Banshee Wines, 325 Center St., Healdsburg, 707-395-0915, bansheewines.com. One of the newer additions to Healdsburg’s downtown wine-tasting scene, Banshee has created a cool, urban enclave of wine and art, open into the evenings for lounging. Wines are available by the glass and bottle at retail prices; more formal tastings are available, paired with bites from Healdsburg Shed.
Bella Vineyards & Wine Caves, 9711 West Dry Creek Road, Healdsburg, 866-572-3552, bellawinery.com. While winter is great for meandering in Bella’s cozy caves, spring brings the opportunity to tour the hillside vineyards by four-wheel drive Pinzgauer and then taste the wines beneath the property’s giant trees. On weekends, enjoy small bites from the winery’s stellar chef, Bruce Frieseke. Cave and vineyard tours should be arranged by appointment one week in advance.
Benziger Family Winery, 1883 London Ranch Road, Glen Ellen, 888-490-2739, benziger.com. This friendly family winery is all about nature and the outdoors, nurturing an insectary to benefit the vines and taking visitors on vineyard tram tours to discuss the whys and hows of Biodynamic farming. The Benzigers produce a wide range of wines at fair prices.
Buena Vista Winery, 18000 Old Winery Road, Sonoma, 800-926-1266, buenavistawinery.com. Historic Buena Vista has refashioned its wine caves into a glittery romantic spot for barrel tasting and touring, and a section of the cave can be reserved for private, by-appointment tastes of library wines and barrel samples. Don’t miss the Champagne Cellars (kid-friendly and there is no charge), where the winery’s history can be further explored.
Campovida, 13601 Old River Road, Hopland, 707-400-6300, campovida.com. On the site of glorious gardens surrounded by vineyards, Campovida features a tasting room called Taste of Place, offering wine tasting, local artisanal fare and plenty of discussion about the advantages and challenges of organic, Biodynamic and sustainable farming in Mendocino County. In spring, don’t miss Campovida’s own stunningly delicious rosé.
Chateau St. Jean, 8555 Sonoma Highway, Kenwood, 707-833-4134, chateaustjean.com. With a sprawling picture-perfect lawn and bocce courts, the best reason to visit this venerable winery besides its gorgeous location is the 40th-anniversary celebration of Cinq Cepages, its proprietary Bordeaux-style red blend. It also carries many picnic goodies.
DeLoach Vineyards, 1791 Olivet Road, Santa Rosa, 707-526-9111, deloachvineyards.com. Producer of predominantly Russian River Valley Pinot Noir and Zinfandel, DeLoach affords visitors the opportunity to learn the philosophies of Biodynamic farming and take part in two unique experiences available daily. The M.F.S. Blending Experience ($100) is a 90-minute lesson in blending, bottling and labeling your own Pinot Noir. The Magic of Wine and Mustard ($40) explores the history of mustard in Burgundy, France, and includes a stroll through the vineyard and garden, the chance to make your own mustard from Dijon seeds, and a pairing of mustard-inspired food with a flight of DeLoach wines.
Dry Creek Vineyard, 3770 Lambert Bridge Road, Healdsburg, 800-864-9463, drycreekvineyard.com. If for no other reason, come to Dry Creek Vineyard for the dry Chenin Blanc, a fine, springtime sipper. Then move on to the winery’s Chardonnay, Zinfandel and Meritage wines. It’s worth first stopping at the nearby Dry Creek General Store for provisions to enjoy on the winery’s open-air picnic grounds.
Ferrari-Carano, 8761 Dry Creek Road, Healdsburg, 707-433-6700, ferrari-carano.com. Take a tour of the sprawling Versailles-grand gardens, so rich in tulips (said to number 10,000) that the winery mans a garden hotline (707-433-5439). Taste the wine in one of two tasting bars, Enoteca or Villa Fiore.
Gundlach-Bundschu, 2000 Denmark St., Sonoma, 707-938-5277, gunbun.com. The 1860s winery, still family-run, offers a courtyard tasting menu in good weather with flights of five current-release wines, and the option to indulge in five library Cabernet Sauvignons. A board of local cheeses, hummus and almonds might accompany the wines. Vineyard excursions start in May.
Harmonique Wines, 14501 Highway 128, Boonville, 707-895-9300, harmoniquewine.com. Opened in 2013 by owners Bruce and Moira Conzelman to celebrate the release of three aged Pinot Noirs made by winemaker Robert Klindt, the Harmonique tasting room is within the John Hanes Fine Art Gallery, across from the Boonville Hotel. Enjoy the winery’s three 2007 Pinot Noirs and delightful unoaked Chardonnay.
Hartford Family Winery, 8075 Martinelli Road, Forestville, 707-887-8030, hartfordwines.com. Tucked away in the woods, Hartford is a consistent high-quality producer of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and old-vine Zinfandel, sourcing grapes from the Green Valley sub-appellation of the Russian River Valley, and from other cool locales such as Anderson Valley. Seated in-depth tastings, including some with food pairings, can be arranged by appointment.
J Vineyards & Winery, 11447 Old Redwood Highway, Healdsburg, 707-431-5400, jwine.com. A glass of bubbly is always a good thing, and this is a well-appointed spot at which to have it, as well as taste J’s Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays. Don’t miss having a sip of Pinot Gris, among the winery’s most popular, springtime-perfect wines. The J Bubble Room will pair wines with exquisite, locally sourced dishes.
Jordan Vineyard & Winery, 1474 Alexander Valley Road, Healdsburg, 800-654-1213, jordanwinery.com. By appointment, Jordan welcomes visitors for walking tours through its beautiful compound, which includes the estate’s gardens where executive chef Todd Knoll sources a cornucopia of produce for winery meals. Tours and seated tastings go Monday through Saturday throughout the year and also on Sundays starting in mid-April. Jordan also makes an estate extra-virgin olive oil.
Joseph Phelps Freestone Vineyards, 12747 El Camino Bodega, Freestone, 707-874-1010, josephphelps.com. On the way to the coast, stop by Freestone Vineyards for its cool-climate Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays. The tasting room also pours selections from parent winery Joseph Phelps Vineyards, the Napa Valley producer of Cabernet Sauvignon and the famous Insignia proprietary red blend. On the second Sunday of every month, Freestone features local foods paired with the Sonoma Coast and Napa Valley wines.
Landmark Wine, 101 Adobe Canyon Road, Kenwood, 707-833-0053, landmarkwine.com. In the shadow of Sugarloaf Ridge State Park, Landmark makes Chardonnay (including the acclaimed Overlook bottling) and Pinot Noir, and is increasingly becoming known for its Rhone-inspired reds, including Syrah and Grenache. In addition to its tasting room, the winery offers picnic spots and bocce courts.
Merry Edwards Winery, 2959 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol, 707-823-7466, merryedwards.com. Winemaker Merry Edwards is a pioneer in Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, excelling at coaxing rich berry flavor and voluptuous texture from the grapes. She also produces some of the best Sauvignon Blanc in the state, and has recently added Chardonnay to her lineup. Don’t miss the opportunity to discover her skill and view some of the estate vineyards surrounding the winery.
Navarro Vineyards and Winery, 5601 Highway 128, Philo, 800-537-9463, navarrowine.com. The wide selection of crisp white wines and bright, mellow reds is worth the drive to Philo, where Navarro’s homey picnic grounds inspire taking one’s time. Plenty of picnic goodies are stocked in the tasting room, including daughter Sarah Cahn Bennett’s fine farmstead goat cheeses made down the road at Pennyroyal Farm. Vineyard tours are given twice a day, by appointment, and picnics are encouraged.
Odette Estate, 5998 Silverado Trail, Napa, 707-224-7533, odetteestate.com. Owned by the PlumpJack Winery guys (Gordon Getty, Gavin Newsom and John Conover), Odette is in Napa Valley’s Stags Leap District and on the path to becoming LEED-certified. With 18,000 square feet of caves, some of the first modern versions dug in Napa Valley, Odette makes for an intriguing visit, with great Cabernet Sauvignon-based wines on offer.
Porter Creek Vineyards, 8735 Westside Road, Healdsburg, 707-433-6321, portercreekvineyards.com. Here is an old-school tasting room in terms of its simplicity, but there’s nothing simple about Porter Creek’s wines, which are intriguing and complex, made from organically grown grapes from hillside vineyards. In addition to Russian River Valley Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, enjoy Viognier, Carignane, Syrah and Zinfandel.
Ram’s Gate, 28700 Arnold Drive, Sonoma, 707-721-8700, ramsgatewinery.com. Ram’s Gate was designed for lingering, with a host of spacious sitting areas, many of which are grouped around a fireplace. Then there’s the food, prepared to order by the on-staff chef for seated, guided tastings. Order a picnic lunch to take into the vineyard or out by the pond. The wines alone are a reason to stay, a collection of single-vineyard Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay and even a brut bubbly.
Ridge Vineyards / Lytton Springs, 650 Lytton Springs Road, Healdsburg, 707-433-7721, ridgewine.com. Revered Ridge is a worthy stop no matter the time of year, for its structured Zinfandels and Cabernet Sauvignons, but its location off a side road in Dry Creek Valley is also a pretty way to travel. The tasting room is open daily, but reserve ahead for a Century Tour and Library Tasting, which might include an older vintage of Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon, Ridge’s most famous wine, by request.
Rodney Strong Vineyards, 11455 Old Redwood Highway, Healdsburg, 800-678-4763, rodneystrong.com. For a comprehensive taste of Sonoma County with expansive views of vines, look no further than Rodney Strong, which offers an estate wine tasting daily as well as the option to try single-vineyard and reserve wines. From its staunch Alexander Valley Cabernets to Davis Bynum Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, there’s a lot to like. Outdoor picnics are also on order, on the winery’s lawn or vineyard terrace; picnic items are available for purchase.
Saracina Vineyards, 11684 Highway 101, Hopland, 707-744-1671, saracina.com. John Fetzer and his wife, Patty Rock, have created a lovely destination getaway on the outskirts of Hopland. Practitioners of biodiversity, they have 600 acres that include grapevines, olive groves and ponds, as well as comfortable outdoor tables under umbrellas. Bottlings include Malbec, Petite Sirah and an Anderson Valley Pinot Noir, but don’t miss the lovely Chardonnays, one of them unoaked.
Schramsberg Vineyards, 1400 Schramsberg Road, Calistoga, 800-877-3623, schramsberg.com. Among the first in California to specialize in sparkling wine, Schramsberg occupies hallowed ground, home to the oldest hillside vineyards in Napa Valley and some of the first caves dug for storing and aging wine. Take a tour by appointment, and don’t miss the Mirabelle Brut Rosé and other gorgeous sparklers before moving on to taste the J. Davies Estate Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir.
Sequoia Grove, 8338 St. Helena Highway, Rutherford, 800-851-7841, sequoiagrove.com. Aptly named, this Cabernet Sauvignon producer lives in a 150-year-old barn beneath an impressive stand of Sequoias, where tables await in the shade.
Stark Wine, 439 Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg, 707-431-8023, starkwine.com. Husband-and-wife-run Stark is off the main square in Healdsburg in a swank, open tasting room. Live music plays every Friday from 6 to 8 p.m.; on Saturday, the tasting room is open until 7 p.m. Try the Viognier, a wine just right for the season.
Stonestreet Alexander Mountain Estate, 7111 Highway 128, 707-473-3333, stonestreetwines.com. Located near Alexander Valley’s popular Jimtown Store, Stonestreet excels in mountain-grown Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, and invites visitors to taste through its single-vineyard bottlings. Carve out extra time to take the two-hour Mountain Excursion and Picnic ($90; 10:30 a.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday), a revelatory traipse through Stonestreet’s 6,000-acre estate, with lunch and wine.
Tricycle Wine Partners, 23568 Arnold Drive, Sonoma, 707-255-4929, tricyclewineco.com. The newest addition to Cornerstone Gardens, Tricycle makes a range of high-quality wines, from its rich Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon from Lake County, to Kazmer & Blaise Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from Carneros, to the Molnar Family single-vineyard wines from Napa Valley.
Valdez Family Winery, 113 Mill St., Healdsburg, 707-433-3710, valdezfamilywinery.com. Ulises Valdez is a highly sought-after, Sonoma County-based vineyard manager with access to some mighty fine grapes, so it’s no wonder he’s now producing his own lineup of stellar wines, with a special focus and place in his heart for Zinfandel. If your own heart beats for Rockpile, don’t pass up the Valdez Botticelli Vineyard Zin, an excellent expression of the rocky appellation high above Lake Sonoma.
Vigilance Winery, 13888 Point Lakeview Road, Lower Lake, 707-994-9656, vigilancewinery.com. Sustainably farmed by longtime vineyard manager Clay Shannon and his team of grass-fed lambs, Vigilance offers gorgeous vistas of Clear Lake and Mount Konocti and access to the Anderson Marsh sanctuary. A day at Vigilance isn’t complete this time of year without a glass of Sauvignon Blanc.
VJB Vineyards & Cellars, 60 Shaw Ave., Kenwood, 707-833-2300, vjbcellars.com. In an Italian-inspired, courtyard-centered villa in the heart of Sonoma Valley, VJB serves steaming coffee and pastries in the morning, panini, pasta and pizza during the day, and samples of its Italian-inspired wines. The winery also stocks co-proprietor Maria Belmonte’s line of sauces, pestos and tapenades, and houses a shop for gelato and specialty chocolates.
Alexander’s at the Timber Cove Inn, Timber Cove, 707-847-3231, timbercoveinn.com. The restaurant at the old Timber Cove Inn has been cleaned up, given a makeover and is now well worth a stop for breakfast, lunch or dinner, all served daily. The views of the ocean, rocks and land forms around the crescent beach at Timber Cove are gorgeous. The food is classic California-American with nods to Canada, Mexico, Europe, Polynesia and the Far East. Stick with the basics and you won’t go wrong: steaks, ribs, fish and fowl. There is a good wine list of Sonoma Coast and Russian River Valley wines. Reviewed 7/29/12. $$-$$$$
Baci Cafe & Wine Bar, 336 Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg, 707-433-8111, bacicafeandwinebar.com. Classic Italian dishes, many of them from northern Italy, are expertly prepared by Shari Sarabi, who is originally from Iran but cooks as though he hails from Milan. A large wood-fired oven turns out some of the best pizza in Sonoma County. The sauce Bolognese is the real thing, and there’s tiramisu and panna cotta for dessert. The wine list features wines from Italy and the Healdsburg area. Reviewed 12/1/13. $$$
Belly Left Coast Kitchen & Tap Room, 523 Fourth St., Santa Rosa, 707-526-5787, belly707.com. Belly raises the bar for gastropubs in the North Bay, with wonderfully flavorful renditions of staples such as pizzas, burgers, steaks, barbecued pulled pork, crab cakes, salads and more. Chef Gray Rollin has been the tour chef for many popular music acts, and you can imagine band members appreciating his way with comfort food. Twenty-six beers on tap and 26 more by the bottle offer extensive choices for ways to wet your whistle and whet your appetite. Reviewed 4/28/13. $-$$
The Big 3, 100 Boyes Blvd., Sonoma, 707-938-9000, ext. 2410, fairmont.com/sonoma/dining/the-big-3. This is the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn’s casual dining spot, and a place renowned for its great breakfasts (It serves lunch and dinner, too). A recently installed wood-burning oven turns out excellent pizzas. There’s a wine bar for sampling Sonoma Valley wines by the glass. As it is part of the SMI hotel and spa complex, dinner entrees are pricey. The fare is all-American: meatloaf, baby back ribs, New York steak, fish and chicken. Reviewed 11/4/12. $$$-$$$$
Bistro 29, 620 Fifth St., Santa Rosa, 707-546-2929, bistro29.com. We’re lucky to have a restaurant in our area that serves the food of Brittany in northwestern France. The cuisine features beautiful buckwheat crepes, both savory and sweet, with myriad choices of fillings. Brittany is known for its excellent chicken and seafood, and chef Brian Anderson makes delicious entrees with locally sourced versions of both. Great wine list of French and local wines, too. Reviewed 5/19/13. $$$
Bistro Des Copains, 3782 Bohemian Highway, Occidental, 707-874-2436, bistrodescopains.com. This very authentic Provençal-style bistro in the charming village of Occidental is the kind of place that a tourist, stumbling upon it, would write home about. Real-deal onion soup, raclette melted cheese, feuilleté of escargot, great pissaladière, mushroom crème brulée, braised rabbit in mustard sauce, steak frites with sauce Béarnaise, and so much more. Reviewed 3/17/13. $$-$$$$
Café Lucia, 235 Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg, Suite 105, 707-431-1113, cafelucia.net. The same highly flavored Portuguese food that has made LaSalette such a hit over the years in Sonoma is now available in Healdsburg. The kitchen turns out dishes created by executive chef Manuel Azevedo, and his sister, Lucia, hosts and runs the business. The siblings are co-owners. It’s a bright and tasty addition to Healdsburg’s already-superior food scene. The caldo verde is perfect, seafood stew is terrific, and all the entrees shimmer with intense flavor. Reviewed 1/20/13. $$$
Campo Fina, 330 Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg, 707-395-4640, campo-fina.com. With the addition of Campo Fina to Scopa, his other restaurant, chef Ari Rosen has given Healdsburg the Italian restaurants this destination food-and-wine town deserves. At the center of Campo Fina is a wood-fired oven and its incredibly good pizzas. Lots of small plates are offered. The dishes are classic in their devotion to the Italian food sensibility but also innovative. Great wine list. Highly recommended. Reviewed 8/26/12. $$
Canneti Roadhouse, 6675 Front St., Forestville, 707-887-2232, cannetirestaurant.com. Canneti Roadhouse primarily serves Tuscan food that chef/owner Francesco Torre learned to love as a child in Italy. That means a local version of the Mediterranean diet, with lots of fresh vegetables, olive oil, bread and meat (especially game). A four-course seasonal Tuscan tasting menu is a good bet, and each course can be paired with wine. During clement weather, there’s alfresco dining out back. Reviewed 5/26/13. $$$-$$$$
Catelli’s, 21047 Geyserville Ave., Geyserville, 707-857-3471, mycatellis.com. Nick and Domenica Catelli, grandchildren of the original owners, have brought Catelli’s restaurant back to life and supercharged it with good feelings and the old Italian-American favorites made with locally grown, organic ingredients. The result? Catelli’s is better than ever. It even has Kitty’s bread pudding on the menu, a staple for more than 30 years at the restaurant’s previous incarnation. Great list of local wines. Reviewed 5/6/12. $$-$$$$
Chalkboard, 29 North St., Healdsburg, 707-473-8030, chalkboardhealdsburg.com. This hideout for tired tourists and thirsty, hungry locals is a refreshing break from the insistent gentrification going on around it in Healdsburg. A full bar offers cocktails in a comfy setting, and the rustic décor encourages patrons to relax. The small-plate dishes of chef Shane McAnelly are modestly priced and tasty, and include the best sliders in town, raw items, house-made pastas and seafood. Reviewed 6/23/13. $$
Flavor Bistro, 96 Old Courthouse Square, Santa Rosa, 707-573-9600, flavorbistro.com. In its friendly, unpretentious way, Flavor Bistro is a shining example of Sonoma County’s enviable food scene. House-made pastas and pizzas, and meats and vegetables from local organic farms are expertly prepared, and the wine list is excellent. Breakfast is served most days and lunch and dinner every day. Best of all are the modest prices on most dishes. All these features make Flavor the go-to place for locals and wise visitors. Reviewed 12/8/13. $-$$$$
El Dorado Kitchen, 405 First St. W., Sonoma, 707-996-3030, eldoradosonoma.com. The food can be superb here, although prices are high. Roast chicken? Wonderful. Fresh garden salads? Great. All are supported by an excellent wine list. The outdoor patio is a lovely setting during clement weather. Reviewed 1/8/12. $$$$
The Fig Café, 13690 Arnold Drive, Glen Ellen, 707-938-2130, thefigcafe.com. Here is a modest restaurant that’s usually full of happy customers because the food is good, there’s no corkage on wines brought in, and it doesn’t take reservations. A word to the wise: Don’t miss the Meyer lemon cheesecake with huckleberry compote. There are thin-crust pizzas, steaming bowls of plump mussels, a good pot roast plate, grilled cheese sandwiches, soups, salads and a lot more. Reviewed 4/29/12. $$-$$$
French Blue, 1429 Main St., St. Helena, 707-968-9200, frenchbluenapa.com. Here’s a comfortable refuge from the hustle and bustle of Napa Valley. Seating in the expansive dining room is first come, first served. The food is refined bistro fare with a gorgeous blue cheese burger, pasta, mussels, fish, steak, an interesting array of appetizers and a full bar. The same menu is offered all day, and the restaurant is open until 11 p.m. Comfy chairs and banquettes with lots of pillows add to the relaxing vibe. Reviewed 7/1/12. $$
Glen Ellen Star, 13648 Arnold Drive, Glen Ellen, 707-343-1384, glenellenstar.com. Chef Ari Weiswasser selects culinary ideas from around the world and uses them to make innovative and delicious versions of meat and vegetable dishes in his wood-fired oven. The broad pods of Romano beans in a bacon and brown sugar marmalade is an example, as are roasted lamb meatballs served with couscous and vegetable soffrito. A good wine list is reasonably priced. There are house-made ice creams for dessert. Reviewed 6/24/12. $-$$$
Goose & Gander, 1245 Spring St., St. Helena, 707-967-8779, goosegander.com. Here’s gastropub cooking done right, and for reasonable prices given that it’s in the hub of Napa Valley. Choose from a wide variety of interesting appetizers, including
really delicious meatballs, scrumptious wood-grilled prawns in a piperade and roasted bone marrow. There is an incredibly good tomato soup, and main plates feature seared California halibut, house-made fettucini and flatiron steak. A superb wine list completes the picture. Reviewed 6/17/12. $$-$$$$
Jacinto’s Kitchen “Pot of Flavors,” 6576 Oakmont Drive, Santa Rosa, 707-537-8933, jacintoskitchen.com. Erasto and Pablo Jacinto worked for years at some of Napa Valley’s best restaurants, and now have a place of their own in Oakmont in eastern Santa Rosa, where they brilliantly recreate the Mexican dishes they grew up with in Oaxaca. The chile rellenos, sweet-corn tamales and especially the from-scratch mole sauce are perfect evocations of those dishes. Reviewed 4/1/12. $$
Lucy Restaurant & Bar, 6526 Yount St., Yountville, 707-204-6030, bar-dessono.com. The Bardessono Hotel is one of the greenest hotels in the country, and Lucy, its restaurant serving California cuisine, relies on produce from Lucy’s Garden, right outside the kitchen door. The home-grown ingredients in every dish are marked on the menu with a symbol. Most of the items can be purchased as a small or large plate. The food is carefully prepared and the wine list is superb. Reviewed 3/25/12. $$-$$$$
630 Park Steakhouse, at the Graton Resort & Casino, 630 Park Court, Rohnert Park, 707-588-7115, gratonresortcasino.com/dining/casual-dining. Here is a big-time, casino-style steakhouse. A 42-ounce prime T-bone for two is $120, a 20-ounce rib eye for one is $54, and filet mignons start at $43 for the “petite.” The meat is as terrific as the prices, and the kitchen also serves up chicken and seafood, such as the 28-ounce Northern Australian lobster tail for $149. Side dishes of vegetables, potatoes, and comfort foods like mac and cheese, run approximately $10 extra each. You only live once. Reviewed 12/29/13. $$$$
Speakeasy, 139 Petaluma Blvd. N., Suite B, Petaluma, 707-776-4631, speakeasypetaluma.com. One of the chief virtues of Speakeasy is that it stays open for food and drink until 2 a.m. every day. Chef Dindo Borja, originally from Guam, prepares an eclectic mix of sandwiches, tacos and tapas with influences from all over the Pacific. The Taco Trio is a winner: pork belly, chicken and salmon tacos are plenty for a meal. Yes, there’s beer and wine, but none of the hard stuff. Reviewed 5/12/13. $-$$
Tony’s of North Beach, at the Graton Resort & Casino, 630 Park Court, Rohnert Park, 707-586-0777. gratonresortcasino.com/dining/casual-dining. Pizza superstar Tony Gemignani, who owns a handful of Italian restaurants in the Bay Area, added this sit-down pizza parlor to his holdings in late 2013. It’s a great place to take a break from the noisy casino floor, and the pizzas — including Neapolitan, Sicilian, Roman, Italian-American, New York and Californian — are delicious and classic examples of their styles. A fine wine list, too. Reviewed 12/15/13. $$-$$$$
Woodfour Brewing Company, 6780 Depot St., Sebastopol (in The Barlow), 707-823-3144, woodfourbrewing.com. It’s just what you want in a restaurant — something new and different. The brewery makes a range of distinctive beers and ales and has a cupboard full of bottled beers from all over the world. The food is as ingenious as the beers, and beautifully displayed on the plates. It shows great creativity on the part of the chefs, as they combine unlikely ingredients into exceptionally delicious dishes. Reviewed 9/8/13. $$
The Culinary Institute of America as seen from the CIA farm at the Charles Krug Winery in St. Helena. (Alvin Jornada / For The Press Democrat)
In Wine Country, the distance from farm to fork is shrinking to nearly nothing: There are restaurants that now boast onsite farms and full-time gardeners, allowing them to reap what they sow on a year-round basis.
We’re not talking about a raised bed of rosemary, parsley and thyme. These are full-on farms where greenhouses extend the season and diners can extend their visits by strolling past the asparagus and lettuce beds.
The newest restaurant farm is at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, where pioneering chef Larry Forgione launched a farm-to-table program in 2013.
“California has the Mediterranean climate that’s so conducive to growing produce year-round,” Forgione said. “If you don’t start with great ingredients, you’re not going to have great food.”
For 15 weeks, CIA students learn about composting with farm manager Christian Dake at the 3-acre garden at Charles Krug Winery, just across Highway 29 from the campus. Then, with Forgione’s guidance, they harvest, design and serve a five-course tasting menu at The Conservatory, a pop-up restaurant open Friday and Saturday nights on campus.
This spring, Dake is excited about the farm’s new greenhouse, which has a retractable roof and shade cloth system that will allow him to get a jump on tomato starts and produce cool-weather greens into the summer.
Dake is also dry-farming 3 acres of heritage wheat for breads and pastries, raising chickens for their eggs and expecting the farm’s first farrow of Red Wattle pigs in March.
Chef Jesse Mallgren in the Madrona Manor culinary garden in Healdsburg in 2013. (Jeni + Dylan Photography.)
At the Michelin-starred Madrona Manor in Healdsburg, the 8-acre estate gardens include a 1-acre production garden tended by Master Gardener Geno Ceccato for the past 25 years. New this year is a vented greenhouse, where Ceccato can grow baby lettuces and microgreens to suit executive chef Jesse Mallgren’s exacting palate.
In the spring, Mallgren designs his menus around the herbs, carrots, fava beans and strawberries ripening in the outdoor beds as well.
“We try to grow things that can be picked and served the same day,” Mallgren said. “And things that you can’t find elsewhere.”
Mallgren, who sources about 25 percent of his produce from the estate gardens, encourages his culinary crew to pick their own ingredients.
“You get out of the kitchen that way,” he said. “And it’s got a beautiful view.”
The Conservatory, The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone, 2555 Main St., St. Helena, 707-967-2300, ciarestaurants.com
TRILLIUM CHEF JEREMY BAUMGARTNER CONSULTS WITH SUPPORTER MARGARET FOX
The view from the Trillium Cafe in Mendocino, which opens March 15, 2014 officially.
Good news from our neighbors to the north: The Baked Alaska is back.
Granted, we’ve cherry-picked this Madmen-era dessert (ice cream and sponge cake covered with meringue, baked, and often set alight) off the forthcoming Trillium Cafe’s menu. But after perusing this new Mendocino restaurant’s menu, it’s indicative of the kind of classic-meets-modern dishes on Chef Jeremy Baumgartner’s sensibility.
To wit: This Baked Alaska is an olive oil cake with kumquat meringue and mint ice cream ($9). And as long as we’re thinking dessert first, how about bourbon cream beignets with maple glaze and candied bacon, or a butterscotch pie with caramel and Chantily cream.
At least you’ve been warned to save room.
“We know this is an often overlooked area…We feel strongly that diners who are paying for a Wine Country caliber meal…in a stunning location deserve not only outstanding food and drink, but…caring service as well,” said Trillium’s owner, Sandra McElroy.
Other tempting menu items: Spring pea arancini ($12), Dungeness crab strudel with capers and nasturtium ($15), rabbit meatballs and tortelloni ($22) with sunchokes, and pork loin and belly with heirloom beans ($26). Also available are several vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free items.
The restaurant will be open for lunch and dinner. And of course, dessert.
Preparing for Restaurant Week at Red’s Apple Roadhouse Photo: Press Democrat
Preparing for Restaurant Week at Red’s Apple Roadhouse Photo: Press Democrat
I always feel like I need to announce Sonoma County Restaurant Week (March 10-16) with the same voice Oprah used to announce that her audience was flying to Australia. “And you get a three course dinner for $19! And you get a three course dinner for $29!,” BiteClub shouts over the screaming audience.
Talkshow dreams aside, it’s hard to believe this is the fifth year that Sonoma County celebrates its hardworking restaurateurs with a five-day celebration of all things delicious. With well over 100 restaurants spanning Santa Rosa, Sonoma, Healdsburg, Petaluma, the Coast and everything in-between, this is your chance to hit up some of those restaurants you’ve been dying to try, but just haven’t been to yet.
New this year: Two course lunch menus for $10, $15 or $20. Three course dinner menus remain at $19, $29 and $39.
I’ll have a full list online, as well as some of my favorite menus, but some of the newcomers you may want to check out include:
– Palooza Gastropub (8910 Sonoma Hwy, Kenwood) featuring their wedge salad, beef cheeks or Chef Chris Hanson’s luxe vegetarian risotto made with Speakeasy lager, mushrooms and season veggies, and s’mores on a stick, $39.
– 38 Degrees North: Sonoma Mission Inn’s hot new restaurant serves up roasted beet salad, beef sliders and creme brûlée, $39.
– Belly Left Coast Kitchen (523 Fourth St., Santa Rosa): Love this downtown SR restaurant that’s got a killer pork belly with hoisin and Campfire Stout chocolate mousse, $29.
– Red’s Apple Roadhouse (4550 Gravenstein Hwy, Sebastopol): One of BiteClub’s favorite off-the-beaten-path newcomers is doing both lunch ($15, pulled pork sammie or portobello mushroom burger with handout fries and pie) and dinner ($19) featuring their famous fried chicken supper or beer-braised pork belly.
– Best Value, Partake by KJ (241 Healdsburg Ave, Healdsburg): Biteclub is pretty floored by the $29 and $39 dinner menus that include 4-plus courses of Chef Justin Wangler’s life-altering food with multiple wine pairings. Think oysters with white verjus, smoked loin of lamb, white chocolate panna cotta, beet tartare and Meyer lemon pudding. Now, keep in mind, each course is more of a few luxurious bites rather than a craggy mound of food. But we’d far rather eat well than prodigiously.
Now please excuse me while sop the drool off my keyboard.
Five-year-old Dasha Kovina and her mother Anna Kovina smile as they stretch a portion of freshly made mozzarella cheese during “The Secrets of Making Stretched Curd Cheese” class at the Artisan Cheese Festival in Petaluma on March 23, 2013. (Alvin Jornada / The Press Democrat)
MARCH 15-16 Savor Sonoma Valley: More than 20 participating wineries in Sonoma Valley will showcase 2013 vintage wines straight from the barrel, offer visitors tastes of new releases and pair specific wines with dishes prepared by local chefs and restaurants. Meet the winemakers, view works by local artists and listen to live music. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. $10-$65.
Various Sonoma Valley wineries, 866-794-9463, heartofsonomavalley.com
Bacon poached swordfish, with a back ‘chip’, bacon bernaise and black trumpets made by chef Dustin Valette. (Crista Jeremiason / The Press Democrat, file 2013)
MARCH 21-22 Pigs & Pinot: Dry Creek Kitchen’s Charlie Palmer teams with more than a dozen other top chefs and winemakers at this two-day celebration of all things pork and Pinot Noir. Wine and food tastings, cooking and wine competitions, and a gala dinner are among the features. $125-$175.
Hotel Healdsburg, 25 Matheson St., Healdsburg, 707-922-5249, pigsandpinot.com
MARCH 21-23 California’s Artisan Cheese Festival: Find out just how good cheese can be when cheesemakers, chefs, experts and authors gather at the Sheraton Sonoma County in Petaluma for an opening-night reception, tastings, demonstrations, classes, cheese field trips, panel discussions and seminars. Whether you like mild or sharp, white or yellow or blue, you’ll find cheeses to love here. $20-$135.
Sheraton Sonoma County, 745 Baywood Drive, Petaluma, 707-523-3728, artisancheesefestival.com
MARCH 27-30 Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival: Sebastopol’s 17th annual celebration of nonfiction cinema touches on topics ranging from local to global, with screenings at the Rialto Cinemas and other venues. $250 all-access pass.
Headquarters: Sebastopol Center for the Arts, 282 S. High St., Sebastopol, 707-829-4797, sebastopolfilmfestival.org
One bottle at a time at Battle of the Brews at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, Saturday April 6, 2013 in Santa Rosa. (Kent Porter / Press Democrat)
MARCH 29 Battle of the Brews: With the rise of Northern California professional brewers making their own custom beers on a smaller scale, there’s no longer any doubt that Wine Country is also Beer Country. This 18th annual event, sponsored by the Active 20-30 Club of Santa Rosa, showcases more than 30 breweries and 20 food vendors, live music and a gourmet sandwich competition. $40-$95.
Sonoma County Fairgrounds, 1350 Bennett Valley Road, Santa Rosa, 707-545-4200, battleofthebrews.com
MARCH Children’s Museum of Sonoma County: After nearly a decade on the go, taking exhibits to various venues, the museum plans to open the Mary’s Garden and Ella’s Studio portions of its new permanent home next to the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa. By late March, kids will be able to explore hands-on activities there. Look for the museum’s grand opening in the fall.
1835 W. Steele Lane, 707-546-4069, cmosc.com
APRIL 12-13 Sebastopol Apple Blossom Festival: Two days of food, drink, crafts and live entertainment celebrate Sebastopol’s agricultural heritage, honoring the bygone days when apple orchards dominated the landscape. The first day’s Main Street parade is a charming slice of Americana. $10 general admission, $5 seniors and students, under 10 free.
Ives Park, 7400 Willow St., Sebastopol, 707-823-3032, sebastopol.org
APRIL 26-27 April in Carneros: Enjoy the beautiful grapevine-covered hills of southern Sonoma County during the annual two-day celebration of the wine region that bridges Sonoma and Napa counties. Nearly 20 participating wineries on both sides of the line will offer food and wine pairings, as well as barrel, reserve, vertical and library wine tastings, plus live entertainment. $39-$45. carneroswineries.org
Trumpet player Nicholas Stephens plays ‘Taps’ after Father Robert White placed a memorial wreath on the water Sunday to remember lost fishermen during the blessing of the fleet in Bodega Bay. (BETH SCHLANKER/ The Press Democrat, file 2012)
APRIL 26-27 Bodega Bay Fisherman’s Festival: The 41st annual event promises local seafood, tastings of more than 25 Sonoma County wines, boat races, live entertainment, a pet parade and the beloved annual Blessing of the Fleet ceremony. $10-$12; under 12 free.
Westside Regional Park, 2400 Westshore Road, Bodega Bay, 707-875-3866, bbfishfest.org
APRIL 26-27 Passport to Dry Creek Valley: For the event’s 25th anniversary year, more than 50 wineries in the Dry Creek Valley will offer the best of Sonoma County wine and food, plus live music and vineyard tours at many of the sites. $120 for a two-day pass; $70 for Sunday only.
707-433-3031, wdcv.com
Spectators watch during the Petaluma Butter and Egg Days Parade in Petaluma. (Kent Porter / Press Democrat, file 2013)
APRIL 26 Petaluma Butter and Egg Days Parade: Celebrate Sonoma County’s agricultural roots and Petaluma’s rich history at this all-day community festival. The parade, which winds through downtown Petaluma, draws thousands every year. Free.
707-762-9348, petalumadowntown.com
APRIL 27 Hilary Hahn: At 33, the violin virtuoso already has two Grammy Awards and was named “America’s Best Young Classical Musician” by Time magazine in 2011. She’ll make her Weill Hall debut at Sonoma State’s Green Music Center. $40-$85.
Green Music Center, 801 E. Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park, 866-955-6040, gmc.sonoma.edu
Amid record water shortfalls and unreliable rains, fear grows that Mother Nature is stealing the California dream. Are there lessons to be drawn from Sonoma’s past? (photos by Kent Porter)
It rained and it rained and it rained. And then, after three of the wettest seasons in memory, the heavens went dry.
That eerie, rainless December of 1975 began the widespread sense of unease. The grass browned and ranchers resorted to trucking in water for their livestock, an expedient usually reserved only for the driest depths of summer.
And now it has happened again. With less than 9 inches of rain, 2013 went down as the driest year ever recorded in Sonoma County. It was the same in the rest of California.
Neither the fool’s euphoria of balmy January days nor the gleeful relief at seeing rain arrive at last, late and inadequate, could soothe the growing fear that a historic water shortage could again bring catastrophe.
Dirt from a field, nearly fallow, easily separates in a coastal breeze at the Sonoma, Marin county line.
Your father’s drought
Fear is what J. Dietrich Stroeh remembers from the drought of 1976-77; he was the general manager of the Marin Municipal Water District through that bleak time. It is one thing to be unsettled by winter hills that are parched to tan when they should be brilliant green. It is another entirely to fear that thousands of people will have no water to drink.
“There were many nights I drove from the office to home, and it would be quite late, and I felt fear,” recalled Stroeh. “For the first time in my life I felt fear. I was looking for water and I didn’t know where I was going to get it.”
The 24-month drought cost the state more than $2.6 billion in losses, even by the most conservative estimates. It devastated California’s livestock industry, which suffered nearly $900 million in losses. Tourism declined as lakes dwindled, campground wells went dry, and fires scorched the landscape. Up to 8 million trees died in those two years, some from lack of water, some from fire, and the rest from pests that flourished in the unseasonably warm, dry winters.
By March of 1976, officials were publicly warning residents to prepare for water rationing by summer. By June, Petaluma was limiting landscape watering to every other day — on even days east of Highway 101, odd days to the west. During the next year, municipalities banned outside watering entirely and moved to ration indoor water use.
Eventually, National Guard troops were assigned to run a seven-day-a-week water trucking operation to rural farms and homes in Sonoma County. Local officials commandeered Caltrans tankers to help.
In December 1976, a newspaper writer observed that folks were “beginning to wonder if it would ever rain again.” And that was only halfway through what would become the most desperate drought the area had known in its modern history.
Rainfall in 2012 and 2013 was well less than those two withering years in the mid-1970s, and 2014 started even worse, promising a third critically dry year. Water managers spent this past winter dusting off the playbooks written decades ago by Stroeh and his colleagues, and casting nervous eyes at the dwindling supplies in area reservoirs.
As with the 1970s, there was something haunting and increasingly apocalyptic through the fall and winter of 2013: Every day became as sunny, mild and dry as anything we could wish of summer. As this January closed with barely a sprinkle all month — drier even than the arid January of 2013 — a kind of fatalism began to creep into the discussion.
“This is worse. … This is going to hurt us for sure,” said third-generation Sonoma rancher Ray Mulas, who remembers his father struggling to feed the cattle during the 1976-77 dry spell. Without rain to grow alfalfa and grass, he’s begun to wonder “if we’re going to be here in June.”
For the first time, he said, he’s considering what would happen to his 500-acre dairy ranch, in the family for eight decades, if he had to sell off the herd.
“You have to be prepared for everything,” he said as January came to a parched conclusion. “You’d be a fool if you didn’t think about these things. You have to have that exit strategy in place.”
By some measures, the North Coast is much better off today than were its frightened and thirsty residents of the 1970s. The booming population centers — Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Marin — can now access water from Lake Sonoma, which opened in 1982 and was designed to hold a three-year supply. As well, homes are far more efficient than they used to be, with water-saving appliances and fixtures that have cut home consumption dramatically.
But those measures can’t protect from truly epic droughts, today’s water managers warn.
“You can never eliminate risk,” said Jay Jasperse, chief engineer for the Sonoma County Water Agency, who was in high school when the 1970s drought swept the state. “The public, I don’t think, likes that message. It’s not a fun message. It’s an important message and an honest one, too.”
It’s difficult to overstate just how close the region came to catastrophe before the rains began again at the end of December 1977, leading to a string of wetter years starting in 1978.
By the end of that drought, the flow in the Russian River dropped to just 6 percent of its average. The six reservoirs that supplied the North Coast then had fallen to 15 percent of their average capacity to supply every city between San Pablo Bay and the Oregon border.
The drought “has again shown the finite nature of our resources and our limited ability to control nature,” wrote Ronald B. Robie, former director of the state Department of Water Resources, in the grim final report on the drought, issued in 1978.
The bones of a fish lie exposed on the dry lakebed at Lake Mendocino. By early February, the lake had shrunk to a depth of just 68.9 feet, barely more than half its maximum level.
“There is no assurance that the next drought is not just beyond the horizon,” he wrote prophetically. “We can be assured, however, that drought will return and, considering the greater needs of that future time, its impact, if not prepared for, will be much greater.”
The memories are still vivid of the every-day effects of that long-ago drought. Cars collected thick coats of dirt. Dust clouds rose from the ground in February. Sparse grass on area fields and hills went from the golden of dry summer to a dead brown.
“It became a badge of who cared, who had brown lawns,” recalled Leon Sharyon, who was a teenager in Modesto at the time and now watches warily from his perch as chief financial officer of Lagunitas Brewing Co. in Petaluma, as cities contemplate mandatory water cuts on water-intensive businesses such as his.
“It’s a nerve-wracking time,” he admitted of this new drought. Any serious rationing plan would force the beer company, and any other water-heavy food or beverage manufacturer, to make difficult decisions about where to cut, and ultimately could force costly production shortfalls.
Back in the 1970s, the media was full of slogans and helpful advice, including the infamous motto explaining when to flush the toilet: “When it’s brown, flush it down; when it’s yellow, let it mellow.”
Newspapers were full of charts detailing how simple changes in behavior could save tremendous amounts of water: brushing your teeth with the tap running could use 3 gallons; “wet brush, rinse briefly” would use just one-quarter of a gallon.
One piece of advice sticks in the mind of longtime Press Democrat columnist and local historian Gaye LeBaron: Turn the shower on only long enough to wet your body. Turn it off, lather up, then turn it back on only as long as it takes to rinse off. Water managers touted that as a way to save 24 gallons in even a brief shower.
LeBaron’s verdict on the short-form showers? “A most unpleasant experience.”
The drought forced communities throughout the area to the edge of disaster. With reservoirs near empty, communities including Santa Rosa and Calistoga banned outdoor use of water.
The Marin Municipal Water District concocted a fantastic scheme to run a pipe from the East Bay across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, a plan that is credited with saving 170,000 customers from going completely dry in the summer of 1977.
Once rains did come back, the public moved on. But farmers and water managers remembered.
Cities all over the area kept their mandatory conservation plans on the books, developed programs to help homeowners install water-efficient fixtures and appliances, and offered incentives to rip out water-guzzling grass lawns. Vineyard owners kept the new water-conserving drip irrigation systems, installed on the fly as a last-ditch effort to save the premium crops in Napa and Sonoma counties through the drought.
The system of rationing improvised by Stroeh in Marin County in the 1970s has become an industry standard. Rather than threatening to cut off water or arrest scofflaws, his agency created a system of ever-increasing emergency rates. The more you exceed your allocation, the more you pay the next month, until the economic pain becomes unbearable.
“It all worked out, and worked out well,” he said. “People liked that.”
“I drove my ranch today, and it is a disaster.” – Two Rock dairyman Don De Bernardi, whose shrinking irrigation pond should be filing with winter rain.
How we live today
So here we are again. Even with the February rains, the drought remains a painful reality.
“This whole thing we’re going through right now is pretty serious stuff,” Stroeh said.
It’s so serious that state officials warned in January that at least 17 communities were in imminent danger of running out of water completely. Of those, three were North Coast cities: Willits, Cloverdale and Healdsburg. The governor declared a drought emergency and cities scrambled to implement conservation, at first voluntary but with the strong threat of mandatory rationing by spring.
By the end of 2013, farmers were begging county officials for help with trucking in water; the supervisors were considering reviving the emergency trucking operations that took to the road daily in 1977. Ranchers began culling their herds to save on the soaring cost of feed, starting first with calves and moving to older cows.
“I drove my ranch today and it is a disaster,” said Two Rock dairyman Don De Bernardi after a predicted rainstorm in late January fizzled, delivering just one one-hundredth of an inch of moisture. “The crops are dying,” which will force him onto the crowded and expensive market for hay and feed grown elsewhere.
Other sorts of farmers are no better off. Norm Yenni, a multigeneration grain farmer in Sonoma, said he fears a total loss on his unirrigated 2,300 acres if the rains don’t return for good.
Yenni called the February rains a fine start but said the future remains uncertain.
“We’re into territory I’ve never been in before — I don’t think anyone else has,” he said.
Grapegrowers, meanwhile, worried that the dry conditions could make their vines more vulnerable to frost damage. The warm, dry weather was fooling the vines into pushing out their delicate buds as early as January, leaving them vulnerable to devastating frost damage for the rest of the winter. Even more than for irrigation, vineyards rely on water for frost protection, so the early budding with limited water supply spelled sleepless nights for vineyard managers.
The drought could also depress vineyard yields. In the 1976-77 drought, grape crop weights dropped noticeably, particularly in the premium wine-growing areas along the coast, according to the state’s final report on the drought.
As January 2014 closed drier than ever, grapegrowers began making worst-case plans, right up to abandoning the entire 2014 crop.
With no water for irrigation, vineyard managers said, the best strategy would be to trim the vines entirely and let them rest through the drought.
“We’re going to have to save the vines for next year,” said J. Alex Vyborny, owner of Vyborny Vineyard Management, which manages 1,000 acres in Napa and Sonoma counties. “That means cutting fruit, cutting canes.”
If 2014 is dry, he said, “we’re going to be in trouble.”
When David Martin of San Francisco went kayaking on Lake Sonoma in January, the water level has fallen so low he couldn’t launch from the boat ramp. Instead, he had to portage through several yards of gooey mud to get his craft to and from the lake.
Not your father’s drought
The only thing that’s clear about the future is that Ronald Robie’s 1978 words are true: Some day, ferocious drought will return.
Even were it not for the threat of climate change, serious dry spells are inevitable every few decades. With California’s population at 38 million and climbing by about 1 percent a year, the pressure on the state’s water resources will get progressively worse.
With climate change, all bets are off. And the best computer models disagree: Northern California will get drier; Northern California will get wetter. One thing they do agree on is that the extremes will become more so — drier dry periods and wetter wets. And that means more dangerously dry periods are ahead for Sonoma County no matter what else the future holds.
Six decades ago, former Press Democrat reporter Frank Herbert dreamed of the desert world of Arrakis, where the mere possession of water was a mark of wealth and power, and common people struggled to conserve and reuse every last drop they could collect just to survive. The story, possibly inspired in part by the dunes of Bodega Bay and the North Coast, went on to become the best-selling science-fiction classic “Dune.”
But that vision is not as much fantasy as we might like. Water managers today joke nervously about the day when customers wear “stillsuits,” the full-body suits imagined by Herbert that Arrakis residents wore to capture and recycle moisture, including sweat and waste.
Stillsuits may not be in our future, but the kind of intensive recycling it suggests is not far off the mark. There may come a day when California residents will become accustomed to the idea that the water they send down the drain, or flush down the toilet, comes back to them in the form of treated drinking water.
Already, desert cities such as Los Angeles and Las Vegas are working on plans to pump the wastewater from sewage treatment plants back into their reservoirs.
“Water is water. All the water we have has been recycled millions of times,” said David Guhin, director of utilities for the City of Santa Rosa. “There is only so much water in the world.”
Stroeh, now a consultant who works for water agencies all over the region, including Sonoma County, sees a somewhat different future: a string of desalinization plants up and down the West Coast, undertaking the fantastically expensive process of converting sea water to tap water.
And even with these plants, he said, California residents in the second half of the century can expect to be on a permanent rationing system modeled on his plan from the 1970s: daily limits enforced by a progressively steeper cost for excessive use.
The engineers at the Sonoma County Water Agency are somewhat more optimistic, at least about the local picture. Sonoma County, they said, is unusual in that it has a robust river system that, at least in most years, gets fed plenty of water if it’s added up throughout the year. The problem is that it typically is available at the wrong times: We need it in the summer but get it in the winter.
“We don’t have a shortage of water. We have a timing issue,” Jasperse said, as much of the annual winter rainfall becomes runoff into the Pacific Ocean. “And the game there is to try to play with that and make it more to our advantage. We need all the water when it is not happening.”
The chances that anyone will pay for yet another reservoir to hold all that wintertime water is near zero, so water agencies and cities are left to look at smaller-scale solutions.
One of the best is simply to reuse wastewater. Sonoma County Water Agency general manager Grant Davis said there are plenty of ways to reuse treated wastewater, short of pumping it straight back into the tap. Waste treatment plants are looking for ways to get farms, parks and golf courses to use wastewater for irrigation, thus taking pressure off precious and dwindling groundwater supplies.
Other options include capturing the extra water from the winter and storing it for the summer. The Water Agency is experimenting with using detention ponds, which would allow flood waters to soak into the ground slowly rather than just rushing off to the ocean. It is also beginning a pilot study of drilling wells that would allow winter water to be pumped into the ground and saved for use during peak summer periods.
Even if the agency can capture just a fraction of the water that normally runs off to the ocean in wet winters, engineers said, it would make a big difference during peak summer usage periods.
But the agency is also thinking bigger. It’s taking part in a series of national studies of weather forecasting and hydrology that could revolutionize how water is managed in the arid West.
In the most high-profile project, Sonoma County is home to the first in a series of West Coast weather stations that will help meteorologists understand a phenomenon known as “atmospheric rivers,” the huge weather systems that are responsible for most of the wet weather the area gets in the winter. Much of the early research on these systems was conducted in Sonoma County in the 1990s. The area will remain a key center of research in the future, in part because the Russian River is among the most flood-prone watersheds in the country, making it a great laboratory for weather researchers.
Understanding how the atmospheric rivers form off the coast of Asia and Africa, how they build across the Pacific and where they hit along the West Coast could give water managers vital advance warnings of flood and droughts alike, telling them when to hoard water behind dams and when to let it flow out to the ocean, the Water Agency said.
“This region is taking an innovative approach,” Davis said. “You entertain these sorts of short-term, midterm and long-term solutions. … I think we are going to contribute to water management throughout the state.”
Drought and memory
Until the rains return, it is impossible to know how the drought of the 2010s might be remembered. But looking back on contemporary accounts of the drought in the 1970s, an intriguing pattern emerges. When the rains stopped in 1975, there was a sense of foreboding. Later, as a series of small rains teased the North Coast, pundits confidently predicted an end to the drought even as the sprinkles failed to fill the reservoirs. As the drought dragged through its second year, a sense of fatalism crept in, with every rainstorm greeted with the grim resignation that it would amount to nothing.
Finally, when the heavy rains began to lash the coast after two bitter years, it was as if the writers of the day simply couldn’t believe that the long ordeal was over. It took a series of destructive floods before they were willing to admit that the worst was behind them.
And then, in the spring of 1978, everything returned to normal: Lawns were green, cars were washed, and everyone went back to enjoying the sublime California weather.
Or almost everyone.
Stroeh said the public, and sometimes even water engineers, tend to be optimists. They assume the best, and once the rains come, they figure it will continue. The searing drought of the 1970s cured Stroeh of his optimistic streak.
“This drought made a believer out of me,” he said. “This will happen again.”
Pisco sours, an addictive Peruvian cocktail, will be on the menu at Olé in Santa Rosa
Pisco sours, an addictive Peruvian cocktail, will be on the menu at Olé in Santa Rosa
The corner of Mendocino and Seventh St. in Santa Rosa is about to become home to two Latin-inspired restaurants featuring the cuisines of Mexico, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Brazil.
Opening in the former Franco’s (previously Acapulco) is Brasa Churrascaria and Brewpub. Details on the restaurant are still a bit sketchy, but BiteClub caught the new restaurateurs this week outside the space who described the menu as including “churrasco”, traditional Brazilian grilled meats served on skewers. Think barbecued beef, pork, chicken or fish cooked and served on long swords–dinner and a show.
Taking over the former Seven/Vine bar and nightclub is Olé. Opening chefs include Jose Luis Nunez (Auberge, Solage) and AJ Lockwood (Safari West, Frank & Ernie’s) who’ve created a mix of Latin dishes that include Puerto Rican Mofongo (green plantains with chicharonnes), Cubano sandwiches, Pechuga Rellan (stuffed chicken breast with shrimp), Pollo al Horno (chicken with oregano and garlic) as well as Mexican staples of red snapper ceviche, carnitas, Cochinita pibil (a BiteClub fave that includes pork, achiote and pickled red onions).
Owners Yanet Ramirez, Patricia Rodriguez and Levi Rodriguez hope to add additional dishes that include influences from the Dominican Republic and other Caribbean cuisines.
What we’re especially excited about: Cocktail King John Burton (owner of the Santa Rosa Bartender School and bar consultant) has crafted a spirits menu that i includes Caipirinhas, Pisco Sours, Pina Coladas, Michelada and upscale margaritas.
Both restaurants are expected to open this spring.
Polenta bowl with arugula, greens, feta cheese and a poached egg at Fork Cafe. (Photo Heather Irwin)
MOVED 9890 Bodega Hwy, Sebastopol,
Polenta bowl with arugula, greens, feta cheese and a poached egg at Fork Cafe. (Photo Heather Irwin)
I’m in love with Avgolemono. I mean really in love. The Greek version of Jewish chicken soup, its a hearty, soul-nourishing stew of rice, lemon juice and shredded chicken fortified with beaten eggs. On a cold, rainy day at Sarah Piccolo’s tiny Fork Cafe, you’ll be convinced its truly Heaven-sent.
As owner of Fork Catering, one of Sonoma County’s most-loved food trucks, Piccolo has honed the art of simple, nourishing dishes that never fail to hit the spot. And now, you can find them Monday through Friday from 8a.m. to 3p.m. in her Sebastopol catering kitchen/cafe.
We’re loving the healthy/decadent menu that changes up frequently, but includes savory bowls of polenta, goat cheese and greens; quinoa with braised greens, tamari pumpkin seeds and a poached egg ($6.75), a Greek yogurt bowl with orange and ginger stewed prunes and housemade granola.
Lunch gets even better with Blue Plate specials (griddled Naan bread with coconut curry lentils, raita and Liberty duck confit, $10) and grilled panini with Clover cheese, roasted sweet pepper puree and caramelized onions ($7). Then there’s the soup ($5), which also changes up but includes vegetarian options like ginger carrot as well as swoon-worthy tortilla and the Avgolemono I’m considering starting a serious relationship with.
So much of what sets Sonoma apart is obvious to the wider world. But the favorite things we compiled here are out of the ordinary. They’re quirky. Iconic. Hidden. Endearing. Together, they’re what give Sonoma its colorful personality, its spice. Our “favorites” provide an insider’s view of our backyard and reflect the odd corners and offbeat details you’d miss if you drove by too fast. For these, you’ll want to slow down.
Favorite Chow
Iconic foods for foodies, and things that make you go mmmmmm…
Far-Flung BBQ Joint – Bones Roadhouse: Head up the Sonoma Coast, just past the Mendocino border, and you’ll find the seaside hamlet of Gualala. What you might not expect is the smell of pit barbecue smoke mingling with the briny air. Bones Roadhouse smokes its own brisket, ribs, chicken, pork and salmon on-site, Texas-style. Large windows offer one of the best views of the ocean around. And yes, Bones also serves clam chowder. (But really, get the barbecue). 39080 S. Highway 1, Gualala, 707-884-1188, bonesroadhouse.com
Hangover Breakfast – Carlos’ Country Kitchen: Folks either rave about the funky hash house known as Carlos’ Country Kitchen, or run screaming. Sit yourself down in a cozy booth (never mind there isn’t any padding left in the seat), get your order ready for the friendly (albeit harried) staff and prepare for giant platters of homey scrambled eggs, bacon and toast; omelets bigger than grandma’s purse; and a daunting portion of biscuits and gravy that could feed a football team, with leftovers. Sure, there are plenty of tonier local spots for breakfast, but when you’re craving a big old pancake stack with an endless cup of coffee, this old-school diner is a favorite Sunday morning adventure. 90 West College Ave., Santa Rosa, 707-569-9734
Fungi Farm Gourmet Mushrooms: Wine Country’s mushroom hunters haven’t had much luck this year foraging for earthy fungi such as chanterelles and porcini, which rely on rain and plunging temperatures to stimulate growth. Fortunately, the folks at Sebastopol’s Gourmet Mushrooms grow eight kinds of exotic culinary mushrooms year-round, using blasts of cold, damp air to mimic Mother Nature’s wintry bluster. Instead of the forest floor, the certified organic mushrooms grow indoors in sawdust-packed bottles. Each week, more than 60,000 bottles’ worth of mushrooms is hand-harvested, packed under the Mycopia label and shipped to chefs across the country. You can find meaty Trumpet Royales and Nebrodini Biancos, and earthy Forest Nameko and Maitake Frondosa fungi, in stores ranging from Costco to Whole Foods. Need recipes? Check out company co-founder Malcolm Clark’s new cookbook, “The Marriage of Mushrooms and Garlic.” Gourmet Mushrooms isn’t open to the public, but there is a shopping cart and farm video tour on its website, gourmetmushroomsinc.com.
Bespoke Burger Stark’s Steak & Seafood: Burgers are serious business in Wine Country, and everyone’s got an opinion. But when it comes to a build-your-own burger, Stark’s Steak & Seafood starts with a half-pound, house-ground burger cooked to order perfectly. On top and bottom is a Franco American bun, and in between you can pile it up with blue cheese, Gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, truffle aioli, sautéed mushrooms, truffled sunny-side-up egg and salsa verde. This bad boy comes with house pickles and fries.
521 Adams St., Santa Rosa, 707-546-5100, starkrestaurants.com
Pig’s Foot with That? Tortilleria Jalisco: When you order the pozole at Tortilleria Jalisco in Sonoma, the server will ask, “Would you like a pig’s foot with that?” The answer: “You bet.” “It tastes salty and soft and very tender,” says co-owner Albert Cerna. “It’s definitely not something you see a lot around here.” The cook takes pig’s feet and cuts them into quarters. They’re boiled with garlic for four hours and added to the pozole, a traditional Mexican stew with hominy. But there’s a catch: pozole is available only on Saturdays and it often sells out by 2 p.m. As an option, try the tostada de pata, served with some choice pig’s feet chunks, lettuce, onions, tomatoes, peppers and sour cream.
897 West Napa St., Sonoma, 707-935-7356
Illustrated Chef Jamil Peden: Chefs aren’t shy about inking themselves liberally (to hide all the cooking scars?), but Woodfour Brewing’s Jamil Peden goes a few steps beyond with his food-centric body art. Among his favorite pieces: an antique meat grinder, forks, spoons, knives, beets, fiddlehead ferns, a sardine skeleton, three stars (for a review from the San Francisco Chronicle when Peden worked at Petite Syrah in Santa Rosa), artichokes, mussels, kelp and an octopus. Each has a special meaning, but the octopus is our favorite. “Octopuses are smart and delicious and have no leg muscles, so I put mussels on (them) instead,” Peden says of this particular tattoo.
In The Barlow center, 6780 Depot St., Sebastopol, 707-823-3144, woodfourbrewing.com
$99 Brunch Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn: Money may not buy happiness, but it gets you a brunch of such sheer magnitude and sumptuousness that you’ll remain contented long after the meal has gone down. The Michelin-starred Santé at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn gilds every lily with an all-you-can-eat spread every Easter and Mother’s Day (as well as on other major holidays) that includes nearly 100 luxe food selections, including smoked Loch Duart salmon, caviar, prime rib, made-to-order omelets, artisan cheeses and freshly baked goods. The brunch sells out every time, so make a reservation.
100 Boyes Blvd., Sonoma, 707-939-2415, fairmont.com/sonoma/dining/sante-restaurant
These are the drinking places – and the drinks – that stand out from the crowd.
No-Kick Cocktails El Dorado Kitchen: Cocktails have gone farm to table, with exotic mixers, herbs and infusions. But what if you’re a teetotaler? The alcohol-free “mocktails” at Sonoma’s El Dorado Kitchen are utterly delicious, including the Basil Julep (muddled basil, ginger, lemon and sparkling water), the Sunflower (white cranberry juice, orange flower and ginger ale) and the El Diablo (jalapeño, chile syrup, cranberry, lime, peach bitters and Sprite). Who says you have to have booze to have a great drink?
405 First St. W., Sonoma, 707-996-3030, eldoradosonoma.com/restaurant
Hotel Bar Solbar: Solbar at Solage Calistoga is the ultimate hotel bar, with a sleek, modern interior, Zen-like patio, spa-inspired cocktails and a Michelin-star chef to boot. You’ll find a great local and regional wine list here, as well as some of Napa Valley’s best winemakers hanging out in the bar or near the adjacent pool. If you’re lucky, you may stumble on one of their impromptu parties at the bar, where everyone sips a bit of the current vintage. Best bet: The outdoor dining area offers breathtaking views of the Palisades on the east side of the valley.
755 Silverado Trail, Calistoga, 707-226-0850, solagecalistoga.com/solbar
Winery with a Full Bar Medlock Ames: Imagine visiting a winery tasting room and ordering a bourbon neat or maybe a shot of Fernet Branca. Welcome to Medlock Ames, where the grape is the hook, but mixology is an additional lure. Tucked away behind the tasting room, like a time-capsule speakeasy, is the Alexander Valley Bar. After pretending you came for the award-winning, organically grown Cabernet Sauvignon, you can duck into the adjacent broom closet of a saloon and saddle up to artisan cocktails, margaritas, shots or microbrews. Hole up in the dark of a country tavern or kick back on the wide porch. Many years ago, long before Medlock Ames, there was a general store and full bar at the corner of Alexander Valley Road and Highway 128. When the winery owners took over, they inherited the liquor license, and the rest is history.
3487 Alexander Valley Road, Healdsburg, 707-431-8845, medlockames.com
Beer Tasting Carneros Brewing: For years, Jesus Ceja toiled away as a brewer and executive for Budweiser, while the rest of the Ceja family made waves as one of a handful of pioneering Latino winemaking families in the region. Well, now it’s Jesus’ time. Carving out a small section of family winery property on Highway 12, he ditched the King of Beers and opened Carneros Brewing Company in Sonoma. From a Bavarian-style “Jefeweizen” to a Cerveza Pilsner, the beer is tasty and generally low in alcohol. A major draw for visitors is the spectacular scenery. The tasting room boasts an outdoor beer garden with a pond, outside taps, band stage and vistas of the rolling Carneros countryside. Don’t miss the hops garden loaded with flowers used in the brews.
22985 Burndale Road, Sonoma, 707-938-1880, carnerosbrews.com
Tour guide Lewis Norvell talks about hops during a tour of the brewery at Lagunitas brewery, the first stop on a beer tour for the day with North Bay Brewery Tours. (photo by Scott Manchester)
Brewery Tour North Bay Brewery Tours: For eons, fancy vans and buses have shuttled wine sippers around Sonoma, from winery to winery. So it’s about time a few beer lovers banded together and streamlined the same concept for hop heads. Founded in 2010 by three suds buds (James Holt, Robert Watkins and Ron Holt) using Kickstarter, North Bay Brewery Tours leads expeditions to many of the region’s best breweries, with scheduled tours and custom-designed journeys for private groups. The cool thing about these guys is they’ve polished off a few growlers in their day and are deeply knowledgeable about the local beer scene. They can score clutch insider tours and access, and will bring guests to small, new or hard-to-find producers in addition to big players. Scheduled tours run pretty much every day and cost $75 for five hours and $99 for six-hour VIP tours.
1300 Valley House Drive, #100, Rohnert Park, 707-602-7397, northbaybrewerytours.com
Mead Cellar Heidrun Meadery: Named after the goat in Norse mythology that produced mead instead of milk, Heidrun Meadery in Point Reyes Station ferments prized regional honey to make a mead like no one else in North America. Instead of the syrupy, sweet version that knocked medieval knights for a loop, this one is infused with the magic of bubbles, fermented in the traditional French méthode champenoise to create dry, naturally sparkling varietal meads. Owner Gordon Hull doesn’t know of any other producers on the continent that ferment mead in the bottle; some versions are injected with carbon dioxide to make them artificially fizzy. Heidrun varietals include Humboldt County Wildflower, California Avocado Blossom and Hawaiian Lehua Blossom. The best way to soak it all up is on a tasting tour, offered from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday ($15). Reservations are required.
11925 Highway 1, Point Reyes Station, 415-663-9122, heidrunmeadery.com
Agave Mexican Restaurant and Tequila Bar in Healdsburg. (photo by Conner Jay)
Mezcal Collection Agave Mexican Restaurant & Tequila Bar: Owner and chef Octavio Diaz keeps a coveted collection of small-batch and hard-to-find mezcals behind the bar at Agave Mexican Restaurant & Tequila Bar in Healdsburg. He sources many of them from his native Oaxaca, Mexico, including single-village, unblended mezcals from the distillery of Del Maguey. The spirit pairs perfectly with Diaz’s mom’s homemade moles and other fine Mexican fare. Open daily, 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
1063 Vine St., Healdsburg, 707-433-2411, agave-mex.com
Hip Tasting Room The Sippy Lounge: Husband-and-wife team Dylan and Tobe Sheldon make some expressively great wines in a fun setting, inviting tasters to relax in their Santa Rosa tasting room that’s affectionately known as The Sippy Lounge. With comfy couches and Wes Anderson-soundtrack-like music in the background, you’ll feel as though you’re being entertained at a favorite friend’s house — a friend who just happens to be pouring delicious wines. Visit the website to find out about planned events such as the Winter Masquerade and bocce in summer. Open Thursday through Sunday, noon to 6 p.m., and by appointment.
1301 Cleveland Ave., Santa Rosa, 707-865-6755, sheldonwines.com
Some dynamic people who are stirring it up in their worlds.
Place to People-Watch at Midnight Graton Resort & Casino: Let’s face it, Wine Country can get a little quiet after 10 p.m. A new favorite sit-and-sip spot is the Graton Resort & Casino. Open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, if offers epic people watching. The best locations for planting yourself are the Marketplace (most restaurants are open past 11 p.m. on weekends), the Sky Bar (if you can get in) and the bars at M.Y. China and 630 Park Steakhouse. Sip a martini or fun-sized Sutter Home Chardonnay and watch the sea of humanity flow by; feed a few slots, should the mood strike.
Exit 484 off Highway 101 in Rohnert Park, 707-588-7100, gratonresortcasino.com
Volunteer Ken Wells moves a giant boulder into place on the Bald Mountain Trail in Sugarloaf State Park. (photo by John Burgess)
Volunteer Buddy Ken Wells: John Muir never toiled so hard. If Sonoma County’s trails look to be in pretty good shape, there’s one man who deserves much of the credit: Ken Wells, who organizes monthly work days in local state parks. They’re held the third Saturday of every month, when Wells gathers people at Annadel, Sugarloaf or Jack London parks to repair trails, clear brush and otherwise keep the intersection between man and nature organized, especially in the face of dwindling government resources. Bring a daypack with lunch, water, gloves, sunscreen, hat and work clothes. Experience isn’t necessary and Wells, whose day job is as executive director of the Sonoma County Trails Council, will supply the tools and after-work beverages. Reach him at kenwells@sonic.net or visit sonomatrails.org for information on upcoming work days.
Connector Spring Maxfield: With a wide circle of friends and acquaintances in the local arts, food and technology scenes, Spring Maxfield is one of those people you call up when you want an introduction to someone fascinating. As a co-creator of the popular Handcar Regatta, cheerleader for emerging local artists (including her partner, Todd Barricklow, a designer of human-powered contraptions including the Taco Bike), instigator for local food startups, farm markets and farmers, and longtime Maker Faire organizer, Spring is uncanny at matching up interesting folks with similar ideas. The pairing often benefits the local creative scene. Although she keeps a relatively low profile, she’s a connector worth seeking out.
Tony Magee, founder of Lagunitas Brewing Co. (photo by Christopher Chung)
Hop-Head Tweeter Tony Magee: In person, Lagunitas Brewing Company founder Tony Magee seems like a mild guy: thoughtful, self-effacing and given to long philosophical musings on the mystical joy of beer. But tune in to what he calls his “private little radio station” for a direct line into @lagunitasT’s lively, and sometimes darker, inner ramblings on Twitter. He offers up a stream-of-consciousness view of “The World According to Tony” and nearly 18,000 souls follow his feed — yet he follows no one. When Magee talks, the beer world listens, and many of his tweets have wound up widely reported in the beer press and dissected on discussion sites. Magee also brazenly starts beefs with other brewers, a rarity in the normally chummy world of craft brew. Find the link at lagunitas.com.
Must-Follow Wine Blogger Ron Washam: If you prefer to receive your wine information with a barrel-sized dose of satire, look no farther than the HoseMaster of Wine, a brilliant sendup and regularly written skewering of the wine industry and the people in it. It’s written by Ron Washam, a former Southern California sommelier and wine judge and current Healdsburg resident who claims, “I can spit like a rabid llama.” Nobody in the world of wine can hold a candle to his wicked wit and sometimes vulgar hilarity. Washam rips the curtain off the wine world’s cannards just like Comedy Central does with Washington and Wall Street. Jon Stewart, are you listening? hosemasterofwine.blogspot.com.
John Jordan of Jordan Winery in Healdsburg. (photo by Kent Porter)
Party-Thrower John Jordan: John Jordan, likely the only winery bigwig in the world willing to be filmed dancing Gangnam-style, doesn’t just host a party, he throws one the way former San Francisco Giants pitcher Brian Wilson throws a four-seam fastball, with serious attitude and crazy joy. Case in point: The Jordan Vineyard & Winery CEO holds an invite-only, costume-required Halloween bash every year where even the invitations respect the theme. The invite to his 2013 James Bond-esque “Licensed to Thrill” party included custom poker chips. His 2012 autumn “Festivus Maximus” was a Roman bacchanal. The spring release of new vintages is an occasion for a carnival and even Christmas gets turned inside out. Skip the snow; Jordan, whose family for decades has spent the holidays in Hawaii, treated winery Estate Club Members in December to a little Aloha in Alexander Valley, complete with hula dancers and kalua pork sliders.
Jordan Vineyard & Winery, 1474 Alexander Valley Road, 707-431-5250, jordanwinery.com.
Stuff you probably won’t find anywhere else but on our back roads.
Place to Commune with Sea Lions Penny Island: Pick a serene morning and drop by the boat ramp by the old post office in Jenner. Some of the best days are when the mouth of the Russian River is dammed up and it’s like a giant lake. Paddle a kayak out past Penny Island and keep your eyes open, as sea lions will often swim all around you, curious to take in the new arrival (that’s if they’re not napping on the beach). When the sea lions are active and feeding, it’s like a whack-a-mole game on the water as they pop up, wide-eyed, to check you out. Lean back for a photo selfie and marvel at how many seals pop up in the background. Rent kayaks at Watertreks, across the street from the boat ramp.
10438 Highway 1, Jenner, 707-865-2249, watertreks.com
Adam Davidoff works Belgian draft horses Quinna and Misty as they till fertile soil west of Sebastopol at New Family Farm. (photo by Kent Porter)
Old-School Farm New Family Farm: It may seem like a peculiar throwback, but New Family Farm in Sebastopol is on the far leading edge of the organic growing movement. The under-30 partners, Ryan Power and Adam Davidoff, are natives of Sebastopol and UC Santa Cruz grads. They not only have renounced chemical fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, they also refuse to run a plough behind anything that doesn’t have a name and a face. They believe a light touch is better for the soil and the environment. Their team of rescued draft horses helps till, plow, weed and even harvest a bounty of crops, from carrots to kale, which they sell at the Occidental, Sebastopol and Santa Rosa Original farmers markets. Visit them on facebook.com.
Farm Porn Photo Op Quivira Vineyards: As farms go, Quivira Vineyards and Winery in Healdsburg is wickedly close to ag porn. Visitors are welcome explore the lovely little acre that constitutes the main garden, with 120 raised beds filled with heirloom varieties of vegetables and herbs. A cascading fountain and pond provide water for bees and other beneficial critters. There are cute pigs in a pen, olive, pear and peach trees, and a condo-sized chicken coop that’s home to pampered White Laced Red Cornish and Golden Polish breeds. It’s showy, but it’s not just for show: Quivira’s Biodynamically grown produce is served at farm-to-table dinners and donated to the Healdsburg Food Pantry.
4900 West Dry Creek Road, Healdsburg, 707-431-8333, quivira.com
Pot Home Delivery Sonoma County Collective: Leave it to the new, clean-cut breed of marijuana businessmen like Asa Schaeffer to come up with a slick, entrepreneurial take on medical marijuana. Schaeffer, unable to get city permission for a retail dispensary in Santa Rosa, dreamed up the idea of a home-delivery business, Sonoma County Collective, to bring high-quality buds and edibles to customers’ front doors.
If you’re wondering about quality, the Collective recently won the “Breeder’s Cup,” honoring the best new strain of marijuana, at the 2013 Emerald Cup cannabis competition in Santa Rosa. In addition to sticky strains such as Purple Kush ($280 an ounce) and Green House Girl Scout Cookies ($230 an ounce), the Collective also delivers pot brownies and caramel corn, vaporizers and Jimi Hendrix T-shirts. If only the drivers came back an hour later with pizza. New members will need to flash a driver’s license or ID and medical marijuana recommendation.
4170 Santa Rosa Ave., Santa Rosa, 707-542-7420, sonomacountycollective.com
Rural Entertainment Gravity Hill: When boredom sets in, head to Gravity Hill, a legendary twilight zone in the hills behind Sonoma State University. It’s where the laws of gravity seem to no longer apply. From Roberts Road heading east, turn right onto Lichau Road. At the top of the hill (after a sign that says, “Gracias Santiago,”), drive over a cattle guard and look down the sloping grade on the backside of the hill. The road appears to run downhill, but if you drive 15 more yards, stop and shift into neutral, the car will roll uphill toward the cattle guard you just passed. How can this be? The question has baffled late-night partying teens for decades.
Jayson Collard, with his dog, Maliki, guides hunters into land above Lake Sonoma for hunting wild pigs. (photo by John Burgess/The Press Democrat)
Place to Hunt Wild Pigs Lake Sonoma: Welcome to a different kind of bringing home the bacon: hunting pigs in the wild and lugging them out on foot or in the back of a truck. Here’s one way to rationalize it: Wild pigs are pests. They’re a destructive, invasive species that tears down fences, digs up fields and lawns, and even gobbles wine grapes. Your job as badass hunter-gatherer is to take them out and cook them up. The challenge is that many local pig-infested properties do not allow hunting and others charge ridiculous fees for very limited access.
One of the most unusual, and accessible, hunting areas is Lake Sonoma, run by the Army Corps of Engineers. The volunteer group Friends of Lake Sonoma (lakesonoma.org) offers guided bow hunts during the season (which ends March 27) on the sprawling 5,000-acre wildlife preserve. A trained hunter will provide escort and maybe a few tips, but the rest is up to you. No firearms are allowed in the preserve, so hunters must rely on arrows alone. Contact Friends of Lake Sonoma for information on fees and hunting license requirements.
But be forewarned: Wild pigs are mean and aggressive, and they will charge at you. Their teeth are sharp and their tusks can gouge like a bull’s horns. So either aim with precision, or be ready to climb a tree.
3288 Skaggs Springs Road, Geyserville, 707-431-4533, lakesonoma.org
Grange Sonoma Valley Grange: The Sonoma Valley Grange is probably the most visible grange in Sonoma County, thanks to a vibrant, roadside mural designed by its president, multimedia artist Mike Acker. Located on Sonoma Highway across from Mary’s Pizza Shack, the grange is also one of the most vital in the region, boasting a growing membership of 110, including young farmers and chefs such as John McReynolds of Stone Edge Farm. Late last year, Stone Edge owner John “Mac” McQuown donated $100,000 toward the grange’s renovation. Fundraising breakfasts are served every other month on the first Sunday (the next one is April 6). For 10 bucks, you get an espresso drink, pancakes, sausages and a slice of frittata, often made by McReynolds himself.
18627 Sonoma Highway, Boyes Hot Springs, 707-935-1322, sonomavalleygrange.com
Places to find yourself, chill out, and get your mojo working.
Pantheistic Gifts Stepping Stones Books & Gifts: A church with a gift shop? Why not? Stepping Stones Books & Gifts at Santa Rosa’s Center for Spiritual Living lets members (and the public) pay homage to a smorgasbord of spiritual icons and philosophers, from the Buddha and Kwan Yin, to Eckart Tolle and Pema Chodron, with the swipe of a credit card. A well-curated selection of jewelry, inspiration cards, books, journals, Tibetan singing bowls and music by which to chant and meditate makes it a one-stop-shop for spiritual seekers.
2075 Occidental Road, Santa Rosa, 707-527-8372, cslsr.org
Joanne Page helps paint the Santa Rosa Labyrinth, designed by Lea Goode-Harris, in the courtyard of Christ Church United Methodist, in Santa Rosa.
Labyrinth Builder Lea Goode-Harris: Your first exposure to labyrinths may have been at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, where there are several well-publicized ones. The labyrinth, a series of winding paths leading to a single center spot, is often walked for meditative purposes. Few know, however, that Santa Rosa artist Lea Goode-Harris is one of the world’s top labyrinth designers, having created more than 100 public and private pathways, including the Snoopy Labyrinth at the Charles M. Schulz Museum and two labyrinths at the Center for Spiritual Living. One of her designs, which she calls her “Santa Rosa labyrinth,” is a unique seven-circle layout with a “heart space” or quiet empty spot halfway to the center.
201 D St., Santa Rosa, 707-545-1656, srlabyrinthfoundation.com
Stacked Stones Shell Beach: Some grown-ups build cairns for the same reason kids build sandcastles: to leave a stamp on the great outdoors using materials at hand. Cairns are those little rock towers perfectly balanced like blocks. They have a spiritual component, and humans have been compelled to make them since prehistoric times, leaving them as markers, monuments, spiritual expressions or messages to fellow travelers. For cairn lovers, the north end of Shell Beach in Sonoma Coast State Park is the spot. The sheltered inlet is littered with the stones they seek, souvenirs of tectonic collisions 100 million years ago. With cairns, it’s all about the balance and the randomness of colors and shapes: sharp with smooth, dark with light, towering with tiny. Stacks that withstand the weather can be scattered in a second by a frisky dog or hiker, yet it’s that fragility that makes them all the more dear.
Highway 1, 2.5 miles south of Goat Rock, 707-875-3483, sonoma-coast-state-park.com
Owner operators DeAnna Batdorff, left, and Scott Jenkins in the Apothecary Bar in the new Dhyana Center in Sebastopol. (photo by John Burgess)
Align Your Chakras Dhyana Center: We all need a little psychic tune-up once in a while. The Dhyana Center embraces the ancient Indian healing method of Ayurveda to balance body and mind with yoga and movement classes, a soaking and steaming bathhouse, holistic body-care products, massages and an apothecary bar and lounge with herbal drinks. Sliding-scale-payment classes are offered, and massages from students are a great way to relax on a budget.
186 N. Main St., Suite 220, Sebastopol, 707-823-8818, dhyanacenter.com
Potions, Spells and Magic Lucky Mojo Curio Co.: Aspiring to join the local coven? Or maybe it’s your ex you need to hex. Whatever your magical needs, Lucky Mojo Curio Co. — an “old-timey, small-town occult shop,” according to owner Catherine Yronwode — has all the mojo you need. You’ll need a bit of good fortune just to find the place, as it’s tucked away in far-flung Forestville. The reward: an incredible hodgepodge of mysterious apothecary jars, witchy potions, fortune-telling supplies, spiritual soaps, spell candles and the occasional penis amulet.
6632 Covey Road, Forestville, 707-887-1521, luckymojo.com
If you only live once, these experiences will take your breath away
Cleo Cat of Occidental looks through the tide pools for small gem stones at Portuguese Beach. (photo by Conner Jay)
Tide Pool Bodega Bay: John Steinbeck once said, “It is advisable to look from the tide pool to the stars and then back to the tide pool again.” Maybe, but if life started in the ocean, it’s a great place to go sightseeing, and there’s no better spot than Portuguese Beach, north of Bodega Bay. It may seem obvious, but check the tide charts before you go. If you catch Portuguese Beach at low tide, or better yet at minus tide, it’s a spectacular sight to behold, teeming with sea life including starfish, sea anemones and secretive octopuses. If you really bring your “A” game to the tide pools, you’ll spot the peanut worm and its massive proboscis, and the orange sea spider, the size of a fingernail. This wide, protected beach is great for families, but always keep an eye out for sleeper waves. The warning signs do not lie.
Highway 1 north of Bodega Bay, 707-875-3483, sonoma-coast-state-park.com
Run That Reminds You It’s Good to Be Alive Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery: Shady oaks and historic grave markers line the spider web of trails through Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery. Maybe this 160-year-old home to the dearly departed is a bit macabre, but the hilly trails, moss-covered tombstones and historic family plots stretching back to the mid-1800s make for a lovely setting and a fascinating run (or walk), as well as a gentle reminder to appreciate the now.
Franklin Avenue at Monroe Street, Santa Rosa, 543-3292, bit.ly/1fP7s9R
Sonoma Winery Tour Raymond Rolander: Browse through a few photos posted by Wine Cube Tours fans and you often see this bearded guy in a newsboy cap, grinning, arm-in-arm with visitors. Scan a few more and he keeps popping up like a “Where’s Waldo?” of Wine Country.
Meet Raymond Rolander, a Sonoma County native who likes to drive wine lovers around in his own car. Picture a one-man Uber for the North Bay.
On the surface, Wine Cube Tours doesn’t look like much of a business. In an age of Pure Luxury limo buses on steroids, all Rolander has is a Nissan Cube auto that fits four cozily. But he’s got the knowledge. As a former tasting room manager with a decade of bar work under his belt, he knows where to go and what to drink.
Along the way, passengers sample olive oils and cheeses, Rolander lines up box lunches from local eateries, and his guests sniff and sip all day long without fear of ever getting behind the wheel. Rates are reasonable at $120 a person for six hours of touring.
707-894-6232, winecubetours.com
Mind-Blowing Moonrise Valley of the Moon: When the moon hits the sky like a big pizza pie over the Valley of the Moon, that’s amore. It happens only when a certain alchemy of astronomical conditions comes together, creating a moonrise of imagination-stretching magnitude. Behold it and you will know why Sonoma Valley is better known as the Valley of the Moon. As Santa Rosa Junior College Planetarium director Ed Megill tells it, first you need a “supermoon,” when the full moon is closest to Earth. Add in a lower point of reference on the horizon and you have a jaw-dropping optical illusion. But when a supermoon falls at or near the time of the harvest moon, it gets even better. Near the autumnal equinox in September, the moon will be at its lowest angle on the horizon, making it appear even larger. As for the orange glow, that’s simply dust and particulates in the atmosphere refracting the light. Of the four supermoons this year, the most super will be Aug. 10, when dry summer air amps up the color. But it won’t be too shabby at the final supermoon on Sept. 9, either. You can catch this amazing moon anywhere with low hills or trees on the horizon. But over the Valley of the Moon, it will blow your mind.
Winery Vista Fort Ross Vineyard & Winery: Imagine turning inland off Highway 1 on the coast north of Jenner and climbing a ridge to find yourself above the fog, overlooking the expanse of the Pacific. Many wineries offer scenic views of vineyards, but the high-flying Fort Ross Vineyard & Winery tasting room ups the visual ante, with forests and meadows thrown in to the oceanic panorama. You’ll find the wine — exceptional estate-grown bottlings of Pinot Noir, Pinotage and Chardonnay — as affected by those cool coastal conditions as you will be once you arrive at this ridgetop perch. The tasting room is open daily.
15725 Meyers Grade Road, Jenner, 707-847-3460, fortrossvineyard.com
Top Gun Plane Rides Vintage Aircraft Co.: Remember Snoopy’s Red Baron dream sequences, where he wore goggles and a scarf as he did loop-the-loops in a World War I biplane? That could be you (sans the turret gunfire) if you go for an open-cockpit ride with Vintage Aircraft Co. Taking off from the Sonoma Valley Airport, pilots Chris Prevost and Tom Morris take daredevils sky-high in 1942 aircraft with names such a Big Red, Texan and Warhawk, for views like you’ve never seen.
In case you’re wary of being inside a 70-year-old bucket of bolts flying through the air, Vintage has maintained a perfect flying safety record during the past 30 years. Those who feel the need for speed and want to add aerobatic stunts to the mix, that’s no problem, but you’ll have to strap on a parachute. Yes, you can bring your camera, as long as it has a strap. Rates range from $175 for 20 minutes to $295 for 40 minutes. Add $50 for aerobatics.
23982 Arnold Drive, Sonoma, 707-938-2444, vintageaircraft.com
Aluxa Lalicker of Clavey Paddlesports participates in a yoga paddleboard demonstration during the annual Day on the River event at Foundry Wharf in downtown Petaluma. (photo by Ramin Rahimian)
Paddleboard Yoga SUP Odyssey: It’s not enough to just rock the downward dog in a yoga studio anymore. Or to crank up the heat and call it bikram. Now, in a mashup of miraculous invention, the time has arrived for stand-up paddleboard yoga.
It’s a sport, an excuse to wield a paddle, and a state of mind.
The fusion specialists at SUP Odyssey in Petaluma like to talk about how balancing in positions on the water “engages hundreds of proprioceptors, aka small balance muscles, aligning your spine and other major joints including hips, knees and ankles.” Then they take you out on the Russian River on a giant surfboard, tie you up like a pretzel and ask you to hold the position (and breathe deeply).
The ultimate payoff? When you lose your balance and fall into the drink. Now that’s a downward dog. Prices start at $49 a person in groups and $79 for private lessons.
707-812-6076, supodyssey.com
Off-beat culture from the far corners of the local entertainment world.
An art installation inside the men’s restroom of Oliver’s Market on Montecito Blvd. in Santa Rosa. (photo by Alvin Jornada)
Men’s-Room Art Oliver’s Market Santa Rosa: You’d think the most surprising restroom art would jump out at you in a bar or maybe a restaurant lavatory, but a grocery store? Walk into the men’s room at Oliver’s Market in east Santa Rosa and try not to get run over by the front grille of a 1969 Camaro coming out of the wall. It’s renegade cruising art, 3-D style. Many of the loyal employees at Oliver’s lead double lives as musicians, artists and filmmakers, so it’s no surprise that when Neal Barbosa isn’t busy keeping the bulk section stocked with oats, pine nuts and granola, he’s often painting live onstage while bands play music. It’s a gig that has taken him all over the world, painting with Fishbone, Les Claypool, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band and more. His commode creation (the bright red Camaro coming out of the wall, barreling toward the toilet) gets him through the work day. “The bulk section is near the bathroom, so I often get to see people’s reactions as they come out,” Barbosa says. “That’s the big payoff for me.”
Oliver’s Market, 560 Montecito Center, Santa Rosa, 707-537-7123, oliversmarket.com
Place for Punk and Capoeira Arlene Francis Center: Over the last few years, Santa Rosa’s Arlene Francis Center for Spirit, Art and Politics has become an all-ages refuge for sweaty punk bands with meaty mosh pits and the occasional stage dive. One night it’s Ceremony, a super-tight punk outfit from Rohnert Park. Next it’s Los Headaches from Mexico City, and then an album-release throwdown with a local band such as The Connies. The night after the room is thrashed by three chords and a blown-out microphone, the center might host capoeira (Brazilian martial arts) classes or bring in Julia Butterfly Hill for an insightful discussion on old-growth redwoods. It’s a triumphant mashup for a place named after a popular 1950s TV talk-show host equally adept at mixing it up on the “Home” news magazine show while also appearing on “What’s My Line?” In other words, everyone is welcome.
99 Sixth St., Santa Rosa, 707-528-3009, arlenefranciscenter.org
Backstage at the Phoenix Theater. (photo by Mark Aranoff)
Backstage Graffiti Phoenix Theater: You could dig through the layers of graffiti and street art on the walls of the Phoenix Theater and carbon-date the different generations of slang that have passed through the most storied rock-’n’-roll institution in Sonoma County. “We still have musicians coming through that played here when they were youngsters 20 years ago, that are thrilled to find the band graffiti they scrawled on our backstage wall is still there,” says manager Tom Gaffey. Most of the scrawling, from the heyday of the theater in the 1980s when the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Green Day, Metallica and Primus rolled through Petaluma, remains untouched on the backstage ceiling. The pièce de résistance: “Chicken Plucken, Muthafucka!” scrawled on a wall backstage. It refers to an incident in the 1990s when the singer of a band called Popsicle Love Sponge performed a lewd act with a chicken. The cops shut the show down but the Phoenix lived on, the “chicken incident” a seemingly symbolic end to an era when chicken farming was king.
201 Washington St., Petaluma, 707-762-3565, thephoenixtheater.com
Vintage Movie Palace Sebastiani Theatre: Determined that their beloved Sebastiani Theatre not suffer the indignity of being filleted into a multiplex or chichi shops, Sonomans for 25 years have rallied to keep its projector humming and the marquee lit. The theater is a spectacular piece of Italianesque, 1930s movie-fantasy architecture, designed by James Reid, whose credentials included the fabled Hotel del Coronado near San Diego. In the depths of the Depression, his orders from wine magnate Samuele Sebastiani were to spare no expense. Eighty years after the first movie premiered, moviegoers still line up along the 60-foot-long, covered colonnade to buy tickets, often from theater manager and magician “Jolly Roger” Rhoten. The quirky theater is beloved, hard seats, projector bloops and all, and the original ticket booth continues to be staffed by the tartish mannequin Trixie, in her signature cats-eye glasses.
476 First St. E., Sonoma, 707-996-2020, sebastianitheatre.com
Joe Robledo searches for several of his favorite comic series he buys each week at Outer Planes Comics. (photo by Conner Jay)
Place To Find a Superhero Outer Planes Comics & Games: If Dr. Doom is threatening to devastate your world, who are you gonna call? Whether you’re in search of Spiderman, Thor, Cyborg or Wonder Woman, the most likely place to hook up with your favorite superhero outside of Metropolis is at Outer Planes Comics & Games. It’s one of the best places in the area to buy comic books, and not just the latest from DC and Marvel, but small-press and underground comics. At Outer Planes, being a nerd is Aqua Man-cool. Dungeons and Dragons rule. Come prepared to be unplugged: Owner Dan Radovic keeps it old-school, selling no computer or video games. It’s just comic books and cards, from Magic the Gathering to Pokemon. Wednesday is Board Game Night, where you can drop by and play with actual three-dimensional people. Join a table or bring your own games. The shop periodically holds costume contests; it’s your chance to actually be a superhero.
519 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa, 707-546-2000, planes.users.sonic.net
Now that you know, don’t tell anyone about these little gems.
Roadside shrine on Highway 12 in El Verano. (photo by Kent Porter)
Roadside Altar Highway 12: When Aldolfo Hernandez first laid eyes on the Virgin Mary statue at the U.S.-Mexico border crossing some five years ago, he felt compelled to take her home. He didn’t have the right currency, so he kept on going. But he didn’t get far. Hernandez, a landscaper who emigrated from Michoacan a quarter century ago, made a U-turn and went back to fetch the statue, persuading a vendor to take U.S. dollars. Ever since, people have been drawn to the Virgin Mary’s serene presence.
From the small, open shelter Hernandez built for her in his front yard, she welcomes pilgrims to stop and light a candle or ask for an intercession. The Hernandez family lovingly tends the community altar, a brightly lit beacon of peace between Glen Ellen and Sonoma. Make a point to stop by late in the day every Dec. 12, when Hernandez invites all comers to help the family celebrate the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe with live music, pots of pozole and hot chocolate. The lights around the altar are lit 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
17123 Highway 12, Fetters Hot Springs
Remote Delectables Raymond’s Bakery: There’s little to compel anyone to drive 8 miles west of Guerneville, then north another 6 miles to the middle of nowhere. Little, except for the heavenly food at Raymond’s Bakery at Elim Grove, a bakery-lover’s dream. You might at first rub your eyes: Is that building with the blue sign and lights beckoning among the redwoods just a mirage?
The seeded sourdough, raspberry tarts, double-chocolate brownies, hand-thrown pizzas and sandwiches are very real, and earn solid five-star Yelp reviews. Everything is infused with the passion of former high-techie Mark Weiss. Come for Community Beer, Wine and Pizza nights on weekends and bed down in one of the snug cottages, if only for the ethereal experience of awakening to the aroma of fresh-baked bread.
5400 Cazadero Highway, Cazadero, 707-632-5335, raymonds-bakery.com
Blackberry Patch Joe Rodota Trail: Pick up the 8.5-mile Joe Rodota biking and walking trail that connects Santa Rosa to Sebastopol near the Prince Memorial Greenway (at West Third Street and Railroad Street in Santa Rosa). Along the way, as you get closer to Sebastopol, you can’t miss the loaded, 8- to 10-foot-high mountain of blackberry bushes, typically popping with ripe berries in late June, July and August. You can always tell those who snack as they pick, because their stained purple fingers give way to purple lips and tongue.
Kids on shoulders are an excellent way to score those hard-to-reach berries. If you left home without a bag or bucket, veer off the trail and hit the Roseland Dollar Store (777 Sebastopol Road, Santa Rosa) to pick up Tupperware or Ziploc bags for berry storage. parks.sonomacounty.ca.gov/Get_Outdoors/Parks/Joe_Rodota_Trail.aspx
Swimming Hole Lake Ilsanjo: Remote Lake Ilsanjo in Annadel State Park isn’t easy to reach, which makes it all the more rewarding to find on a hot day. There are plenty of trails leading there (see the website for a map), but basically you’ll want to veer off the Warren Richardson Trail at the “Y” leading to the lake. Follow the trail to the end, where you’ll find a bench, a rope swing, and probably a few folks swimming and fishing.
Annadel State Park, 6201 Channel Drive, Santa Rosa, 707-539-3911, parks.ca.gov
Villa for a Would-be Wine Baron Casa Sebastiani: No invitation is needed to spend the night in the family home of one of Wine Country’s most famous clans, although it will cost you up to $1,800 a night. As far as vacation rentals go, Casa Sebastiani, with its stone face and terra cotta tiles set within a landscape of Italian cypress, stone walls and terraces, is the complete package.
It’s got historic provenance. August and Sylvia Sebastiani built the estate on a knoll above their family winery in 1947. Family photos can still be found inside. Pop open a crisp Chardonnay by the pool and take in the view of the winery and vineyards below. Cook up an Italian feast in the kitchen where Mama Sylvia stirred up her storied sauces and set out a spread on a carved stone table that seats 16. If the price seems steep, consider that it sleeps 14, big enough for a family reunion.
Beautiful Places Luxury Villa Rentals, 800-495-9961, beautiful-places.com
Longtime regular Lloyd Silacci enjoys a cup of coffee at Pete’s Henny Penny’s diner in Petaluma. Silacci come every Thursday to the diner to talk about cars, engines and the racing world with friends. (photo by Conner Jay)
Place to Chat up Farmers at Daybreak and Concertgoers After Midnight Pete’s Henny Penny: During early mornings at Pete’s Henny Penny in Petaluma, the cattle ranchers own the bar stools to the right of the door. When they’re not talking shop (weather, machinery, bovine creatures, more weather), they’re teasing the waitresses who know them all by name and nickname.
Open 24 hours a day since 1971, the Henny Penny is a truck stop with the heart of a diner. And locals are thankful it’s the polar opposite of the chain restaurant Denny’s across the street.
Owner Pete Magoulas is no longer with us (he died in 2003). But his tribute to the Chicken Little folk tale and Petaluma’s egg basket heyday lives on, even late into the night on weekends, when rowdy crowds leaving music shows at the Phoenix and Mystic theaters often take over a handful of booths at a time, occasionally diving from one booth to the other. It helps that beer is served until 2 a.m.
Chicken-fried steak is a crowd favorite, as are apple dumplings. The biscuits and gravy are comfort food to put you to bed or to kick-start the day. The servers are as sweet as the sticky syrup dispensers on the tables, even if they’re a tad wound up late at night. Maybe it’s too much coffee.
4995 Petaluma Blvd. N., Petaluma, 707-763-0459, find them on facebook.com.
Beginner’s Surf Spot Doran Beach: Surfing the rugged, unpredictable North Coast waters can often get a little too gnarly, and not in a good way. If the potentially deadly rip currents and sleeper waves don’t get you, the choppy, meaty waves can ruin your day.
Salmon Creek is the most popular local break, but it’s often less than ideal for the average beginner just learning how to walk in a wetsuit. So short of a cruise ship’s wave pool, where does a newbie learn to paddle out and stand up on a board? When 10-foot swells roll in at Salmon Creek Beach, the much more sheltered Doran Beach can turn them into modest, well-formed 4-foot breaks, perfect for getting the hang of it. Doran is where Bob Miller, owner of Bob’s Surf Shack in Bodega Bay, often takes beginners for the first time.
201 Doran Beach Road, Bodega Bay, 707-875-3540, parks.sonomacounty.ca.gov
Place to Go After You Get Out of Jail The Wagon Wheel Saloon: Many years ago, the Wagon Wheel Saloon offered one of the best deals in town that you never wanted to accept. It was a “Get Out of Jail” coupon. If you were booked at the main Sonoma County Jail in Santa Rosa, upon your release you could walk three blocks to the Wagon Wheel and flash your papers for a free drink.
That’s what a good dive bar is for, right? These days, it’s the stuff of legend, since the new owners have stopped the practice. “Even then, we still get people coming in here every once in a while with their papers, asking for a free drink,” says bartender Mark Mandoli. “I guess the deputies still tell them this is the place to go when you get out.” Even without the free booze, it’s still the best bar to hit when you’re sprung from the joint. It helps that the Wagon Wheel is open from 10:30 a.m. to 2 a.m., and that the place has no windows. If your misery loves company, Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues” is on the jukebox.
3320 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa, 707-546-1958, find them on facebook.com
