farm, Picual EVOO, California
Hummingbird Wholesale, Organic Pumpkin Seed Oil, Oregon
La Nogalera Walnut Oil, La Nogalera Walnut Oil, California
La Tourangelle, Gourmande Roasted Hazelnut Oil, California
MoonShadow Grove, Ascolano, California
Oliver Oil Co., Oliver Farm Green Peanut Oil & Oliver Farm Sunflower Oil, Georgia
The Olive Press, Sevillano Extra Virgin Olive Oil, California
Wei Kitchen, Organic Shallot Oil, WashingtonPANTRY
Adoboloco, Adoboloco Pineapple Hot Sauce, Hawaii
Akka’s Handcrafted Foods, Akka’s Curry Paste, California
Blackberry Farm, Reserve Pecan Sorghum Butter & Barrel Aged Muscadine Vinegar,Tennessee
Blake Hill Preserves, Moroccan Plum and Fennel Chutney, Vermont
Bourbon Barrel Foods, Bourbon Barrel Aged Worcestershire Sauce, Kentucky
Brooklyn Delhi, Tomato Achaar, New York
Cowboy Syd, Cowboy Syd’s D-Lish Sauce, Virginia
Decadence Gourmet, Colorado-Style Southern Chow Chow, Colorado
Happy Quail Farms, Farm Style Relish, California
HeathGlen Farm & Kitchen, Romesco & Harissa, Minnesota
Home Grown Food Products, Fermented Hot Sauce, Oregon
Hoskins Berry Farm, Blackberry Vinegar, Oregon
Johnson Berry Farm, Strawberry Pepper Sauce, Washington
Kitchens Of Africa, Zanzibar, North Carolina
Labrosse Farm, Heirloom Tomato Sweet and Spicy Jam, Michigan
Langdon Wood Maple Syrup, Langdon Wood 1814 Barrel-Aged Hot Sauce, District of Columbia
Lindera Farms, Lindera Farms Honey Vinegar, Virginia
Lucky Dog Hot Sauce, Brown Label, California
Mimi’s Confitures, Radicchio Marmalade, California
MixedMade, Trees Knees Spicy Syrup, New York
NW Elixirs Hot Sauce Co., NW Elixirs #3 Hott Smoke & NW Elixirs #2 Verde Hott,Oregon
One Culture Foods, Sweet Savory Spicy, New York
Pogue Mahone Pickles, Premium Dill Pickle Mustard, Texas
SALSAOLOGY, Ancho Chile and Tamarind Sauce, California

Spicemode, Vindaloo Cooking Sauce & Masala Handcrafted Cooking Sauce, Illinois
Spoiled Rotten Vinegar, Blackstrap Vinegar, California
Sweet Farm Sauerkraut, Cultured Mustard, Maryland
Turtle Rock Farm, Garlic Scape Relish, MainePICKLES
American Spoon, Ramp Kimchi, Michigan
Atwater’s, Pickled Hakurei Turnips, Maryland
Blackberry Farm, Ramp Kraut, Tennessee
Blue Bus Cultured Foods, Shakedown Beet & Kraut-chi & Cortido, Washington
Choi’s Kimchi Co., White Napa Kimchi & Napa Kimchi & Radish Kimchi, Oregon
Crock & Jar, Pickle Kraut, New York
Farmer’s Daughter, Ramp and Mustard Seed Kraut & Ruby Kraut & Hot Chili Okra Pickles, Tennessee
Grandma’s Gourmets, Bloody Pickles, Minnesota
Hat Creek Provisions, Texas Style Sauerkraut, Texas
Hosta Hill, GochuCurry Kraut, Massachusetts
LevProbiotic’s Inc, Lev’s Black Currant Kombucha, California
Mama O’s Premium Kimchi, Mama O’s Premium Baby Bok Choy Kimchi, New York
Marcia’s Munchies, Cherry Pops & Little Hotties, Michigan
Ozuké, Bloody Mary Kraut & Ruby Calendula Kraut, Colorado
Pacific Culture, Spicy Oregano Carrot Sticks, California
Pernicious Pickling Co., Pickled Red Beets: Fashionably Dill, California
Preservation & Co., Hefeweizen Bread and Butter Chips, California
Real Pickles, Organic Garlic Dill Pickles, Massachusetts
Republic of Jam, Pickled Peaches, Oregon
Taste Elevated, Sweet and Tangy Mustard Seeds, Texas
The Brinery, Up North Sauerkraut, Michigan
Two Chicks Farm, Dill Pickles, North Carolina
Wild West Ferments, Seasonal Sauerkraut, California
Wine Forest, Pickled Sea Beans, CaliforniaPRESERVES
American Spoon, Wild Thimbleberry Jam & Wild Elderberry Jelly, Michigan
Amour Spreads, Black Currant Blackberry Jam & Tayberry Jam, Utah
Black Radish Creamery, Outback Cherry, Ohio
Blackberry Farm, Strawberry Balsamic Preserves, Tennessee
Crosstown Sweets, Apricot and Vanilla Jam, New York
Farmer’s Daughter, Bourbon’d Figs, North Carolina
Fiddlehead Farm, Blueberry and Cinnamon Basil Jam, North Carolina
Friend in Cheeses Jam Co., Golden Sageberry Jam, California
Girl Meets Dirt, Shiro Plum with Mint Spoon Preserves, Washington
Green Jam Man, Strawberry Blood Orange Jam, Vermont
Happy Girl Kitchen Co., Raspberry Lemon Jam, California
HeathGlen Farm & Kitchen, Raspberry Chambord Jam, Minnesota
Josephine’s Feast!, Hand Foraged Wild Beach Plum Preserves, New York
Kansas City Canning Co., 7-Pepper Jelly, Missouri
Kelly’s Jelly, Kelly’s Habanero Pepper Jelly, Oregon
Little River Pantry, Wicked Hot Pepper Jelly, New Hampshire
Modern Gingham Preserves, Raspberry Violet, Colorado
Monkeypod Jam, Roselle Jam, Hawaii
Mt. Hope Farms, Premium Spiced Marionberry Fruit Spread, Oregon
Small Batch Kitchen, Curried Yellow Tomato, Pennsylvania
Southport Grocery And Cafe, Apple Butter, Illinois
The Good Stuff, Best Plum Jam, California
The Jelly Queens, Super Berry, Texas
The Orchard at Flathead Lake, Huckle-Cherry Jam, Montana

SPIRITS
Bear & Eagle Products, 1.0.1 Ultra Premium Vodka, California
Bittermilk, No. 6 Oaxacan Old Fashioned, South Carolina
Caledonia Spirits, Tom Cat Barrel Aged Gin, Vermont
Catoctin Creek Distilling Company, Roundstone Rye, Virginia
Christina Maser, Raspberry Shrub, Pennsylvania
Elixir, Iris, Oregon
Far North Spirits, Gustaf Navy Strength Gin, Minnesota
Five By Five Tonics, Barrel-Aged Vanilla Bitters, California
Happy Girl Kitchen Co., Spicy Apricot Shrub, California
INNA Shrub, QUINCE Shrub & Cherokee Purple TOMATO Shrub, California
Kansas City Canning Co., Apple Caraway Shrub, Missouri
Mad River Distillers, Malvados, Vermont
Marble Distilling Co., Moonlight Expresso, Colorado
Port Morris Distillery, Pitorro Shine, New York
Rare Botanical Bitters, Magnolia Syrup & Lapsong Souchong Syrup, Illinois
Richland Distilling Company, Single Estate Old Georgia Rum, Georgia
Salute!, Dragoncello, South Carolina
Swallowtail Farm, Elderflower Syrup, Michigan
The Bitter Housewife, Cardamom Bitters, Oregon
Venus Spirits, Gin Blend No. 2, California
Wigle Whiskey, Monongahela Rye Whiskey, Pennsylvania

Don’t Toss Your Pumpkin! Recycle It!

By biteclub
Don’t be that guy. Recycle your pumpkin. (From My Crappy Neighbor

Got a slightly sagging pumpkin? Need to chuck your gourds? The “Don’t Chuck the Pumpkin” Project wants you!

CropMobster is hoping to get you to bring your leftover Halloween Jack-O-Lanterns to drop locations throughout the county to be used as compost, animal feed, or put into green waste containers. Throwing them into the garbage? Bad idea. Recycling them? Great idea.

Can’t make it to a drop? Keep in mind they can be put in your green waste container, too. Oh, and Please make sure your pumpkins are free of trash, candles or debris.

Here are the details…

Pumpkin Drop Locations 

Sebastopol Area

Healdsburg Area

  • Noci Sonoma: Dry Creek rd. 2836 dry creek Road. We will setup an area in the front of the farm. We have a huge compost system and would be happy to take them. Email: Adjani[at]nocisonoma.com

Santa Rosa Area

  • 3688 Primrose Ave Santa Rosa (Little Farm) Contact: jpeacockmeyer[at]gmail.com
  • Saturday 11/7 at Santa Rosa Community Farmers Market 1351 Maple Ave (across the street from the County Fairground). Wednesday 11/4, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm and Saturday 11/7, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm.  Shelley O. will be there with a truck for hauling the pumpkins to the farm. Contact: vvtechleader[at]gmail.com for more info
  • Tierra Vegetables  651 Airport Blvd, Santa Rosa, CA 95407 contact kendra[at]tierravegetables.com

 

Don't be that guy. Recycle your pumpkin. (From My Crappy Neighbor
Don’t be that guy. Recycle your pumpkin. (From My Crappy Neighbor

Top 100 Wines: Methodology

By Linda Murphy
CJ0414_WINECHALLENGE05_728306
Tina Caputo testing the aroma of various wines, checking for flavor notes. (Photo by Crista Jeremiason)

Methodology: It’s a tough job. Really.

With more than 400 Sonoma wineries producing thousands
of different bottlings each year, how did we settle on 2015’s best? It took lots
of tasting, and retasting, and assistance from the judges at The Press Democrat 2015 North Coast Wine Challenge, to come up with 100 great wines sure to please all palates and pocketbooks.

Sonoma magazine managing editor Linda Murphy and magazine contributor Virginie
Boone worked together to select the Top 100, taking into account their own tastings and
high-scoring wines from the North Coast Wine Challenge competition, held in April.

In addition to writing for Sonoma magazine and The Press Democrat, Boone is a contributing editor for New York-based Wine Enthusiast magazine, reviewing thousands of wines each year from Sonoma and Napa. Murphy, a two-time James Beard Award winner when she was the editor of the San Francisco Chronicle’s wine section, tastes as many wines, with her comments appearing in Decanter magazine and WineReviewOnline.com, among other publications.

Their mission was to spotlight 100 outstanding wines produced in Sonoma, from Sonoma-grown grapes, with a broad diversity in price, style, growing region and producer. Wines scoring 94 points and higher at the 2015 North Coast Wine Challenge were given strong consideration. All recommended wines were released in 2015.
– LM

Check out which wines made the list here:

Top 100 Wines: Sauvignon Blanc

More to come soon!

Top 100 Wines: Sauvignon Blanc

By Linda Murphy

Dry Creek Vineyard
2014 Sonoma County Fumé Blanc
$14
Its oh-so-friendly price and wide availability belies its greatness. When young, this Sauvignon Blanc has effusive floral, citrus and fennel aromas, succulent lemon-lime, grapefruit and pleasantly grassy flavors, with a lingering finish. With age, it becomes a multidimensional wonder. (LM)

Gary Farrell Vineyards & Winery
2014 Russian River Selection Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc
$28
Grapes grown in the Ritchie Vineyard were fermented in a combination of stainless steel
and neutral French oak barrels, giving the wine texture and depth. Floral aromas and vibrant lemon-lime, grapefruit, green melon and tropical fruit flavors combine for an energetic drink. (LM)

Geyser Peak Winery
2014 River Ranches Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc
$22
Made in relatively small amounts, it’s a delightfully light, well-rounded expression of the
variety, with a well-defined beginning, middle and finish. It has lime, mint and cilantro on
the nose, and the palate is all about fresh peach and citrus, finishing refreshingly crisp. (VB)

Grey Stack Cellars
2014 Rosemary’s Block Bennett Valley Sauvignon Blanc
$33
Really delicious and aromatic, with pear, mineral, floral scents and a full, juicy palate of
pear, citrus and exotic tropical fruit. The finish is scintillating and long. (LM)

J. Rickards Winery
2014 Croft Vineyard Alexander Valley Sauvignon Blanc
$21
It has admirable depth and minerality to go with crisp apple and pear flavors and a bracing lemon-lime tang. The addition of 5 percent Semillon lends a complex fig character, and a hint of vanilla adds interest. (LM)

MacLaren Wine Co.
2014 Dry Creek Valley Lee’s Sauvignon Blanc
$28
Name a wine after Mom, as this producer did, and it’s sure to be delicious — especially when it’s her favorite varietal. Bright and opulent, it exhibits pineapple, mango and tangerine character. From entry through finish, it has tangy acidity with bursts of lime zest. (VB)

Merry Edwards Winery
2013 Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc
$32
The “Queen of Pinot Noir,” Edwards also excels at Sauvignon Blanc. This voluptuous wine
offers crème brûlée and tropical fruit, layered and nicely textured. Generous and decadent, it finishes with minerality and creaminess. (VB)

Teira Wines
2014 Woods Vineyard Dry Creek Valley Sauvignon Blanc
$15
A crisp, assertive wine with lime and grapefruit flavors, hints of just-cut grass and fresh herbs, and striking acidity. The grapes come from vines planted by Clos du Bois co-founder Frank Woods. His daughter, Alexis, and her husband, Daniel Donahoe, own Teira. The name was inspired by daughters Thea and Keira. (LM)

VML
2014 Russian River Valley Sauvignon Blanc
$23
Best of Class winner at the 2015 North Coast Challenge, it was made by Virginia Marie Lambrix (VML) and offers racy grapefruit and lime character, with hints of tropical fruit, fresh herbs and kiwi fruit. The finish is clean and refreshing. (LM)