A half block east of the Healdsburg Plaza, Dawn and Bill Williamson offers a slice of this or a wedge of that with each wine–often cheese with house-made truffle salt or chutney–all for no fee. These days it’s hardship enough to find so much as a breadstick at a $15 tasting, which makes Williamson Wines all the more beloved to those who find them. Here you get a little nosh while wetting the whistle–but you won’t escape their dry Aussie sense of humor.

The 2006 “Seduce” Dry Creek Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($57) opens with red-berry aromas and bay leaf, showing soft claret-style structure, cranberry and vanilla notes. The finish is just mildly astringent; the real fun begins when a rich little bite of gorgonzola quickly focuses the Cab to the center of the palate like a lens. No doubt the Williamson’s recipe for peppered tri-tip will do the trick as well; hard cheese for you, if not.

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Peppered Tri-Tip with Cabernet Balsamic Sauce

2 pounds tri-tip, cut into 8-ounce pieces
4 tablespoons black peppercorns, lightly cracked
2 tablespoons kosher salt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup red onion, minced
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 cup Cabernet Sauvignon
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat grill to high.

Cut steak into 8-ounce portions and lightly tenderize with mallet. Dust with crushed black pepper and kosher salt. Press salt and pepper into steak with the palm of hand. Transfer steaks to a baking dish and place in the refrigerator. Let marinate for 4 to 8 hours.

In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, add extra-virgin olive oil and onions and lightly sauté until onions are caramelized. Add garlic and cook until garlic begins to turn brown. Deglaze with wine and balsamic vinegar. Add sugar and let simmer and reduce for 20 to 30 minutes until mixture reduces to 3/4 cup.

Place steaks over a hot grill. Move once on first side to mark the steaks, cook for 5 minutes and flip, again only moving once to mark steak, cook for 4 minutes. When desired doneness is achieved, remove steaks from grill and let rest for 3 to 4 minutes.

Strain wine mixture and return to heat to reduce for 5 more minutes or until thick syrup is created.
Serve with the steaks and Williamson Seduce Cabernet Sauvignon.

Touted as a “celebration of small production, locally handcrafted wine, food and art,” the inaugural event takes place Nov. 14 from noon to 5 p.m. on the lawn of the Geyserville Inn.

If you’re still gorged on Halloween candy and are contemplating curbing calories before Thanksgiving, think again. Because first and foremost, Artisano means food. You’ll graze your way through delectables from top Sonoma restaurants like Rosso Pizzeria & Wine Bar, Dry Creek Kitchen, Zazu, Diavola, Manzanita, Bovolo, Costeaux French Bakery, and Zin.

Likely, there will be a bit of a friendly pizza war going on between the two artisan pie purveyors, Rosso and Diavola. Dueling wood fired ovens? You be the judge.

If meat’s your thing, you’ll munch on locally raised specialties from the Sonoma County Meat Buying Club, and pick up some information on how to join the protein-based CSA-style group.

There will be artisan cheeses from local cheese producers like Cow Girl Creamery, Bellwether Farms, Delice de la Vallee, Point Reyes Farmstead and Redwood Hill Farm. You can belly up to bacon from Black Pig Meat Company, olives from Skipstone Ranch, and high-end nibbles from Sonoma Foie Gras and Sonoma Chocolatiers. For gourmet groceries, browse the offerings from Jimtown Store, Dry Creek Peach & Produce, Terra Sonoma, and Sensuous Farms (purveyor of marvels in mustards, BBQ sauces, rubs, mostardas, preserves, jams, marmalades, vinegars, pickles and salumi).

The celeb chef factor will be out-and-about, too, in the form of cooking demonstrations and book signings with Josh Silvers of Syrah and Jeff Mall of Zin.

To wash it all down, there will be wine. Plenty of wine, from more than 20 small-production, up-and-coming, ultra-premium wineries. Sip and savor the best from Garden Creek, Foursight, Montemaggiore, Kelley & Young, Verge, Duxoup, Skewis, Palmeri and MacPhail.

MacPhail, in particular, is a Sonoma rising star – read all about him.

While you’re resting between bites, you can explore paintings, ceramics, fused glass, sculptures, and other original works of art from several of the region’s premier artists like Clay Vajgrt, Linda Schroeter and Michael Coy, set to the backdrop of live music from the Steve Pile Band.

Besides looking like delicious fun, this inaugural Artisano is for a good cause. A portion of proceeds benefit Slow Food Sonoma County North, for the convivium’s School Garden Project in elementary schools in Cloverdale, Geyserville, Healdsburg, Windsor, and Santa Rosa.

Snag your tickets now – admission is $75 per person in advance and $90 at the door. To purchase: visit travel.sonomacounty.com and enter FRIENDS at check-out for a discount or call 800-914-7511.

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James’ Brussels Sprouts and Field Roast, Recidivist Vegetarian Comfort Meal

Serves 2

12-18 brussels sprouts
2 tbsp. butter
1 ounce mild blue cheese (substitute: grated asiago)
1/4 tsp. dried chili or habanero pepper powder
1 pckg. veggie grain loaf, such as Field Roast Grain Meat Company (T-day substitution: you know, a big bird)
4 Yukon Gold potatoes
2/3 cup milk or half-and-half
2-4 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. crushed garlic salt
Pepper  to taste

Quarter and boil potatoes until soft; drain. Reduce heat to low, add milk, butter, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Mash well, stir until creamy; add or reduce liquid to taste. Meanwhile, cover brussels sprouts with water and bring to boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and cut sprouts in half, return to pot on low heat, add butter, cheese and pepper to taste. Stir until melted. Simmer field roast with a half cup water in a nonstick pan, until well heated (or, you know, cook a big bird; however that’s done). Slice and plate with the mash and sprouts. (Vegggie-con-huevos option: Sprinkle with El Yucateco XXXtra Hot Habenero Sauce. The Pinot Blanc can take it–can you?)

Indeed it does, as a group of 16 students learned at last Sunday’s Food and Wine Dynamics class held at Stonestreet Winery in Alexander Valley. Yet, there are better ways to partner flavors, and with just a little education, the process can be easy and enjoyable.

“Acid,” explained instructor and Stonestreet estate chef Constantino “Taki” Laliotitis. While there are other wine and food characteristics to consider, including sugar, fruit, tannin (bitterness) and oak, complementing acid is the most important factor to keep in mind.

And with that tip, this student spat out her bite of sun-dried tomato, which Taki had dared her to taste alongside a swig of 2005 Black Cougar Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon. The acids and tannins of the tomato had turned the $90-a-bottle wine into swill. Even worse: a pairing of super-salty kalamata olive. Better: a roasted mushroom dredged in expensive grated Parmesan.

The class, held at the Summit center next to the estate’s tasting room overlooking the sweeping valley vineyards and mountainscapes, was one of the first in a new series of courses being offered bi-monthly to offer insight into the world of wine.

Over the next hour, students took a quick but deep dive into the power of taste and smell, sipping and nibbling the whole way. For professional chefs and sommeliers, Taki explained, there’s an intensive “Deductive Tasting” chart to follow, with nearly 100 facets to consider. Professionals have the chart memorized and do the analysis instinctively, Taki said, insisting that with enough practice, so could even the most ignorant student among us.

In fact, after just a few bites of the test foods he placed before us, we were getting the idea. A knob of unseasoned roast pork with 2007 Red Point Chardonnay? Pretty blah. But that same pork with a spritz of lemon and a touch of Maldon sea salt, and pow, the pork became savory, while the wine gave forth in a stunning, full-bodied citrus expression, blossoming in a mid-palate of apricot, orange rind and nectarine.

There were no dumb questions, we were promised, though Taki did share a head-scratcher someone had asked him once. “I’d described a wine as lemony, and they wanted to know at what point in the winemaking we added the lemon juice.”

Because the series is new, assistant tasting room manager and curriculum organizer Jeff Bean is still tweaking activities. What that meant for this class is that Taki was having such fun that he continued past the wine seminar into a full-fledged cooking demonstration. And that we scored an unbelievable bargain for our tuition cost of $35.

We sipped more wine as we watched him prepare pumpkin pie spiced blini with cured salmon, crème fraiche, red onion rings and salmon roe; red wine allspice braised short ribs with truffle celery root puree; and pan seared Liberty Farms duck breast with rosemary infused dried fruit compote.

Then, to test what we’d learned, we tasted more wine along with the full-size plates he brought out for each of us – Chardonnay with salmon, short ribs with Cabernet, and duck breast with a 2006 Fifth Ridge Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon blend.

Or actually, whatever we felt like pairing with what.

Because that, explained Taki, was another rule of wine and food pairing. Sometimes, the best relationship is one of contrasts, such as his recent discovery of tart, tannic bleu cheese paired with sweet, silky dessert wine, or mustard chow chow pickles with Chardonnay. The key is to explore, practice tasting, and listen to our senses.

Failing all that, it’s still hard to wrong with wine and food pairing, Taki insisted. “If you eat something you don’t like, wash it down with lots of wine. Invariably, it’ll get better.”

Details: Stonestreet Summit School, 7111 Highway 128, Healdsburg. Classes start at 1 p.m. and are limited to 25 students. For reservations, call 800-355-8008 or email jeff.bean@stonestreetwines.com.

Upcoming classes include:

* December 6, 2009: Does glassware affect the way a wine tastes? The $75 tuition includes a set of four Riedel Crystal glasses to take home.

* February 7, 2010: “Madame de Fromage” and Cheese School of San Francisco instructor Colette Hatch leads The Dynamics of Wine and Cheese. Tuition is $25.

The photos were taken throughout the western states at some well-known and a few obscure locales.  Don’t worry though.  Chip will be barking out clues for some of the hard to guess spots.  So fan Mrs. Grossmans today and get in on the guessing!

If your travels ever bring you to Sonoma County, make sure you set-up an appointment to tour the factory.  If you are traveling with kids, even better!  The intro video is hosted by a talking dog.  The video is educational and fun for sticker lovers of any age.  Even if you are not planning a fantastic Sonoma Wine Country getaway, check out the Mrs. Grossman’s website.  They have helpful ideas for cards or projects divided by time, theme, difficulty, etc.  They also have a wide variety of stickers for nearly every occasion or mood.  In fact, I used some of these stickers as the design for a wedding shower invitation for my friend.  I just purchased some plain invitations and dressed them up with stickers.  MUCH more reasonable then buying designer cards.

Here is a great video from the people at Mrs. Grossman’s on how to use stickers to dress-up holiday gifts and cards:

So help Mrs. Grossman’s celebrate 30 years in business by taking at guess at Chip’s location and if you win the $30 in stickers stop back and let us know how you used them.

The local rumor mill has been swirling since Top Chef Judges Tom & Padma were spotted in Healdsburg a week ago that the season finale was filmed here in Sonoma County.  I might be a little biased, but I dare say that Sonoma County can top the Napa finale in Season 1.  Considering farm-to-table cooking and a commitment to crafting award-winning wines has been part of the Sonoma County heritage for years, I think this will be the best Season Finale ever.  Even local food blogger Heather Irwin got wind that the award-winning Cyrus restaurant was closed last week for some unknown reason.  And if Heather blogs about it then it MUST be true.

So fans of Top Chef unite!  Who is your pick to win this season?  What do you think will be the final challenge?  What chefs should be part of the finale?

My picks for local celebrity chefs would be Douglas Keane from Cyrus, Charlie Palmer, Josh Silvers from Syrah & Duskie Estes from ZaZu.

And just for fun, here is a pic of Kevin’s pig tattoo which should have been entered in our Sonoma Wine & Food Tattoo Contest!

Check out the fun Kevin & Eli had with their pal Hardy during their first trip to Sonoma Wine Country:

Cloverdale offers visitors a friendly, small-town feel with oak-studded hillsides and a Main Street right out of Hollywood.  Clovderdale offers the perfect mix of great location for exploring the Dry Creek & Alexander Valley’s in Sonoma County and the Mendocino Wine Country to the North.  Here are some great places to visit and dine when visiting this casual & welcoming town:

• On Friday evenings in the summertime, downtown comes alive with the Cloverdale Certified Farmer’s Market and Friday Night Live.  Vendors selling fresh local produce, arts, crafts and food share the space with an amazing lineup of world-class music.  Bring your appetite for dinner, because there is plenty of great food available.  Or, go to Pick’s Drive In, a blast from the past, complete with burgers, fries, hand-scooped shakes, malts and root beer floats.

• If you love fairs and festivals, plan your visit in the winter.  Cloverdale hosts both the Old Time Fiddle Festival in January and the Citrus Fair in February.  The Citrus Fair is one of the longest running fairs in California, the first one held in 1892 that showcased elaborate exhibits created with oranges and other citrus fruit.  The emphasis is still on citrus, however the fair is now themed with entertainment and all the typical fair fare.   The Old Time Fiddle Festival draws music enthusiasts from all over to hear some of the nation’s most distinguished fiddlers compete.  The competition is only part of the festival – there is also entertainment, jamming sessions, a band scramble, food and crafts booths and a Saturday night dance.

Take a trip back in time with a visit to the Gould-Shaw House Museum, situated in the middle of town and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Run by the Cloverdale Historical Society,  the preserved historic home is Gothic Revival, an architectural style from the Victorian era, rare in Sonoma County, and rare in its survival through time.  The home is completely furnished inside and out to replicate the original house from the early 1900’s.  Among the furnishings you’ll find a wooden horn Victorola, pump organ, wood burning iron stove; all sorts of things from the era.  If you want to dig further, the museum is also home to a research center (open by appointment) that contains a plethora of information on Cloverdale and the surrounding area.

Cloverdale Historical Society 215 N. Cloverdale Blvd.  Cloverdale, CA 95425  (707) 894-2067    www.cloverdalehistoricalsociety.org

• If you are into cycling, Cloverdale is a great place to begin a ride through wine country.   A map is available of three routes, ranging from 10 to 50 mile loops, on the Cloverdale.net website.

• There are also many places for hikes and casual walks nearby. In Cloverdale there is a trailhead to Yorty Creek, a popular family area for picnicking, swimming, bank fishing, and boat launch for canoes and kayaks.  Yorty Creek is part of Lake Sonoma Recreation area that has miles of hiking trails and is the perfect setting for hiking, swimming, boating, fishing and camping.

Cloverdale is home to other great parks besides Lake Sonoma & Yorty Creek.  Check out one of these other parks for some great recreation:

Cloverdale River Park
31820 McCray Road  Cloverdale, CA 95425
(707) 565-2041
http://www.sonoma-county.org/parks/pk_clvrdle.htm

City Park
450 W. Second Street, Cloverdale
http://www.cloverdale.net/index.aspx?nid=152

With Cloverdale’s perfect location for exploring wineries north and south feel free to explore the wineries from Healdsburg north.  Here are two of my favorites in the Cloverdale area:

Cellar No. 8 at Asti Winery
26150 Asti Post Office Road  Cloverdale, CA 95425
(866) 557-4970
www.cellarno8.com

J. Rickards Winery
24505 Chianti Rd. Cloverdale CA, 95425
707-758-3441
www.jrwinery.com

Now that you have explored this charming town, check out one of their great restaurants.  Here are some of my favorite places to dine in Clovderdale:

Piacere Ristorante Italiano
504 N. Cloverdale Blvd.  Cloverdale, CA 95425
(707) 894-0885

Ruth McGowan’s Brew Pub
131 E. 1st Street  Cloverdale, CA 95425
(707) 894-9610
http://www.ruthmcgowansbrewpub.com/index.html

Pick’s Drive-In
117 S. Cloverdale Blvd.  Cloverdale, CA 95425
(707) 894-2962

Tian Yuen
421 S. Cloverdale Blvd.  Cloverdale, CA 95425
(707) 894-5697
www.tianyuen.net

It’s boggling how much deliciousness he crams into the tiny space tucked in an easy-to-miss spot along downtown’s central strip, from the entrees listed on the handwritten chalkboard menu, to the display case of fresh salads, to the countertop laden with homemade desserts.

Not enough for you? Then check out the grocery shelves stocked with uncommon stuff like wild pickled cucumbers, soy milk, Pomegranate molasses, crackers and canned fish. If it’s not there, you don’t need it.

Naturally, with so much going on inside, diners are relegated to mostly outside, choosing from a smattering of tables in the parking lot. Lack of seating is a small price to pay for such great food that rings in for mostly around $5.99.

While he’s taken some liberty with recipes, going for a quasi California-International bent alongside his Mediterranean staples, there’s no mistaking the ample dose of love in each dish.

Ok, so a smoked turkey and pesto wrap with provolone is decidedly Golden State, while a pastrami and melted Swiss panini is more East Coast. The big salads hint of a Seinfeld episode, laden with every ingredient you could imagine.

Yet Qawasmi also offers achingly authentic daily specials like Lebanese meatballs with hummus, tahini and a healthy splash of shatta, a Jordanian hot pepper sauce. Wrap yours in a pita, which is more bread-y than fluffy, like it’s somehow been genetically crossed with a tortilla.

Gyros are particularly tasty, the meat kind of thick and chewy in the good Greek way, and for a few pennies more, Qawasmi will plump up your bundle with chunks of tangy feta.

He may toss you a freebie sesame candy from the jar he keeps on the counter, too, but don’t skimp on dessert – baklava melts in your mouth.

And here’s the most delicious secret of all: you must, simply must, pluck a yogurt drink from the beverage cooler. Shake it up, then dress it up with fresh mint plucked from Qawasmi’s personal garden out front.

Details: Main Street Deli, 280 S. Main St., Sebastopol; 707-824-0700.

When I feel the first chill of fall, I reach in my cellar–more often than not, a brown bag, late of the grocery store–for a Pinot Noir. Like Sauvignon Blanc’s razor-sharp fruit slakes it on a summer day, light yet earthy, spicy and warming Pinot segues the palate into a darker season that will soon enough warrant bolder, spicier reds.

Calstar Cellars’ 2007 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($28.50) is a Sonoma County Harvest Fair gold medal-getter and textbook SoCo Pinot. With earthy strawberry conserve fruit, brown spice notes and just a li’l dash of cola, it’s neither too fruity nor much too earthy. Opening with a little heat, it only settles in and mellows over the evening–and likewise, its imbibers.

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MUSHROOMS BAKED IN PARCHMENT BEGGARS PURSES

From John Ash

Serves 4

This is a quick and simple preparation that can be done in the oven using parchment or on a grill or in the coals using foil (hobo packs). Any combination of mushrooms that you like are fodder for this dish. The herb bundles are there for flavor and aroma but not really to be eaten. Any combination of mushrooms can be used including cremini and portabella. I love doing this with my favorite mushroom supplier Gourmet Mushrooms who sell beautiful mail order basket of exotic mushrooms which can be shipped overnight anywhere. Other ingredients can be added to the packages like a few slices of meaty black olive, a few capers or whatever else you like. Delicious as a little first course on its own this is also fun to serve along side simply prepared fish and shellfish.

Fresh herbs such as bay, thyme, sage and rosemary
4 paper thin slices Proscuitto or Speck (a similar salumi that has been smoked)
1 pound wild or cultivated exotic mushrooms, cut attractively in large relatively even sized pieces
4 tablespoons fragrant extra virgin olive oil
4 teaspoons butter
1/4 cup or so dry white vermouth or other aromatic dry white wine
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (use a microplane)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Tie the herbs up in little bouquets with a little twine. Cut 4 pieces of parchment paper in squares about 14 inches on a side. Brush or drizzle the olive oil on each parchment square and place a slice of proscuitto on top. Place mushrooms on top of that along with an herb bouquet. Add a teaspoon of butter and a tablespoon or so of vermouth to each. Sprinkle zest over and season liberally with salt and pepper.

Gather the edges of the parchment to form a bag and completely enclose the filling. Tie tightly with twine. Place on a baking sheet in a preheated 425 degree oven and bake for 15 minutes or so or until the bags are puffed and lightly browned.

Serve the mushrooms in their bundles so that guests can cut them open and be surrounded by all of the lovely aromas!

© 2005 Rev. 1/08

As we’ve said before, and we’ll say it again, Sonoma County is awesome for cycling. If you want to go cycling in wine country, this is your spot.

Look for more cycling news soon – especially in North County.

Story from the Press Democrat, the local newspaper of record, has more:

Bike-friendly city wins bronze designation