Cheers!

Making your way in the world today takes every thing you got
Taking a break from all your worries sure would help a lot
Wouldn't you like to get away?
Sometimes you wanna go......

Here.



Beautiful, isn't it? If you can imagine the scent of flowers and nothing but the sounds of little birds singing... how could you not be totally relaxed. That is exactly what we had in mind when my friend Paige and I planned our trip to Sonoma. Wine, peace, beautiful views and great food. We were not disappointed.

We met up in San Francisco, and set out for our wine adventure with a first stop in the Enterprise office, where they were out of the sedans (which I had reserved), so I was offered a Jeep Patriot. It's not a big SUV, but bigger than the Civic I drive. Either way, I took a deep breath and we were off! We found the best radio station, too. I don't remember the call letters, but it's "The Bay's Old School" station. Prince, Madonna, all the dance songs we loved at the 18 and over nights at Eclipse. So we "Let the Music Play..."

(On a side note, as someone in the market for a new car, the Patriot is pretty easy to handle, but it has a lot of blind spots and not a lot of power.)

And then there came a gasp from the passenger seat. WHAT!?!??

This.



And this.



And so we had to do this.



Because we're on vacation! In California!

Back on the road to Sonoma, we finally came across our goal. Wineries. We passed a couple that came up on us quick, but then we saw one and said, we have to start somewhere, and pulled in.



Welcome to Viansa Winery & Marketplace. The name probably doesn't sound familiar, but that doesn't mean it's because their wines are bad. Exactly the opposite. They are fantastic. But this winery only sells their award-winning wines, which are produced with Italian varietals grown in California, on-site and on their website. It was hard to pick a favorite, but I did leave with a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and a membership to their wine club, because I find life is better when wine is just delivered to your door.

After a few more wineries, we found our hotel, the Sonoma Creek Inn, which says it's "close to the downtown area of Sonoma with it's historic plaza." Yeah, it's not really. Well, I guess three or four miles is "close," but not really within walking distance, which is what we had thought. Anyway, off to the plaza for a little exploring and dinner.

The downtown Sonoma area, with the plaza, is a cute little town, with mom and pop stores, cafes and tasting rooms, very arty and funky. One word drew us in... Cheese. The Sonoma Cheese Factory was like a cross between wine shop/gift shop/gourmet grocery/candy shop and cafe. There were samples of cheese all around. You would not think lavender cheese would be good. You'd be wrong. It's amazing!

Thanks to a recommendation from a photographer friend, we had reservations at The Girl + The Fig, a small restaurant serving farm-to-table dishes with a French flair. Who would have thought that something so simple as heirloom radishes would make such a delicious appetizer. Served with a side of anchovy butter and a sprinkle of grey sea salt, it was crisp, clean and plain yummy. For dinner, there was wild flounder meuniere with a Yukon potato puree and cello spinach—the lemon-caper brown butter soaked into the potatoes in such a sinfully wonderful way—and a shellfish and pork belly stew with scallops, clams, mussels, white beans, arugula and a saffron fume. Did I mention it had pork belly? Velvety yet crispy, wonderfully salty squares of pork belly?!? Yeah. It was goooooooooooood.

Saturday dawned rainy, but we were excited because we had booked a cooking class at Ramekins Culinary School & Inn. We were set to learn how to make Mexican appetizers with Chef Agustin Gaytan, who has been with Ramekins since it opened in 1998. We were broken up into groups, each group challenged with making one of the menu items completely from scratch, including roasting and grilling a lot of chiles, peppers, tomatillos... yeah, no jarred salsas here. Everything was fresh. I was on "Team Tamale," helping to make Tamalitos de Rajaas y Queso, which were mini tamales filled with roasted Chilaca chiles, Oaxaacan-style cheese and pickled jalapeno tomatillo salsa. A very nice team member, Bob, taught me how to peel away the skins from grilled chilies, as well as a very informative knife lesson that I am still practicing.

Here is the finished product in the front, along with the Jalapenos Rellenos de Atun, jalapeno chiles filled with grilled tuna, olives, capers, garlic and raisins. They were...interesting



Paige was on the team that created Sopesitos de Chorizo—griddled masa cakes topped with chorizo, queso fresco and purple tomatillo salsa. They were tasty!



In addition to, naturally, margaritas, there also were Tostaditas de Tinga—crispy corn tortillas with shredded pork, roasted tomato, chipotle chiles, grilled onion, crumbled cheese and avocado—on the menu. Also tasty!



Ramekins is definitely a place I want to go back to, but in the meantime, I am on the lookout for hands-on cooking classes here in West Palm. Any advice?

Back on the road to Santa Rosa. But first, there are wineries all along the road. Who are we not to stop and check things out? Kenwood Vineyards was rustic and beautiful. Flowers and olive trees all around, with a tasting room in a converted barn.

Then there was this. Wow.



This is Chateau St Jean. The wines were as good as the environment. They had a section of their beautiful garden devoted to grape varietals, which I thought was interesting.



And more flowers. Seriously, what is this??



Have I mentioned how fabulous the views are in Wine Country? Seriously, everything is like a postcard, with the mountains and vineyards and flowers. Here is a view from St. Francis Winery & Vineyards. See what I mean?



We spent Saturday night at The Vintners Inn in Santa Rosa, which was wonderfully quaint and comfortable, with the kind of robes you actually think about putting in your suitcase and a bottle of wine. Although, there was a wedding there, and the bridal party was staying in our building, so that was probably a mistake.

We had dinner at the on-site restaurant, John Ashe & Co., which overlooked the vineyards, where we enjoyed Pacific Halibut a la Plancha with spring cassoulet, which was delightfully fresh, and Pan-seared Diver Scallops with Masami Pork Belly, served with potato rosti, aigre-douce and the most wonderful yellow cauliflower puree. Seriously, I need to learn how to make yellow cauliflower puree. The picture doesn't do it justice, but YUMMMMMMM.




Up and at 'em, it's off to Healdsburg, which was a town of delights. We possibly became the next reality TV stars at the Murphy-Goode tasting room. They have a new Rose called Gaga (no relation), that was delightful, and I am not a fan of "pink" wine.

Throughout the day, we were also able to hit some tasting rooms that are familiar to everyone. Kendall-Jackson, La Crema and Toad Hollow Vineyards, all of which were delightful. Also, I'll add right now, we found that at every winery we visited throughout the weekend, we were offered tastes of wines beyond the tasting menus or number of wines you were allotted on a tasting flight. For the most part, every single tasting host was more than happy to let us taste pretty much whatever we wanted, and we received warm welcomes, without being faced with a "wine snob."

Highlights of our day in Healdsburg didn't just involve wine. We had lunch at Healdsburg Bar & Grill. I don't know if it's because I was slightly hungover, slightly buzzed or a combination of both, but their signature HBC Burger was one of the best burgers I have ever had. EVER! And with a side of truffle oil and Parmigiano-Reggiano fries, how could you go wrong?!?! Answer: You can't.

For a mid-afternoon pick-up, we also hit the Flying Goat for coffee, which was probably what Starbucks was before it became Starbucks. Good coffee in a big mug for $2. Perfect.

Our biggest discovery in Healdsburg, though, was wine related. The sign read "Cult Wines." What is a cult wine, we said. In a word, it's fabulous. It lead us to Kerry, who was the tasting host for Stephen & Walker Trust Winery Limited. Another winery that only sells through its tasting room and the web, it is the labor of love of Nancy Walker, who has been making wine for 22 years, and her husband Tony Stephen, who brings 20 years of experience. Their award-winning wines are so full of life. I am not a fan of port, but their Portentous was fantastic. I joined the wine club because, again, life is better when they deliver wine right to your door, and it's cheaper than flying back out there to load up on this wine.

Our trip ended too soon. There was so much we saw, but so much we didn't have time to see. I'm already planning a return trip.

Any takers?