Selected wines are paired with special menus at not one, not two, but three weekly community dining options at the popular downtown Santa Rosa restaurant.

On Wednesdays, Sonoma Farmhouse Table dinners feature family-style meals with house wine included for $21.95. You can even win a raffle ticket playing the “Wine Game.”

Each Thursday, a long table is set for guests of the Wine Pairing Dinner. The menu features four thoughtfully presented courses and a respective wine pairing. It’s a steal at $24.95 per person.

Then, on Fridays, a more intimate experience is set for Wine Stories at Table 20, which features a special selection of Sonoma County wines paired with a five-course dinner for $59.95 per person.

Alan and Sandy join in, for conversation about the wine and life itself. They have cultivated relationships with local winegrowers and importers from around the world. Special pricing on the wines served is available to guests. Alan will share his monthly wine picks and make purchases a breeze with mixing and matching, curbside collection, shipping options, and even gift wrap.

Reservations are required by noon of the day’s 7 p.m. meal. Menus are updated weekly on the website. Go ahead and peek, be tempted! Prices do not include tax and gratuity. Even the contact number is simple – just remember 569-WINE and you’re set. It’s the easiest and most delicious deal around!

Flavor Bistro Wine Merchants
707-569-WINE (9643)
acflavorbistrowine@gmail.com
www.flavorbistro.com

For one of the loveliest weddings imaginable, a happy couple might hold their nuptials in an organic Sonoma vineyard.

For a truly unique wedding, however, that vineyard might overlook a restored stream that welcomes leaping salmon during the fish’s annual run.

A couple might host their reception in a lavish garden. But what if that garden brimmed with fresh vegetables and herbs that are grown specifically for Sonoma County’s best restaurants? And for a backdrop, it included the antics of colorfully plumed heritage chickens who live in a spectacular coop that’s more mini-mansion that birdhouse?

The couple might encourage guests to take in the views at the site they chose specifically for its beauty. But what if that included wandering stunning grounds, visiting beehives, and even resident heritage pigs that root happily beneath apple trees?

Brides are always in search of that most memorable wedding setting, and more and more, the places that succeed the best are those “outside of the box” places.

Chickens and pigs, salmon and bees, for example, are just a few of the fascinating amenities to be found at Quivira Vineyards & Winery in Healdsburg. While Sonoma County is known for its breathtaking settings, this property celebrates green style and rustic chic elegance in unexpected ways.

Traditional types may choose the winery’s intimate barrel room for a luxurious rehearsal dinner. Yet then they might move the actual ceremony to the vineyards, and return to the winery buildings for the reception.

But couples who cherish nature may opt to host every part of their event in the garden, and include a tour of the sustainable property guided by one of Quivira’s environmental experts. The journey can include meeting Ruby the pig, and those exotic chickens, in breeds like Black Frizzle Cochin, Cuckoo Marans, Silver Laced Wyandottes, Golden Polish and Antwerp Belgian.

The winery’s on-site event planner can offer creative suggestions, for groups of 20 to 100, and also help design and coordinate the event including rentals, meals, and of course, wine.

And then, more than just drinking wine, an innovative bridal couple might also choose to explore the entire experience with their guests, from grape to glass. Quivira specializes in small-lot wines from varietals specifically matched to its Dry Creek Valley soils and microclimate. A Quivira expert can be featured in the day’s festivities, to explain the property’s biodynamic agriculture and artisan wine-making practices.

The wedding itself is the highlight of the special day, certainly. But with a little thought and planning, the gathering can be even more memorable, in a personal statement that showcases that most spectacular setting.

Details: Quivira Vineyards & Winery, 4900 W. Dry Creek Rd., Healdsburg, 707-431-8333, quivirawine.com.

Before the rich, honeyed aroma typical of this varietal can reach my nose, another whiff beats it to the punch: Is it mushroomy? Hmm. Forest floor? Well … How about, wet cardboard box? Yeah, that’s it. It’s the smell that the die-hard, French-wines-can-do-no-wrong and/or anti-high-alcohol-California-fruit-bombs camps sometimes call “minerality,” or “terroir,” but whose true name is TCA, a wine flaw caused by tainted corks and/or lax cellar practices. Oh, and it’s 14.5 percent alcohol.

I’m being a little facetious, and perhaps unfair. Cork taint can happen to any bottle, but it’s not something that a wine drinker should always avoid, especially if you’re unfamiliar with its aroma. Cozy up to it, if just to get to know it. That way, you won’t risk getting snowed by inattentive restaurant or tasting room staff (most everyone in the business is swift and accommodating in this regard, but it happens) who attribute it to, “Ah, the terroir.”

TCA (2,4,6-trichloroanisole) and other bottle variations are the reason that unfavorable wine reviews end with the coda, “two bottles tasted.”

In the case of Cline Cellars 2011 Sonoma Coast Marsanne Roussanne ($15.99) two bottles were tasted, but only because it’s so gosh darn delicious. Marsanne and Roussanne are two of the top grapes from the Rhône; in California, they hitched a ride with the Rhône wave, and are seen so often together, it’s hard to tell them apart. Together, they inhabit less than 500 acres in California, or .002 percent of the total white grape acreage.

The Cline has a rich color of brass, a heady fruit aroma of nectarine and ripe apricot. The mouthfeel is thick, sweet with apricot juice and cream, but unlike some – and they can handle it – this young wine is not oaked. Quenching acidity brightens up the finish, saving it from being heavy. 13.5 percent alcohol.

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A recipe from Cline Cellars:  Smoked Trout Rillette

•  8 oz. smoked trout or other smoked fish
•  6 oz. unsalted butter, softened
•  Juice of one half lemon, or to taste
•  1/8 tsp. cayenne, or to taste
•  2 Tbsp. anchovy paste
•  1 ½ Tbsp. capers, rinsed, dried, minced
•  Salt and pepper

Shred trout, removing any bones and skin or pulse in a food processor – about 3 pulses.

Melt butter in a saucepan with lemon juice, cayenne, and anchovy paste. Blend with a whisk and cook at low simmer for three minutes. Remove from heat and stir in trout and the capers. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer to an eight-ounce crock or ramekin and chill until the butter is solid, preferable overnight to allow flavors to blend. Bring to room temperature before serving. Serve with crostini and garnish with cornichons. The dish will keep in the refrigerator for a week.

Yield: 8 – 12 servings.

At the second annual Art Of Eating, being held June 3 at Audubon Canyon Ranch in Glen Ellen, Sonoma’s top chefs, vintners, brewers and cheese makers will help us consider the way we think about eating and drinking in America.

Besides being delicious food for thought, it’s a fundraiser for the ACR organization, and its efforts in conservation science, habitat protection and restoration and environmental education.

The chefs and artisan beverage makers are donating their time and creations for the tasty celebration of food and wine, and guests get to indulge in multi-course food and wine pairings, along with live and silent auctions, all in the beautiful, rustic chic setting of Bouverie Preserve in Sonoma’s Valley of the Moon near Glen Ellen.

Running from 1 to 4:30 p.m., the event’s theme is inspiring, and meditative. Titled “Women Who Change the Way We Eat,” the afternoon is inspired by the life of M.F.K. Fisher, whose book, “The Art of Eating,” changed the world’s perception of food as nourishment of the soul as much as the body.

Fisher was a close friend of David Bouverie, and spent the last two decades of her life living at the 535-acre Bouverie Preserve where she wrote about food and hosted friends such as Julia Child, Alice Waters, John Ash, Chuck Williams, and James Beard.

Appropriately, many of the Northern California top food artists participating in the gala are women. Chefs include Sondra Bernstein of the girl and the fig, Sue Conley and Peggy Smith of Cowgirl Creamery, Contra Eisely of Patisserie Angelica, and Pam Ferrari of Ferrari Custom Catering.

Also in the kitchen will be chefs Jill Giacomini Basch of Pt. Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company, private chef Isa Jacoby, Eve Love of Marin Sun Farms, Mary Risley of Tante Marie’s Cooking School, and The Oyster Girls.

Great food demands great drink, so wineries and breweries feature the best, such as B.R. Cohn Winery, David Noyes Wines, Gloria Ferrer Caves and Vineyards, Gundlach Bundschu Winery, Lagunitas Brewing Company and Nicholson Ranch.

Ticket cost is $125, and proceeds will benefit ACR’s education programs, which annually provide more than 6,000 third-, fourth; and fifth-grade students the opportunity to experience nature-based educational experiences at no cost to the schools.

For tickets, call 415-868-9244, email acr@egret.org or visit egret.org.
Location: Bouverie Preserve of Audubon Canyon Ranch, 13935 Sonoma Highway 12, Glen Ellen.

Take a few seconds to soak it in: there’s a new restaurant there now, The Glen Ellen Star, and if the front door is open, you’ll be able to see the chef hard at work in the exposition kitchen that dominates the entry.

That chef is Ari Weiswasser, a significant talent who previously worked with the French Laundry, and Picholine in New York. What’s brought him to this sleepy little burg is love, for his wife (and business partner) Erinn Benziger Weiswasser, of the Benziger Family Winery in Sonoma. It’s also love, he says, of the fresh boutique ingredients that are available in Sonoma.

“Glen Ellen is ground zero for fresh produce, dairy, wine, meat and poultry,” he said.  “We are hoping that it will be the next wine country foodie destination.”

For opening weekend, the crowds were already out in droves. The wood-fired oven crackled busily, sending out wood-fired pizzas such as a white pie topped in guanciale and arugula, or tomato cream pie scattered in chili flakes.

That oven is the heart of the small eatery, displayed at the front of the completely renovated building where the open kitchen is one of the main décor features. Weiswasser uses it for his refined rustic foods, like appetizers of fennel crusted fennel dressed with Aleppo chile and Meyer lemon oil, baby carrots moistened in orange flower honey and Argan oil, or wood oven roasted hen of the woods mushrooms a la greque in veal jus.

Main courses are hearty, homey, and packed with flavor, for roasted game hen over creamy cauliflower in a lemony dressing, sturgeon with snap peas, bacon and tarragon crème fraiche, or grilled flat iron steak alongside fingerlings and escarole with a dollop of tart Roquefort.

Guests are encouraged to share, starting with perhaps caramelized asparagus, spicy bread salad, farm radishes and egg emulsion, and all the way through to homemade ice creams like roasted peanut butter and malted milk chocolate. For the ultimate share, there is a spring lamb supper that serves eight or more with 72-hour notice needed for preparation.

And soon, Glen Ellen Star will be its own little ground zero for exquisite produce. Weiswasser is tending a private garden, and dreams of a strong summer harvest of berries, artichokes, peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, and beans plus a variety of herbs.

Glen Ellen Star: 13648 Arnold Dr., Glen Ellen; 707-343-1384 or glenellenstar.com. Dinner 5:30 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 5 to 9:30 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Lunch will be served Friday through Sunday starting in July.

Start gearing up for the tour now at one of the previews at a variety of galleries and wineries. The Art at the Source Catalog (download here) is a year round guide, but apart from the Open Studio weekends you’ll need an appointment to visit the studios. They even provide a list of Artists by Medium to help you plan your perfect route. With a breadth of genres including painting, sculpting, ceramics, woodworking, jewelry, fiber art, and more, it’s incredibly useful to plot a course with such a list in hand.

Each participating artist has work on display now at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts through June 10. The gallery is located right in downtown Sebastopol, regularly open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 1-4 p.m. Saturday, with an extended Saturday and Sunday opening 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on tour weekends.

Santa Rosa’s Finley Community Center is now displaying work from more than 70 artists through June 14. The exhibit covers the gamut of mediums you can find on the tour. Stop by Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-7 p.m. or Saturday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

The Pelican Art Gallery in Petaluma provides a southern Sonoma County gateway into this artist collective with a special display of pieces from over 40 participating artists now through June 30. This fine gallery is regrettably closing soon, so do stop by for this last exhibit. They’re open Thursday through Saturday 11 a.m.-6 p.m. or by appointment.

Tantalize your palate with a wine tasting and art preview. Art at the Source and Wine Road, Northern Sonoma County have paired up to bring art from more than 44 participating studio tour artists to 34 tasting rooms and lodgings in Alexander, Dry Creek, and Russian River Valleys. This list can be found in the catalog or can be downloaded here.

Visit the Art at the Source website for details on artists’ demonstrations being offered during the tour and for information on studios holding midweek open houses on the Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings.

With your comprehensive Art at the Source catalog in hand and 96 studio doors open to you, the road awaits however you approach it. Enjoy the art, the scenery, and the atmosphere.

Art at the Source Open Studios Tour
June 2-3 and 9-10, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Sebastopol Center for the Arts
707-829-4797
info@sebarts.org

A drive through wine country to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Golden Gate Bridge. Red wine, redwoods and the Father of the Golden Gate Bridge

Starting: Petaluma, Calif., located 30 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge
When “Father of the Golden Gate Bridge” Frank Doyle was born in 1863, the United States was mired in the civil war, and California was a new state which had cast its lot with the Union side, though there were plenty of residents with Confederate sympathies in the land that brought together immigrants from around the United States.

Doyle’s father was one such confederate sympathizer who had headed out west during the Gold Rush. He left the family ranch in Petaluma and moved his business to Santa Rosa, which was less of a Union town.

Start the 75-mile journey of Sonoma County in Petaluma, the southern-most town on the Redwood Highway (U.S. 101), the ribbon of road that runs from the Golden Gate Bridge through Northern California. Petaluma is known for its ornate Victorian homes and classic downtown comprised of historic Iron Front buildings. Farm-to-table restaurants join chic boutiques and unique stores that reflect the town’s agricultural heritage, like The Seed Bank.

Visitors may get the feeling that Petaluma is eerily familiar, and it should be for fans of movies. “American Graffiti” was famously filmed there, as well as “Peggy Sue Got Married,” “Mumford” and more. The town and surrounding green hills are still used for car commercials. Petaluma anchors Sonoma County’s agricultural belt, one of the prime reasons for the support of building the bridge even while the country was mired in the Great Depression.

In 1920, when discussions started about the bridge, Sonoma County was the eighth-largest agricultural-producing county in the United States. A bridge across the straits known as the Golden Gate would mean better access for North Coast products to markets, and shipments would not be at the whim of ferry schedules and maritime weather conditions.

Drive: From Petaluma, head north out of town on Petaluma Boulevard North, and meet up with Old Redwood Highway, the original north-south thoroughfare that connected Northern California towns to San Francisco via the Golden Gate.

Heading out from Petaluma, pass the Petaluma Village Premium Outlets for a chance to get great deals from stores like Nike, Banana Republic and Tommy Hilfger. Leaving the town behind, the landscape changes to small farms, dairies and wineries. The road becomes Old Redwood Highway, and then Petaluma Hill Road, and heads through the small farming community of Penngrove before passing to the east of Sonoma State University.

The unique sloping roof of the Green Music Center, the new, world-class performance venue that will be on par with Tanglewood for acoustic perfection, sits just off the road. It’s worth a look around to see the grounds and the performance halls.

Before coming into Santa Rosa, the road passes the Crane Melon Farm, where the world-famous Crane Melon was first developed. The melons are aromatic and sweet, and when they are in season in the fall, foodies and chefs alike come to get the melons for use in sorbets, gelatos or just to eat fresh. Jennifer Crane still works the farm with her family.

In southern Santa Rosa, the scene includes a small dairy on the corner of the city limits, a reminder of the agricultural roots of this growing, diverse city.

In downtown Santa Rosa the journey passes the home and final resting place of Luther Burbank, the agricultural genius who experimented with crops to improve yields and bring food to the world. Some of his innovations include the Russet potato, the Shasta daisy and the sweet Santa Rosa plum.

The grounds include an exhibit on his extraordinary life, when the scientific innovators of fin de siecle America would include a stop at his farm to learn more. Burbank once remarked about Sonoma County, “this is the chosen spot of all the earth as far as nature is concerned,” and a tour of his grounds proves he knew what he was talking about.

A quick turn to the left at Courthouse Square, which is surrounded by shops and restaurants, heads under the main highway of 101 and arrives in Railroad Square, sight of the California Welcome Center. Stop in to stretch your legs and get information about the local sights, including wine tasting rooms and great restaurants within easy walking distance.

The building itself is a once-and-future train station. That is, it was an important stop on the railroad when the connection to San Francisco was via train and then ferry across the open expanse of water at the Golden Gate. Proving that everything old is new again, a new rail service will come through this spot soon: the Sonoma Marin Area Regional Train (SMART) will be a 70-mile commuter train and bike path that will connect to ferry service to San Francisco. Soon visitors to wine country from San Francisco can take a ferry to the train, and see the famous Golden Gate Bridge from the water.

Before leaving Santa Rosa, you can see the work of Frank Doyle in places like the Santa Rosa Junior College, where he endowed a scholarship that has provided an education for more than 100,000 students in Sonoma County.

Drive: Head west on Highway 12 (Luther Burbank Freeway) toward the town of Sebastopol.
Highway 12 crosses the largely unknown Laguna de Santa Rosa, a massive seasonal wetland that encompasses the Santa Rosa plain. Small farms dot the land that is built up, otherwise seasonal pools and wildlife can be spotted from the road. The area is worth a look along the Joe Rodota trail, a rail-to-trail conversion that connects Santa Rosa to Sebastopol.

Sebastopol is known as an artsy, politically progressive community with a great farmers market. Some local favorite stops in town include Screaming Mimi’s for ice cream and K&L Bistro for fine dining. And, no visit to Sebastopol would be complete without a stop at the Sebastopol Cookie Company for a Backpacker cookie, which seems to have one of everything crammed into it just fine. (Side trip: Find Florence Avenue just out of downtown to see amazing folk art sculptures along this street-turned-outdoor-gallery.)

Drive: Highway 116 (The Gravenstein Highway) as it leaves Sebastopol and head to Guerneville.
Before western Sonoma County became world-famous for the Russian River Valley Pinot Noir wines that are produced here, the area was famous for hops, prunes and the humble Gravenstein apple.

Early-ripening, sweet and perfect for pies and fresh-eating, the Gravenstein is believed to have been brought to Sonoma County by Russian settlers along the coast. The apple thrived in the soils of “West County” and Sebastopol was the center of the industry. The apple’s popularity waned when supermarkets created the need for more uniform, better-shipping varieties bred more for storage and looks than edibility.

Today “the Grav” is enjoying a renaissance among serious foodies and has been placed on the Ark of Taste, a way to draw attention to special, heirloom foods, by Slow Food USA. A drive along the Gravenstein Highway reveals acres of apples, although only a sliver of those that once covered the rolling hills around Sebastopol and which perfumed the air each spring with the blooms.

Outside of Sebastopol lie the small communities of Graton and Forestville. The acres are planted with vineyards, predominantly cool-weather varietals like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Small, family-owned tasting rooms abound.

In Forestville, Nightingale Bread (a bakery run by a former nurse), and art gallery Quicksilver Mine Company are worth the stop in this tiny town. The latter features a sculpture garden in the spring.

In Graton, Underwood Bar and Bistro is a favorite frequented by visitors, winemakers and grapegrowers alike.  A stroll along the two-block downtown passes great galleries and shops.

Arriving in Guerneville, you leave the narrow canyons and come upon a charming small town that has been alternatively called Big Bottom and Stumptown in its history as a logging town.

The town spreads along the Russian River, here known just as “The River” and which provides recreation at its beaches and fishing holes.

In the summer, tubing, canoeing and just plain splashing in the cool water is popular, while Guerneville itself is an eclectic mix of gay and lesbian vacationers, families and outdoors enthusiasts. In true West County fashion, it all works.

A quick jog past the Coffee Bazaar coffee shop (where everyone eventually stops) is the main entrance to Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve. These remarkable trees live to be 500-1,000 years old, grow to a diameter of 12-16 feet, and stand from 200-250 feet tall.

This old-growth stand is named for Colonel James Boydston Armstrong, a lumberman who had the foresight to stave off their cutting as the surrounding North Coast was being logged for houses in San Francisco. (The beautiful rows of Victorian houses in San Francisco began their lives as coastal redwoods.) Though he died before the land was preserved, his vision was taken up by Sonoma County residents and the grove was saved.

Today the park, together with the adjoining Austin Creek Reserve, encompasses more than 6,000 acres of ancient redwoods, rolling hills, open grasslands, conifers, and oaks. Visitors can drive through the grove, but the best way to experience them is to walk along the easy trail and enjoy the stillness of these ancient giants.

Before leaving the town of Guerneville, a quick stop at Big Bottom Market yields great sandwiches. Stroll the downtown to see the many faces of this charming town.

Drive: Head east on River Road towards Santa Rosa.
River Road parallels the meandering banks of the Russian River, passing the blink-and-you-miss-it town of Rio Nido. The dance halls set among the redwoods were once a swinging spot for Big Bands as the town swelled with soldiers, sailor and marines on leave from San Francisco military bases during World War II. Today the Rio Nido Roadhouse brings in great music on weekends. Just less than eight miles east of Guerneville, Westside Road joins River Road.

Drive: Take a left on Westside Road.
Turning on Westside road, a quaint two-lane road that traverses west Sonoma Wine Country, brings family-owned wineries peeking from around the bends.  One of them, Hop Kiln Winery, retains the buildings where the hops that used to be farmed here were dried.

Where Westside Road meets Wohler Road, travelers can see the historic Wohler Bridge. The one-lane bridge predates the Golden Gate Bridge by 16 years, and is a favorite among cyclists and photographers for it’s simple beauty and iron trusses that span the Russian River. Coming into Healdsburg, Westside Road becomes Mill Street.

Drive: Turn left on Healdsburg Avenue.
Driving through Healdsburg, a cute wine country town, Healdsburg Avenue passes the town square. Surrounding the square are tasting rooms and restaurants. Though the town has a Michelin two-starred restaurant, vestiges of the rural small town can still be seen in the one-chair barber shop just off the main plaza and the beautiful mural on Plaza Street at Center Street that traces the history of Northern Sonoma County from the Native Americans to modern times.

Drive: Healdsburg Avenue to Lytton Station Road. Left on Lytton Springs Road.
Quick right on Geyserville Ave. Head north on Geyserville Avenue to Souverain Road. Turn left on Souverain Road. The areas north of Healdsburg includes the famed wine regions the Dry Creek Valley and the Alexander Valley, and the road follows the borders of these American Viticultural Areas (AVAs).

Rows of grapes spread across the valley floor and cling to hillsides and benchlands, while Geyser Peak looms over the scene from the east. Geyser Peak’s flumes of hot air and mist used to be visible from the valleys, but have since been converted into one of the world’s largest geothermal power plants. The sprawling complex, appropriately called The Geysers, is open to the public for tours a few times each year.

A quick left on Souverain Road leads to one of Sonoma County’s great winery experiences: Francis Ford Coppola Winery. The famed Hollywood director made major changes to the winery he purchased here, creating a destination winery complete with a full-service restaurant, movie memorabilia and a large swimming pool/patio complete with bocce ball courts, changing cabins and even a kids story area.

A good place to taste and spend the day with family, visitors can see the desk from “The Godfather” movies, props from “Apocalypse Now” and even a suit of armor from “Dracula.” Fitting for a drive through Sonoma County, a rare Tucker automobile from the movie “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” sits in the front entryway of the winery.

Drive: Head north on Geyserville Road as it becomes Asti Road. Head to Cloverdale, the northernmost town in Sonoma County.
Cloverdale, recently voted one of America’s coolest small towns, is the end of the road for the 75-mile drive in Sonoma County.

This town of artists and winemakers is transitioning from a lumber and farming community to a quaint spot for wine tasters in the know. Public art dots the main road through town, and festivals like the Cloverdale Fiddle Festival, the Citrus Fair and Friday Night Live keep the area hopping.

The town also is the closest to Lake Sonoma, a huge reservoir popular with boaters, water skiers, and swimmers. Before heading on to your Mendocino County journey, just up the road, it’s it worth to slow down and have a root beer float at Pick’s Drive In or a frozen treat at Yogurtdale Blvd.

For a free visitors guide or information on hotels, wineries, events, spas, attractions, and
dining in Sonoma County, visit sonomacounty.com or call 800-576-6662.

Driving Map:
View 75 Milesof Sonoma County Map in a larger map

Yet through next year, the views are even more spectacular, with the debut of “The Spirit of the Man,” a tribute in sculpture to one of Sonoma’s finest artists, Al Voigt. Voigt was co-founder of the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation in Santa Rosa, and passed away in 2011, leaving a legacy of significant art pieces recognized the world over.

Just opened on May 20, the Spirit show features more than three dozen major works by sculptors based locally and throughout the United States.

Voigt originally was an aerospace engineer who fine-tuned missile guidance systems before he turned sculptor, and created a series of renowned outdoor installations across Sonoma.

The show includes significant works by world-renowned sculptors who Al was involved with throughout his life, and is centered on three genres: modern abstract; contemporary post modern; and work created for Black Rock City in the Nevada desert (better known as Burning Man). Many new pieces have been created specifically for this exhibition.

Throughout the year, Paradise Ridge and the Voigt Foundation will host educational and festive events focused around solstices, equinoxes and eclipses, all incorporating a message about the value of publicly accessible art. In fact, some of the Spirit sculptures are designed to be hands-on, with viewers encouraged to touch and interact with (and perhaps even climb upon) the works.

The Spirit show complements an already stunning collection for the Wine Country property was discovered in 1977 by Walter Byck and Marijke Byck-Hoenselaars. Visitors can wander through the outdoor sculpture exhibit in Marijke’s Grove, enjoy the Nagasawa historical exhibit or bring a picnic to savor with a bottle with Paradise Ridge wines.

The exhibits are nestled in a four-acre grove of ancient gnarled oaks, with “galleries” connected by simple footpaths through mossy rocks and small grassy clearings. Essentially, it’s a modern day museum celebrated in the great, grand outdoors.

Details: The Spirit of the Man, through April 2013 at Paradise Ridge Winery, 4545 Thomas Lake Harris Drive, Santa Rosa, 707-528-9463, prwinery.com.

And pizza is the typical graduation party food, eaten since, well, the first cave person graduated from Dino U.

Yet a Top 40 survey for 2011 graduation songs found some interesting updates. Seems the kids these days like “Sing” from My Chemical Romance (#1) and “Suddenly I See” from KT Tunstall (#10). It appears today’s kiddies want more inspiration and connection with self-identity than a bit of pomp.

So naturally, there’s more individual ways to celebrate than pizza, and clever caterers across Sonoma County are feeding more creative, personal appetites. Ask nearly any restaurant or caterer to put together a menu, and the first question will be, “what do the kids like to eat?”

At BBQ Smokehouse Bistro & Catering in Sebastopol, for example, chef-owner Larry Vito offers slow-smoked meats like tooth-tender baby back ribs, Memphis-style BBQ pork, 20-hour Texas beef brisket, and specialties like Southwestern beef tri tip, marinated in dark Mexican beer, garlic, chilies, cilantro, cumin seed and Worcestershire. If the kids prefer North Carolina-style ’cue, or Southern-style chicken, you can get that, too.

Yet the former Stanford Court San Francisco chef also throws a fancy party, featuring passed hors d’oeuvres such as golden caviar tumbled with sour cream and scooped into tasty potato, duck confit canapés, fish or vegetarian sushi rolls, and Camembert quesadilla with cilantro.

Young people have international tastes these days, he points out, and graduation parties can be celebrated in flavorful ways that showcase personalities.

At Oliver’s Markets in Santa Rosa and Cotati, the catering managers are comfortable with menus feeding 5 to 500. The “Congradulations” specials include mini croissant sandwich trays, premium meat and cheese platters, and displays of fruit, vegetables and cheeses starting at $29.99.

But for fancier fare, there are also Rocky Jr. chicken wings, deviled eggs, cocktail shrimp, and dips like artichoke and spinach, or pretty much anything the upscale deli can put on a platter (caviar! Meatballs!). Each store offers an authentic taqueria and a fresh sushi bar, plus dessert choices like mini cupcakes, petit fours, cookies and pastries.

Themes are another great way to throw a graduation celebration, such as Vito’s complete Hawaiian luau package menu, featuring 12 island inspired courses such as Hulie chicken that’s marinated long and deep in crushed pineapple, soy, garlic, cane sugar and ginger, shrimp and mango dip with wasabi crackers, and Maui-style ahi poke skewers. When you’re considering an al fresco Sonoma summer gathering, it’s a perfect fit.

And if you just want the traditional Hawaiian leis, Oliver’s will have the flower necklaces in stock through June, ready-to-wear. You can also get graduation themed balloons in the store.

For the happy parents, meanwhile, don’t forget this is your celebration, too. When organizing the menu, be sure to pick up some Sonoma sparkling for an over-21 toast. Gloria Ferrer Brut or Blanc de Noirs is a chic yet reasonably priced sipper, often seen on special in groceries at about $12.99 a bottle.

Details: BBQ Smokehouse Bistro & Catering, 6811 Laguna Park Way, Sebastopol, 707-575-3277, bbqsmokehousecatering.com.

Oliver’s Markets: oliversmarket.com.

Chef-owner John Franchetti and co-owner Kevin Cronin have taken their enormously popular recipe of artisanal pizzas, piadine, antipasti and insalati and added even more: a “Latteria” cheese bar.

First, about those pizzas, plucked at perfect bubbly crispiness from a wood-burning oven. Varieties include the classic Margherita with red sauce, house-made mozzarella, basil and McEvoy Ranch  EVOO, a  Clam Pie with “bouillabaisse” sauce, and the Moto Guzzi of a white base, house smoked mozzarella, Caggiano spicy Italian sausage, slow roasted sweet onions, “The Smoked  Olive” olive oil and Swiss chard.

Then, there are those piadine, which are essentially flatbread topped with salads and such. You roll up the soft-crisp bread and try to gracefully get the whole thing in your mouth.

Recipes feature an oyster “po’ boy” stuffed with crispy Drake’s Bay oysters, remoulade, romaine, shaved fennel and celery with a drizzle of bacon vinaigrette, or melt-in-your-mouth-tender porchetta layered with endive, mixed greens, Sausalito Springs watercress, radish and pickled carrot.

Diners can enjoy snacks, too, such as Tripe alla Petaluma smothered in long roasted tomatoes, sofrito and mint, or roasted octopus tossed with Parsons Homegrown tomatoes, smoked paprika oil and chiles.

Ah, but the cheese, please. Assortments are made fresh every hour, like straciatella cheese dotted with bottarga (caviar) alongside jalapeño and tomato confit toast. Homemade burrata is served with Prosciutto di Parma, or warm braised leeks, sieved egg and tarragon breadcrumbs.

Yet the real star is the new mozzarella selection, pulled-to-order and sourced from Craig Ramini of Tomales Bay who raises real, live Italian water buffalo for his distinctive curds.  Mozzarella can be decorated with extras like guanciale, green olive and Fresno chile toast, or simply savored plain, paired with  wines from a list called “In the Hood” and featuring labels from the Petaluma Gap.

Tasty trivia, by the way, about that mozzarella di bufala. “Ramini raises Italian bufala for curd to make the real deal mozzarella and ricotta,” said Cronin. “He names each bufala after rock stars – I have met Janis Joplin, Grace Slick, and yes, Jimi Hendrix.”

Details: Rosso Pizzeria + Mozzarella Bar, 151 Petaluma Blvd. South, Petaluma, 707-772-5177,  rossopizzeria.com. Open 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

On an unusually sunny recent Saturday in Jenner by the Sea, Earth Day played to happy crowds in shorts, halter tops and flip flops.

At the back of Jenner Inn, Un Deux Trois from Sebastopol played Piaf and other French classics. Over the highway, a righteous reggae band rocked dreads over happy campers with beers in hand at Cafe Aquatica’s oceanside verandah.

Most were Russian River eco-warriors, here to celebrate all things low-carbon and eco-friendly, from the swankiest electrical cars to the latest folding electric bikes.

Sinewy cyclists, some very young, took off early for the 28-mile round trip to Occidental, using the old “two wheels good, four wheels bad” excuse.

A cannon ball shot from a Russian longboat fired enthusiastic kayakers into racing round Penny Island, a seal and otter watching hot spot. Hikers with a love of wildflowers lined up for a two-hour ramble up Jenner Headlands.

All were there for Earth Day, care of EcoRing, Sonoma’s “Slow Travel” movement. Slow travel embraces and celebrates the local in nature for those who choose not to tote up carbon miles when they travel.

Wildlands Conservancy’s Ranger Kristin Martinez took a group of 25 across the headlands to view carpets of yellow buttercups and purple irises spread against the panoramic views from the Pomo Trail.

Even three unlikely palm trees, a tumble-down 1800s shack, rusting bath tub, and a rickety RV manage to cling to the  former Rule farm, still partly ranched by local farmers, now a public donation to Wildlands.

One of the leading attractions down below  was Russian longboat rides with former president of the Fort Ross Interpretive Association John Middleton to mark the settlement’s bicentenary and 200-year connection to Sonoma County.

Russian Navy longboats were sent to California in 1996 as part of the 300th anniversary of the Russian Navy. In addition to being part of the Russian Navy and Official Historic Ships and Boats of Monterey, these twin-sailed solo-steered speedy longboats were used in major Hollywood movies like “Amistad” and “Master and Commander.”

Meanwhile, a gaggle of electric-car worshippers ogled the Scarlet Porsche Speedster on display by Make Mine Electric’s Peter Oliver, and the North Bay Electric Car Association had the commanding steely grey Tesla and Nissan Leafs.

EcoRing message is that the way to travel is lighter and slower. The motto: It’s the journey — not the destination. “Slow travel” is the natural next move in our new century’s battle against unsustainable energy.

Chair massages eased tired muscles, as did a beer or two to accompany the piping barbecue of oysters and chicken served stage-side.

At the community center a documentary screening of “Shark Water” capped the day’s fare.

The previous day Rick Coates, executive director of EcoRing, led a walk in Occidental to demonstrate the potential for the conversion of the NPC right-a-way to a trail. Following that, at a summit session hosted by Osmosis Spa’s Michael Stusser and EcoRIng, local business leaders and electric car organization folks chatted knee-deep in an enzyme bath about the need for new public charging stations in areas of tourism in Sonoma.

And more than just visiting wineries, the Reserve showcases a collection of coveted Sonoma Valley wine destinations, many of which are seldom open to the public.

Tickets are limited, meaning no crowds, and each tour features four in-depth winery visits, including transportation on a luxury shuttle and a wine country picnic lunch.

“Sonoma Valley, the birthplace of California wine, has so many hidden gems and world-class wines to discover and taste all right here in our valley,” said Maureen Cottingham, Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance executive director, “We are very excited to once again, showcase some of the people, places and wines that otherwise would be impossible to experience.”

With each destination organized around a theme, guests can choose which experience most fits their interest. The Food & Wine Pairing Tour, for example, showcases wineries with private chefs. The chefs will create signature foods, and lead discussion on wine pairing and appreciation.

There are even tours specific to favorite varietals, grouping wineries that specialize in Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon or “alternative” wines. Another theme is The Sommelier Tour, led by will be led by Christopher Sawyer of Carneros Bistro and Bean & Bottle in Sonoma, and featuring visits with legendary winemakers George MacLeod, Michael Muscardini and Erich Bradley. Besides tasting exquisite wines, attendees will glean insiders’ knowledge of stocking a wine cellar.

One tour that is sure to be a bestseller is the All Access Tour, focusing on wineries that are rarely open to the public or accessible by appointment only, including Canihan Family Wines, Hamel Family Wines, Annadel Estate Winery and Haywood Estate.

Please note: Given the exclusive nature of the event, plus catering and transportation considerations, advance ticket purchase is required.

Sonoma Valley Reserve: May 19-20. Tickets are $95 for one day or $150 for two days. 707-935-0803, reservesonomavalley.com.

Adding further to the cost is an open bar, where guests may order as many drinks as they wish. Then, if you factor in both a rehearsal dinner and a reception, it’s easy to see how costs mount up.

To keep the outlay more reasonable, many couples choose to offer only beer, wine, and soft drinks. Yet even then, with an excellent wine, costs can creep skyward. Keeping in mind that one 750 mL bottle of wine will fill five glasses, it’s simple to do the math for most gatherings.

Yet there is another option, one that is not only fun, but environmentally friendly and ultimately affordable. Wines can be presented in kegs instead of bottles, which provides much greater flexibility in pricing while keeping waste out of recycling landfills.

It’s an elegant approach, too. More and more, high-end wines are being offered in kegs, noticeably at trendy bars and lounges across the country. It’s become not only hip, but a statement, and the pressurized kegs actually maintain the quality of the wine over a long evening or two.

At Kaz Winery in Kenwood, kegs are a signature. As Sonoma Valley’s smallest family owned winery, production averages 1,000 cases annually. With its spectacular setting in the foothills of the oak-covered Mayacamas Mountain, the 16-year-old winery also specializes in weddings for intimate groups of 50 guests or less.

As winery owners Richard and Sandi Kasmier note, renting a keg is a green and convenient approach, with no bottles to store and trash at the event’s end, and no glass, corks, capsules and labels discarded into landfills.

For the actual wines, wedding couples can select from an increasing variety as the trend becomes more popular. For Kaz, options feature some uncommon varietals, such as Lenoir, Barbera, Carignane, and Petit Verdot, amid the Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Syrah, Petit Sirah, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. A unique wedding with unique wines … that’s a recipe for a memorable event.

When the party is over, the happy couple can even take the unfinished kegs home for enjoyment, since the wine, protected from oxygen, will stay perfect to the last drop.

Details: Kaz Winery, 233 Adobe Canyon Rd., Kenwood, 707-833-2536, kazwinery.com.

But the long and gentle road belies the complexity of its viticultural heritage, and doesn’t reveal its secrets to the casual Sunday driver. This weekend, an event hosted by the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance offers participants a variety of fresh looks at what this valley has to offer, with an appealing twofer: No crowds, and the driving is done for you.

This is a valley that starts in Pinot Noir by the cool Carneros in the south, grows Zinfandel in the middle, Cabernet Sauvignon in the hills above, and ends again in Pinot at its very northern terminus.

Where can I find the best Pinot? Or Chardonnay? How can I get an appointment with the limited-production family wineries tucked in between, and where, indeed, is my personal sommelier to help me to catalogue all of this good wine?

The folks behind Sonoma Valley Reserve seem to have anticipated all of these questions, responding with a menu of 10 wine tours to four destinations each, each chauffeured in motor coach and including a wine country lunch.

The Wine & Food Pairing Tour takes you to one of the valley’s newest food pairing destinations, Ram’s Gate Winery – oysters prepared three enticing ways; a charcuterie board; chanterelle and goat cheese tart; Carneros lamb albondigas, and so much more – while the All Access Tour reveals Annadel Estate Winery, a seldom-seen gem of the northern valley that’s being renovated by an enterprising couple on the site of the historic winery that gave renowned Annadel State Park its name.

On the Sommelier Tour, Sonoma County’s sommelier to the stars Christopher Sawyer shares his insights at Beltane Ranch, an off-the-beaten-path ranch and vineyard founded by a San Francisco African American businesswoman in the 1890s, now making a name for its Estate Grown Sauvignon Blanc.

“This is definitely one of my favorite SBs made in Northern California,” said Sawyer. “The fruit was previously sold to Cakebread and other top producers until the family decided to make their own … I’m glad they did!”

Meanwhile, on the Family Winery Tour, step up to the Little Vineyards’ dinged-up old, wooden tasting bar where author Jack London knocked back a few in 1916 – so says the saloonkeeper’s plaque, which owner and musician Rich Little (rocking a juicy, Stratocaster-labeled Band Blend of Cab, Zin, and other red grapes) bought from a neighbor’s barn.

It’s stories like these that connect the Sonoma Valley wineries of today with its past, which you can savor while enjoying the fruit of some of its old Zinfandel vines that are literally history reborn, each and every spring.

If that isn’t enough, the event offers round-trip shuttle service from San Francisco and Mill Valley for $30.

Sonoma Valley Reserve, Saturday, May 19 and Sunday, May 20. One-day pass, $95. Two-day pass, $150. Call 707-935-0803 to book a tour, or at www.reservesonomavalley.com.

Right now, in spring, you’ll find baby artichokes, red-and-white striped beets, young garlic, small favas, tender lettuces, colorful cauliflowers, broccoli rabe, a bevy of herbs, and a whole lot more.

Then the apples come in, starting with Sebastopol’s famed Gravenstein. Before you know it the berries are plentiful, and then the stone fruits: apricots, plums, peaches, nectarines, cherries, plums … Then you’re drowning in zukes and cukes, sometimes marrying them to tomatoes that might be red or yellow or green or even black …

Just as this cornucopia runs out, another spills over: squash and melons and corn and pumpkins, nuts and grapes and beans. And even in the darkest days of winter you’ve got local broccoli and bok choy and lettuces, chard and endive and mushrooms.

Although the farmers markets center around food,  they offer far more. People come to buy a juicy peach or a mouth-watering tomato, sure. But they’re also there to meet their friends and hang out, hear a few tunes, devour a chocolate-chip cupcake or a Venezuelan Cachapas, or just watch the world go by.

Some markets operate from spring and into fall, but a few run year-round. Aside from fresh produce, most also include artisans and their wares, flowers and plants, and takeaway food from trucks or booths. There’s usually entertainment of some kind, too, which can range from a simple guitar soloist to a swing band.

This year there has been one big change on the market scene: the Santa Rosa Farmers Market has moved. (It lost the lease for its former location at the Santa Rosa Veteran’s Hall parking lot.) The new location: the south parking area of the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, just off Highway 101 in north Santa Rosa.

Here’s a list of the farmers markets in Sonoma County, with all dates, times and addresses updated for 2012:

Cotati Farmers Market

• Thursday (June-September): 4:30-7:30 p.m., La Plaza Park, downtown (Old Redwood Highway and West Sierra Avenue).

Gualala Farmers Market

• Saturday (May-November): 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Gualala Community Center, 57950 Center Street.

Healdsburg Farmers Market

• Saturday (May-November): 9 a.m.-noon, one block west of the Plaza on Foss Creek.
• Wednesday (June-October): 4-7 p.m., at North and Vine Streets, two blocks northwest of the Plaza in the Purity/Cerri parking lot.

Occidental Farmers Market

• Friday (June-October): 4 p.m.-dusk, downtown Occidental.

Petaluma Farmers Market

• Saturday (May-November): 2-5:30 p.m., in Walnut Park.
• Wednesday (June-August): 4:30-8 p.m., on 2^nd Street between B and D Streets.

Rohnert Park Farmers Market

• Friday (June-September): 5-8 p.m., at City Center Plaza (next to the library), 600 City Center Drive.

Santa Rosa Farmers Market

• Wednesday: 8:30 a.m.-noon, in the south parking lot of the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts (off Highway 101 in north Santa Rosa).
• Saturday: 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m., in the same location as the Wednesday market.

 Sebastopol Farm Market

• Sunday (Year-Round): 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m., in Sebastopol Plaza on Weeks Way in downtown Sebastopol.

Sonoma

• Tuesday (May-October): Valley of the Moon Certified Farmers Market, 5:30 p.m.-dusk, behind City Hall on Sonoma’s Plaza.
• Friday (Year-Round): Sonoma Valley Certified Farmer’s Market, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., in the Arnold Field parking lot at 241 West First Street, Sonoma.

Windsor Certified Farmer’s Market

• Sunday (April-December): 10 a.m.-1 p.m., on Market Street in Old Downtown.
• Thursday (June-August): 5-8 p.m., same location as Sunday.

That’s because the 1970s saw a wine boom unlike any since the 1870s, and the wineries that stuck around are, at age 40, the veritable graybeards of the industry.

Take Jordan. In June, Jordan Vineyard & Winery celebrates its 40th anniversary by holding a charity fundraiser event. Giving Back at Jordan will feature wine tasting stations, hors d’oeuvres by Jordan executive chef Todd Knoll, and live entertainment. Ticket sales go to benefit three charities chosen by winery owner John Jordan.

The funny think about Jordan is, it’s been around so long, it’s almost a trend-bucker all over again – in a manner of speaking. While the fashion among high-end wine brands has been to release single-vineyard designates, or to seek out the next hot varietal, Jordan has stuck resolutely to the original lineup: One master blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (and one Chardonnay, the prom queen of California wine), in the manner of the old chateaux of Bordeaux that founders Tom and Sally Jordan were so enamored of.

Tom Jordan, who made his fortune prospecting for oil in the Far East, originally wanted a chateau so much, he sought to buy one outright. But the French government wouldn’t allow it. Turning to the west, he asked the experts to find him the next best thing – the gravelly soils of Sonoma County’s own Alexander Valley – and build his own darn chateau.

Covered with walls of ivy, fronted by a stand of poplar, Jordan is a stately facility, to be sure. But until just a few years ago, it was also off-limits to all but a few visitors.

When second-generation owner John Jordan (who also turns 40 this year) took over in 2007, the winery had been coasting along as a ubiquitous restaurant wine. Seeking to refresh its image, Jordan put and end to the “velvet rope mentality,” opening up the castle to tours, tastings, and special experiences available to purchasers of Jordan wines through “rewards points.”

Tastings include amuse-bouche style food pairings, and library wines dating back to 1977 are available for sale. Good to know that the 30-something wines, at least, are not over-the-hill … and among formerly stodgy wineries, there’s life after 40.

Jordan Vineyard & Winery’s 40th anniversary party will be held 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 2, at 1474 Alexander Valley Road, Healdsburg. Tickets must be purchased in advance at Causes.com; $75 per person, benefiting Bay Area charities Muttville Senior Dog Rescue, Meals on Wheels of San Francisco, and Spark Program.

Tours and tasting available daily at Jordan, by appointment. 800-654-1213.

The idea was to keep the crowds coming in during recession-weary times for what Silvers called “A nosh, a nibble, a full dinner, whatever they want … and not just a special occasion.”

Yet Silvers is finding his customers still have an appetite for bigger plates, and still crave more elaborate dining experiences, and so his new menu just unveiled offers larger entrees, plus seven- to nine-course tasting menus. Remarkably, prices remain reasonable.

Previously, our most hearty option might have been something like strips of Balinese long pepper-crusted New York steak over mushroom reduction with a side of potato-mushroom croquettes ($16). Yet now, we can indulge in a full, grilled hanger steak over a ragout of cippolini, carrots and potato, in green garlic puree and black garlic jus ($24), or pan-roasted Liberty duck atop creamy polenta with spinach, spring onion, endive and cherry Port reduction ($25).

Also tempting are the new five-course daily prix fixe dinners, which for $49 per person (add $30 for wine pairings) bring feasts like crudo of market catch, a salad of 63°egg, pan roasted scallop and short rib hash, grilled hanger steak and a mint ice cream and chocolate brownie sundae.

If the entire table is in the mood to test Silvers’ and chef de cuisine Ben Davies’ skill, the tasting menus offer a gourmet adventure. Seven courses cost $75 per person (add $40 for wine), while nine courses run $110 per person (add $50 per person), and feature “chef’s whim” dishes.

It’s like a taste of the award-wining, full style Syrah all over again. Delicious.

Details: Petite Syrah, 205 Fifth St., Santa Rosa, 707-568-4002, petitesyrah.com.

But it seems it’s been worth the wait for this stylish destination that just debuted from owner from Nino Rabbaa. He also owns Rendez Vous bistro in Santa Rosa, and this isn’t your typical burger joint, all sleek and jazzy, outfitted with a spacious patio accessed by slide-away glass walls and set with couches.

The full bar overlooks the kitchen action where cooks present waffle fries in cute little steel fryer baskets set in paper-lined trays, and craft house-made gelato for the banana splits.

Burgers, naturally, are the star of the menu, fashioned of grass-fed prime Kobe that’s ground fresh daily, yet don’t overlook the dogs, either, such as a Kobe beef hotdog stuffed with cheddar cheese and wrapped in bacon. And the fried pickles, jalapeño poppers and truffle fries on the side? ’Da bomb.

The advance of summer heat is looking more inviting, too, thanks to hand-dipped milkshakes like a Campfire recipe that’s chunky with s’more chocolate and Graham crackers, and topped with house-made marshmallows blackened with a torch. The waitresses wear black t-shirts emblazoned with “shake it,” and it’s good advice.

If you’re even hungrier, check out the larger entrée menu, including a pile of pork ribs with onion rings and truffle mushroom mac ‘n’ cheese.

Details: Flipside Bar & Burgers: 630 Third St., Santa Rosa, 707- 523-1400.

This year Gay Wine Weekend takes place from Friday, June 15, through Sunday, June 17. It’s a great opportunity to hobnob with like-minded fans of vino and the stunning Sonoma Valley countryside that produces many of the world’s most celebrated wines.

Highlights of the event-packed weekend include a Wine & Dine OUT dinner at which local winemakers pair wines with delectable treats from three of the area’s top restaurants, a meal and wine tasting at beautiful B. Wise Vineyards and Estate Restaurant, a cabaret night featuring drag-tastic “Russian opera diva Katya Smirnoff-Skyy” at Sebastiani Vineyards, a Winery Vista Tour at Gloria Ferrer and Nicholson Ranch Winery, a Twilight T-Dance to benefit the Sonoma County AIDS Network, the Big Gay Wine Auction & Brunch, and several more events. You can purchase tickets to events here, and I wouldn’t waste any time, as a few have already sold out.

Accommodations for the big bash are throughout  Sonoma Valley, including the retro-cool Flamingo Resort and Spa with one of the largest swimming pools in Wine Country.

Special rates starting at $169 for Gay Wine Weekend June 15 -17. For reservations call (707)-545-8530 and mention Gay Wine Weekend For more information about The Flamingo Resort & Spa visit www.flamingoresort.com

Check out the write-up on last year’s event to get a further idea of what this great celebration is all about.

Pssst

Sonoma Wine Country Weekend is coming up soon, over this Labor Day weekend – Aug. 31 through Sept. 2.

It’s three non-stop days of food, wine and reveling at fabulous venues across Sonoma County. Every year, the lengthy line-up of winemaker dinners, lunches, winery barbecues, grand tasting and auction sell out their tickets quickly.

Yet because the event is all-things Sonoma County, its organizers have set aside something extra special. There are a limited number of tickets available exclusively for Sonoma residents, and they have just gone on sale, a full month before tickets are offered to the general public. Not only that do Sonoma-ites get first dibs, but the tickets can be snapped up for as much as 50 percent off regular price.

That means that if you’ve got a Sonoma County zip code, and act quickly, you might get your hands on coveted tickets for Taste of Sonoma at MacMurray Ranch for just $75 ($150 general public) and the Sonoma Valley Harvest Wine Auction at Chateau St. Jean for $350 ($500 general public). The key word is quickly, since only a limited number of tickets are being set aside.

“Last year our events completely sold out,” said Maureen Cottingham, Sonoma Wine Country Weekend co-executive director. “We recognize that some of the events on the schedule tend to sell out rather early. The chance to purchase tickets early is also a nice benefit for, and one way we can thank, the people in our community who support us year after year.”

To obtain the special pricing, residents of Sonoma County can go to www.SonomaWineCountryWeekend.com and use the promotion code “LOCALS” and their Sonoma County zip code at checkout. A maximum of four specially priced tickets is allowed per address.

“We recognize that Sonoma County residents deserve a special opportunity to support both our local beneficiaries, as well as the Sonoma wine industry,” said Honore Comfort, Sonoma Wine Country Weekend co-executive director. “Visitors, as well as locals, are always a huge part of our full weekend of events that celebrate the very best of our region.”

Regular tickets, which range from $85 to $500 per person, will be opened up to the public on June 1. Yet even if someone doesn’t have a Sonoma zip code, there’s still great deals to be had from presenting sponsor Visa Signature. Cardholders can get event perks and savings, including access to an exclusive ticket presale; check it out at www.visa.com/signature.

Here’s a taste of what’s to come at the 2012 Sonoma Wine Country Weekend:

Friday, Aug. 31

• 12:30 p.m. – Winemaker Lunch Series at wineries across the County, $85/person
• 6:30 p.m. – Sonoma Starlight Supper Club at Francis Ford Coppola Winery, $95/person or $175/person Patron
• 6 p.m. – Winemaker Dinner Parties at wineries across the County, $150/person

Saturday, September 1

• 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. – Taste of Sonoma at MacMurray Ranch, $150/person (General), $195/person (Grand Reserve)
• 6 p.m. – Winemaker Dinner Parties
• 6 p.m. – Chairman’s Dinner Party, $175/person

Sunday, September 2

• 12:30 p.m. – Winery Barbecues at wineries throughout Sonoma County, $85/person
• 1 p.m. – 7 p.m. Sonoma Valley Harvest Wine Auction at Chateau St. Jean, $500/person

Besides being an international sensation (guests fly in from around the world for this spectacular gathering), the weekend makes a huge difference to the County. Proceeds from Sonoma Wine Country Weekend support Sonoma County non-profit organizations, including at-need children. To date, more than $11 million has been donated directly to Sonoma non-profits by the local wine community through this annual event.

For tickets: SonomaWineCountryWeekend.com.

It’s partly the periodically rainy spring weather that puts me in the mood, and primarily the good news that Mister Hof-Brau has reopened in Santa Rosa.

It’s that same Hof-Brau that for decades reigned supreme in Coddingtown Center, owned by Narsi Samii and his brother, Sam Samii, until it closed in March of 2010. It’s now occupying shiny new digs in the former SRJC Culinary Cafe space in the Brickyard Center at B and Seventh streets.

All it takes is one look at the massive hunks of meats, waiting for a sharp knife behind the counter, or certainly one sniff of the intoxicating aromas of slow-roasted turkey, beef, pastrami and corned beef, or baked ham.

Those are Hof-Brau hallmarks, as are hearty rib-stickers like sausage and sauerkraut, and mile-high sandwiches such as French dip, and a Black Russian stuffed with corned beef, roast beef and cheddar on dark rye smothered in tangy Russian dressing.

This being Wine County, there are some lighter eats – you can dive into an albacore tuna or hummus sandwich. But let’s be honest. We’re all really craving the belly fillers, aren’t we? Bratwurst and red cabbage, turkey enchiladas the size of small sleeping bags, capped off with a towering piece of all-American chocolate cake served with a big, cold glass of milk.

Welcome home, Mister Hof-Brau. We missed you.

Details: Mister Hof-Brau, 458 B St., Santa Rosa,  707-545-6237, mrhofbrau.com.

Planning the most romantic and special day of your life can be exciting and daunting. When it all comes to the big day, put the planning behind you and let someone else take the reins so you can enjoy yourself.

Bertoli Bridal is offering a $300 discount for their Day of Coordination Package, which is a significant incentive for the support and relief the service provides. You’ll get help with all of the work that makes all of that planning come together. From the fun stuff you’ve dreamed about and organized: the ceremony, music, and décor to the nitty gritty of paying the caterer and dealing with any day-of crises.

The Day of Coordination Package includes:

• Three meetings. The initial consultation to review contracts and details and set timeline, a meeting at your location, and a details meeting one month before the wedding
• Help and direct setup and cleanup the day of the wedding
• One hour Rehearsal to coordinate the ceremony
• Make sure the marriage license is signed
• Set tables with favors, programs, place cards, menus, sign in table, gift table, and candy table
• Onsite coordination and management of entire wedding day
• Work with DJ to establish timing for important events.
• Cue music for wedding party
• Meet and direct Vendors
• Distribute final payments and tips to vendors
• Take care of any wedding day emergencies that may arise

You can also look to Bertoli Bridal for a hand with the planning, event invitation, and floral design. The Emerald Package offers all of the Day of Coordination plus unlimited email and phone correspondence, diagramming the floor plan, and establishing the colors, theme, and design concepts.

You could even let them take you through the entire process with the Diamond Package, which includes the aforementioned help and vendor leads, set up and attendance of vendor meetings, discount on Bertoli’s floral and invitation design, use of Bertoli’s rental items, discount on vendor rentals, and an assistant.

Contact:

Leah Bertoli
Wedding Consultant
Bertoli Bridal and Design
707-291-8002
bertolibridal.com

Seriously, it’s 20 minutes from my house (no two-hour commute to the Big City), we park literally next door to the terminal, then waltz in to check in with a real, smiling person.

There’s a restaurant right there, including a patio overlooking the tarmac. Comfy seating with free Wi-Fi inside the intimate terminal, too. I was so relaxed, I actually forgot to go through security. When I remembered, it took less than a minute to pass through, with no lines, and two more smiling agents guiding the way.

If the Sonoma County Airport remains a best-kept secret for Wine Country travelers, here’s another juicy goodie that I discovered while leafing through the in-flight magazine. Free wine. And beer.

Truly, for Alaska/Horizon flights out of Sonoma County, all legal-age passengers are offered a complimentary glass of local wine or microbrew. The selections change, but you can count on exciting varietals and vintages, and seasonal craft brews. In case anyone misses the promo in the publication, the stewards come through the cabin, offering the free drinks and information about the winery or brewery.

Golden.

Keeping the theme, my flight attendant let me know that Alaska also offers incentives to sample more of that favorite Sonoma County wine. Anyone visiting a local winery doesn’t have to be up in the air over their purchase, wondering how to get that precious package safely home, since when you fly Alaska Airlines from Sonoma County, your wine flies free, up to a full case.

Then, there’s a new service called WineFlight. It’s a website offering special deals for Alaska ticket holders, from “jet lag relief” treatments at Osmosis spa, to savings on lodging, to your very own private dinner with a local winemaker.

Well, then. I’ve got a flight to Seattle next week. Instead of dreading the time at the airport and in the air, I’m actually looking forward to it. Cheers!

Details: inside-sonoma.com/wineflight/

You’ll learn a lot about both at the seventhannual Sustainable Enterprise Conference, which takes place on May 11 in Rohnert Park. The day-long event is all about helping North Bay business, academic, government, and non-profit organizations transition to economic, environmental and social sustainability.

The conference will be held at the event center of 200-acre Sonoma Mountain Village. A sustainable, mixed-use community – the first in North America to be endorsed by the International One Planet Communities Program – Sonoma Mountain Village is an environmentally-conscious redevelopment of a former technology center.

The conference’s footprint follows green event production practices, which include encouraging ride sharing, using ceramic dishware, maximizing waste diversion through recycling and composting on conference day, calculating the event’s carbon impact and offsetting it by donating to a local creek restoration group.

Conference objectives include understanding the definition and opportunities of sustainability; identifying successful strategies for economic resilience in a global economy; how enterprises can prosper from environmental policies; networking with like-minded organizations and people; offering practical tools; and much more.

The program includes workshops and panels, including case studies, organizational tools, and best practices—all presented by leaders who have benefited from sustainability strategies.

A sampling of speakers and topics:

• Joey Shepp, Sustainable Programs Director at Dominican University of California, will speak about living in grace with technology by reframing how we work. Topic Title: “Sustainable Work: Stay sane, increase productivity and live longer in the Information Age.”
• Lisa Mitchell, co-chair of the Terrestrial Biodiversity Climate Change Collaborative (TBC3), will speak on the topic “Impacts of Climate Change in Sonoma County: How can we build climate resilience into our local communities?”
• Three local business leaders will hold a panel discussion offering suggestions on how you can put sustainability to work in your own enterprise. Topic Title: “Green Business Showcase: Best practices at work.”
• Jasmain Ansar, an economist with the Union of Concerned Scientists, will tackle “AB 32, California’s Climate Legislation: A catalyst for innovation.” She’ll talk about AB 32 and explain the cap-and-trade program (one of the strategies the state will utilize to reduce climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions).

Other speakers include Assembly member Jared Huffman, California Energy Commission Deputy Director Panama Bartholomy, Sonoma County Supervisors Efren Carrillo and Mike McGuire, and Presidio Graduate School Interim Dean of Faculty Ed Quevedo, Guayaki CEO Chris Mann, Infineon Raceway President & General Manager Steve Page, Research Director at Institute for the Future Tracey Grose, and Sonoma State University Business Administration Dean Dr. William S. Silver and Professor Robert Eyler.

The conference includes a continental breakfast, a local and sustainable/organic lunch by Sally Tomatoes, and a wine reception at 5 p.m.

Tickets range from $69 to $249. Various discounts are available. Register online at sustainableenterpriseconference.com.

From Tom Schmidt, Executive Chef, John Ash and Company

One of Sonoma County’s yummiest events is the California Artisan Cheese Festival. This year’s event included a full weekend of cheese tastings, trips to local farms, conversations with cheese makers, and seminars on how to pair cheeses with beer, wine and other beverages.

Local chefs are huge supporters of the festival, and many donate their time and efforts to share recipes inspired by these delicious cheeses.

This year’s event included a demonstration by Tom Schmidt, executive chef at John Ash & Co. restaurant  in Santa Rosa.  Like many chefs, Schmidt is a fan of the light and creamy ricotta cheese made by Bellwether Farms  in Petaluma. Schmidt created golden blintzes stuffed with the luscious ricotta, then nestled them into a pool of vivid green chive sauce, topped with a sprinkle of purple chive flowers for garnish.

It’s a perfect dish to make for your friends and family this spring.  Bellwether Farms’ Ricotta Cheese can be found in specialty markets throughout the Bay Area, and may also be ordered from their website .

If you’d like to find your own cheese inspiration, mark your calendar to attend the seventh annual California Artisan Cheese Festival, March 22-24, 2013.  See you there!

Bellwether Farms Ricotta Blintzes with Smoked Salmon
Serves 8

Crepes
4 eggs
½ cup flour
1 cup milk
¼ teaspoon salt

Crack eggs into a stainless steel bowl. Add flour and mix with a wire whip until smooth. Add milk & salt, then mix. Let stand 30 minutes.

Filling
16 ounces Bellwether Farms Ricotta
2 egg yolks
Zest 1 Meyer lemon, about 1 teaspoon
freshly ground white pepper, to taste

8 oz sliced Atlantic smoked salmon, brown fat removed, julienned

With a wooden spoon, mix all together in a stainless steel bowl adding pepper and salt (if needed). Chill.

Chive butter sauce
2 bunches chives, chopped fine
1/4 pound butter
¼ cup cream
½ cup white wine
2 shallots, chopped fine
Juice 1 Meyer lemon
salt, to taste

In a small food processor fitted with a steel blade, chop chives with softened butter until bright green, scrape into a bowl and set aside.  In a non-reactive sauce pan, reduce white wine with shallots until 1 tablespoon remains. Add cream and reduce by half. Mix in chive butter slowly, being careful not to break the sauce. Adjust flavor with lemon juice and salt. Strain and keep warm.

Assembling Blintzes
Using a 5- to 6-inch crepe pan (non-stick), make the crepes. Allow about 3 tablespoons of batter per crepe. Have the pan well heated before beginning. Using about 2 tablespoons of the oil, brush the pan with a little of the oil before adding batter each time. Cook each crepe on one side until lightly browned, then turn and cook just a few seconds on the other side. Remove to waxed paper to cool.

Lay the crepes out on a work surface, 4 at a time. Place about ¼ cup of in the middle of each crepe. Fold up envelope-style, by first folding the bottom to cover the filling, then folding over the two sides. Allow the seam to be in the bottom of the blintz. Blintzes can be made to this point ahead of time and refrigerated

In a 10-inch skillet heat one tablespoon each of the butter and oil. Sauté the blintzes over medium heat allowing them to brown nicely on both sides. Add more butter and oil to the pan as needed. Keep warm in a 200° oven while completing the batches.

Pour a pool of sauce on the pre-warmed plates. Set blintzes in the middle of plate, garnish with snipped chives and chive blossoms. Serve warm.

Yet here’s a thought. The bachelorette party can be celebrated a night or two before the wedding. With the right arrangements and accommodations, joining for that special evening can be just another incentive for guests and bridesmaids to look forward to.

Any resort or nice hotel will have ample room for guests, plus venues like restaurants and bars in which to throw the party. Perhaps guests arrive on a Thursday for a Saturday wedding, and the party takes place Thursday night to give everyone a little R&R time to catch up on Friday.

Winery tours are always popular party paths for daytime events in Sonoma, as are spa and salon visits. Yet here’s another thought, why not combine all the events in one convenient place?

At the Main Street Victorian house, guests can rent an entire two-story Victorian vacation home complete with its own salon and spa, located right in the heart of downtown Cloverdale (population 8,618).

Amenities include complimentary bottles of wine upon check-in and certificates for discounts at area wine tasting rooms, making a gathering a one-stop luxury.

Located on Main Street, the picturesque property epitomizes quaint Wine Country, surrounded by the rolling hills of Healdsburg, Geyserville, Alexander Valley and the Russian River. With three bedrooms plus a den and two baths over 2,100 square feet, it comfortably sleeps eight, and is furnished with luxury bed and bath linens including custom-made soaps.

All guests are welcomed with fresh flowers as well as a complimentary bottle of wine, and the original copper countertop-clad kitchen is stocked with accessories for cooking (another great bachelorette party idea, with ingredients from Sonoma County’s lavish farmers’ markets). Enjoy the meal al fresco, too, with a balcony, lanai, deck and patio with a barbecue grill.

One of the most unique charms of the home is that it situated directly above a full service day spa, so the party – or the wind-down after the party – can include beauty treatments and massages.

A stay in the home can feel like a trip back in time, accented with gleaming hardwood floors throughout, a spacious covered porch, and spacious private living and dining areas. Yet there is plenty to do in surrounding downtown Cloverdale, too, including the famous free Friday Night Live events every Friday all summer long, featuring the downtown farmers’ market, plus all the things you could want for the perfect bachelorette party: live music, dancing, and more wine.

Details: Main Street Victorian, (707) 894-5630, vrbo.com

Get your kitsch on at the Flamingo Resort & Spa with their Spring in Sonoma Special.

The Santa Rosa historic landmark has 1950s’ resort appeal with contemporary amenities and recently renovated rooms. You’ll know it by the revolving pink flamingo towering above the lobby.

The hotel was modeled after the original Las Vegas Flamingo and has a glamorous past complete with movie-star stories to really kick up the nostalgia.

When you’re not out exploring Sonoma County, relax by the pool, imbibe at The Lounge, and enjoy poolside dining at The Terrace Grille. Don’t miss the health club and full service spa either.

Just reference “Spring” for rates starting from $99 Sunday through Thursday. Single/double occupancy includes breakfast buffet, two adult-admission passes for the health club, and wine tasting passes. Memorial weekend is from $159 a night, three-night minimum.

The spring offer, which includes $50-plus of added value, is good through June 7 and must be reserved by May 11. This offer is subject to advance reservations and availability. Not applicable to groups, discounts or other promotions. (Not valid: May 27.)

Flamingo Conference Resort & Spa
2777 Fourth Street
Santa Rosa, CA 95405
(800) 848-8300
flamingoresort.com

It all comes together May 5, for a daylong festival at Petaluma’s historic Mystic Theatre. Starting at 2:30, it’s Saturday Afternoon Shorts, followed by the 7:30 p.m. World Shorts Showcase, and then a special screening of Midnight Shorts.

All-day passes are available for $25, bringing more than two dozen viewing opportunities such as The Pulsera Project, created by Santa Rosa High School student Fiona Becker and chronicling a student initiative to support children in Nicaragua. Through interviews, music, and photo montage, her five-minute documentary demonstrates how service to others brings a sense of purpose and unity to her high school class.

Some films are poignant, like Bottle, which follows two lonely figures engaging in transoceanic conversation via objects sent in a bottle. Created by American filmmaker Kirsten Lepore, this stop-motion adventure uses sophisticated animation technique to tell a simple story about the sacrifices made for love.

Others celebrate comedy, like The Holdup, an eight-minute long battle of wits captured by American filmmaker Aprile Ruha, in which that “unusually cheery criminal” engages in a battle of wits with a convenience store cashier until a feisty old woman spoils his plans.

Each film takes flavor from its homeland, be it Australia, the UK, Japan, France, Canada, Norway, Germany or Spain. And for Bay Area film maker Bobby Young, it’s a message that surely will resonate with agriculture rich Sonoma, where seemingly anything can grow:

When a farmer who’s down on his luck can’t pay his mortgage, he happens upon some magic squash seeds that seem to be the answer to his problems. The Squash is a comedic allegory of greed and true fulfillment, taking a unique spin on an age-old tale, but at the end of the 16-minute film, and indeed, the entire day of film watching, there is sure to be plenty of ripe, animated discussion. We can discuss among ourselves, and also with the filmmakers themselves, after all shows.

What would we do if we discovered magic squash seeds? Hide them from an unusually cheery criminal, for one.

Details: 2012 Film Fest Petaluma, Saturday, May 5, starting at 2:30 p.m. at the Mystic Theatre, 23 Petaluma Boulevard North, Petaluma, (707) 765-2121.

Tickets are $25 for all-day passes, and individual program tickets are available at Copperfield’s Books and McNear’s Restaurant in Petaluma. Purchase online at petalumafilmalliance.org/filmfest-petaluma/

No, I was altogether surprised when I turned to see a pod of pelicans silently overtake me, several yards away. Hewing to the cut of the cliffs, the great birds banked and coasted with perfect discipline, and immeasurably more grace and gravitas than man’s metal-winged imitations.

It’s moments like that when we want to have a camera ready, right? Or that we want to blog about, say. Sure, a moment can’t be done justice by either picture or thousand words, like a wine can hardly be known through a wine review – I’m not kidding myself.

It may be useful to know that Kortum Trail on Sonoma Coast State Beach is a nicely maintained trail and more fascinating still on a cool, foggy day, or that Freestone Vineyards makes some excellent Pinot Noir. But a really good wine is like a stirring moment, when all thoughts of picture-taking, self-obsessing, and blogging fall right away.

OK, so on to my wine blog. By the way, the person in the other track? Turned out to be me, heading back from the end of the trail to enjoy a 2009 Fogdog Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir ($35).

Aromas are spicy, smokey, incense-like, perfumed with strawberry, raspberry and sandalwood. Orange peel and cherry fruit leather flavors stay for the high-toned, astringent finish. With time out in the air, cool, cherry jelly aromas move in, but the flavors never flatten out. Complex, refined, and more like the 2007 than the 2008. 13.5 percent alcohol.

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Roasted Beets with Goat Cheese
Recipe by Stephen Pavy

Serves: 24 in a buffet

2 lbs. Fresh red beets
2 lbs. Fresh gold beets
Salt and pepper to taste
Balsamic vinegar to drizzle over red beets
Chardonnay vinegar to drizzle over gold beets
Olive oil to finish
8 oz. log     Laura Chenel goat cheese

Pre-heat oven to 400°F

Place beets in roasting pan in a single layer. Add water to cover bottom of pan to ¼ inch depth. Cover pan with foil. Bake for 45 minutes (longer if beets are large) or until the beets can be easily pierced with a fork.  Remove pan from oven, uncover and cool. Peel beets and cut into wedges, being careful not to mix red and gold beets (the red beets will “bleed” on the gold ones). Toss red beet wedges with salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar to taste. Toss gold beet wedges with salt, pepper, and chardonnay vinegar to taste.

Beets can be kept at room temperature for several hours or can be refrigerated for up to 48 hours. (Bring chilled beets to room temperature before serving.)

Arrange beet wedges on platter. Drizzle olive oil over beets. (It is important to delay adding olive oil until just before serving.) Spoon crumbled goat cheese among beet wedges.
Hint: Leftover beets may be saved for several days in the refrigerator.

Here are two great examples of Sonoma County’s certified Green lodgings:

The Case Ranch Inn in Forestville: Built in 1894, the Case Ranch Inn may be a century old but manages to keep ahead of the times: it was the first B&B to make it through the Sonoma Green Business Program and become certified. The Inn produces 40 percent of its own power via solar, provides guests with an electric car-recharging station, practices rigorous recycling and water conservation, and lots more.

But this place has a lot to offer besides eco-friendliness. For starters, there are the three luxury guest rooms and a garden cottage – all with private baths; the wrap-around porch; the lush gardens complete with gazebo, delish breakfasts made with organic ingredients. If you can tear yourself away from the serene landscaping (a registered National Wildlife Federation Backyard Wildlife Habitat) you’ll find a limitless range of things to see and do nearby.

Read a recent article about the Case Ranch Inn.

MacArthur Place in Sonoma: A few short blocks from Sonoma’s historic 19^th century plaza, this luxury hotel and spa was originally a working ranch (some rooms are located in the original 1850s Victorian residence).

Expect in-room fireplaces, king-sized beds, designer furnishings, original art, seven acres of sculpture-filled gardens, a heated pool, and a full-treatment spa (many using flowers and plants grown on the grounds). The resident steakhouse, beautifully set in the original barn, was named “Best Beef Restaurant in California” in 2011 by the California Beef Council.

All this, and Green too. MacArthur Place takes being a steward of the environment seriously, as the downloadable “Green Mission Statement” on its website makes clear.

Among many other things, the hotel installed a solar heating system for the pool and solar hot water panels in the laundry, spa and restaurant; uses lighting motion sensors in public area restrooms; limits hosing of walkways/patios in favor of sweeping; recycles used cooking oil to be used for alternative fuel; composts yard waste, coffee grounds, kitchen fruits and veggies; seeks vendors that offer environmentally and socially conscious products; formed an employee sustainability committee; places “The Green Book” in all guestrooms; and supports the nonprofit Sonoma Ecology Center. Read the entire list here.

Stay on the lookout for future profiles of hotels in the Sonoma Green Business Program.

Anyone familiar with great coffee knows that Flying Goat is beloved for its fresh roasted beans and house made chai served at its stores in Healdsburg and Santa Rosa. Morisette and Dupere, meanwhile, own the popular 14feet modern vintage home furnishings store in Healdsburg. Now, the groups are coming together to open Plank Coffee, debuting May 1 on Cloverdale Ave. at E. 2nd St.

According to Dupere, the new business was inspired by a craving for caffeine. She and Morisette live just above downtown Cloverdale on Pine Mountain Road, and were looking for an easier way to get their daily Goat fix.

Voila, Plank will serve French press brewed coffee, classic espresso drinks and signatures like Aztec mocha, plus a secret “Clever” pour-over, and housemade sparkling Italian-style sodas crafted with freshly squeezed seasonal juice.

All that buzzing makes a body hungry, so to go-with, there will be pastries from My Flour Girl, baked daily on-site from Flour Girl’s Shannon Moore of Healdsburg. Alongside the croissants, scones, muffins and such will be vegan and gluten-free options such as vegan orange cake and vegan Mexican chocolate cake. Customers can slather their scones with jams, homemade by Kenneth Rochford (he is general manager of Medlock Ames winery in Healdsburg, which offers its own jams, too, at its Alexander Valley Store and Bar and tasting room).

So why the Plank name? The décor, inside and out, is primarily wood. Morisette and Dupere gathered wood from their own property, in oak, Manzanita and pine, and cut them into rounds to form a back wall, while the front of the building is clad in hundreds of pieces of scrap and salvaged wood the duo has been collecting for the past year, in a design executed by Healdsburg artist Ray Degischer.

A centerpiece is the community table, a ten-foot long, 875-pound welding table salvaged from the Healdsburg High School metal shop, while vintage hog leg 40’s classroom tables have been repurposed with vintage reclaimed walnut shelving to serve as singles tables.

“Wood” you like some coffee? Why, “plank” you very much!

Details: Plank Coffee, 227 N. Cloverdale Blvd., Cloverdale, 707-894-6187, plankcoffee.com.

Hole-in-the-Wall Brings Global Cuisine to Sebastopol

Everyone has their favorite little hole-in-the-wall place to eat. Sometimes it’s hard to remember its name, though – “that place with the great tacos,” or “you know, that amazing burger place” might have to suffice.

Perhaps that’s why the owners of this joint in Sebastopol named their eatery Hole in the Wall Restaurant. Easier all around, and it sums things up perfectly for the architecture of tiny spot stuck in an easy-to-miss corner of a tiny Sebastopol mall on Gravenstein Ave. at Fellers Ln., just north of the Fircrest Market.

Except it’s hardly everyday eating. Opened last summer by chef Adam Beers, the space may be small, but the breakfast, lunch and dinner menu goes on for pages, and efforts are ambitious, reflecting Beers’ training as a sautee chef at French Garden and savory chef at Village Bakery. You can see him working in his expo kitchen, putting together pretty plates like his “FunGuys” seasonal mushroom omelet decorated with spinach and chevré ($8.50).

So what makes it a HITW, besides the location? Rock-bottom pricing, and comfort food, albeit with delicious international twists.

Standouts on the A.M. line-up include the N’Orleans Scramble ($7.75), spiced with andouille sausage, caramelized onions and peppers and a zap of cayenne, or the Challah French toast ($7.75) gussied with orange zest and candied pecans.

Short rib hash ($9.50) is topped in poached eggs alongside a homemade biscuit, while the mushrooms in the in the gravy atop the biscuits vary depending on the season and what’s fresh-picked.

Throughout the day, the offers go global, from French quarter gumbo ($3 cup, $7.50 big bowl) based on a smoky, dark flour roux and plump with andouille, chicken and crawfish (add prawns, $4.50), to a peasant-style Russian borscht ($9.50) crafted of red and golden beets, cabbage, chunks of potato, a hearty hunk of short rib and dollop of sour cream.

Burger lovers will love the options, in patties like beef, lamb, turkey, marinated Portobello and black bean ($7.75-$9.75), and crepes are creative, stuffed with goodies like lox, tomatoes and capers in a gluten-free buckwheat crepe ($9.25), or classic Nutella studded with bananas or strawberries ($6.50).

Yet one of the best dishes is the coconut curry pasta ($8.50). Picture toothsome penne coated in creamy curried coconut milk reduction sparked with cranberries, carrots, broccoli, crisp snow peas and juicy tomatoes under a dusting of toasted almonds and

Parmesan. It’s hardly hole-in-the-wall cooking, but a whole new spin on flavors well worth making a regular destination.

Details: 972 Gravenstein Hwy. S,, Sebastopol, 707-861-3777, holeinthewallsebastopol.com.

Tucked within the confines of the North Bay’s largest city, Santa Rosa, the 350-acre Spring Lake site offers an amazing diversity of activities for individuals and families alike. It’s a lovely place, guarded over by rising hills and generously endowed with a lake, ponds, oak woodlands, grasslands and meadows. In spring it’s ablaze with wildflowers.

One of the unique aspects of Spring Lake Park is that it’s home to the Environmental Discovery Center, which offers interactive displays and activities geared to kids 6-12. They’ll touch sea creatures in tide pools, marvel over an aquarium of fish from the lake, view taxidermied mountain lions and coyotes, learn about the earth in the storytelling cavern, and come away with an idea about earth stewardship and earth science.

The Center’s “Science Saturdays”—the first Saturday of each month at 1, 2 and 3 p.m.—lets the whole family join in on fun science experiments that explore the world around us. Family hikes take place with Center naturalists on the third Saturday of each month at 1 and 3 p.m. Learn more about the Environmental Discovery Center.

Much of the happenings here are centered around 72-acre Spring Lake:

• Boating: Spring Lake is open for boating—canoes, kayaks, paddle boats, windsurfers—all year long. Bring you own boat up to 16’ in length to the boat ramp, or rent a craft at the concession stand from May-September.  No gas-powered engines are allowed, but electric motors are fine. Approved life jackets must be worn while on the lake.

• Fishing: Catch your own lunch or dinner (sunfish, catfish, large mouth bass). If you’re over 16, you’ll need a California fishing license.

• Swimming: The lake offers an appealing 3-acre swimming lagoon with a sandy beach, and from Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day the area maintains lifeguards.

Another popular activity here is camping. The individual campgrounds is open seven days a week from May 1-September 30 (the rest of the year it’s only open on weekends and holidays). A group campground is available, by reservation only, throughout the year. Learn more about reservations for an individual or group campground.

Hiking is excellent. Spring Lake Park’s 2.5-mile partly-paved loop trail is well-liked by hikers, runners, and families with baby strollers. Even better, trails connect with adjacent parks, so you can go on fairly even terrain for miles. And for the really rugged, Spring lake connects to the fabulous trail system at Annadel State Park.

Bicyclists, especially kids, enjoy the 2.3 miles of paved bicycle trails. Mountain bikers have access to many more miles of unpaved trails. Speed limit for bicyclists: 15 mph.

There are even trails for horseback riding at Spring Lake. Equestrian trails circle the lake, and it’s easy to connect to a trail into Annadel State Park and go for  hours. No mounts are available, so bring your own.

And of course there are plenty of picnic tables—200 of them, with barbecues! This is where to grill those large mouth bass you catch. If you’ll be with a crowd, you might want to reserve one of the park’s four group picnic areas, which can hold from 8 to 20 people (call 707-565-2041 to make a reservation).

Spring Lake Park is open daily from sunrise to sunset. Entrance is free, but a $7 parking free applies (free with a Regional Parks membership).

Download a map of Spring Lake Regional Park

BBQ Smokehouse is the “blink-and-you’ll-miss-it” gem in a tiny porch-style building on the edge of a movie theater parking lot in downtown Sebastopol.

Vito is the chef who trained at the Culinary Institute of America Hyde Park, and since opening his eatery in 2009, has been wowing fans of his work with meats cooked in an enormous industrial smoker stocked with apple, oak and nut wood.

The only challenge with his operation has been fitting in all his fans, who take over the half-dozen or-so seats at lunch and dinner daily. Yet problem solved. Thanks to several newly planted picnic tables, diners can now relax under shade trees hung with twinkling white lights in front of his café.

There are more reasons to visit, too – Vito has been ramping up his menu to include weekly specials like roasted red pepper, tomato and corn soup with toasted cumin, filet of smoked trout with baby lettuces and greens and poppy seed tartar sauce, and hot pastrami that’s marinated and smoked, then piled on rye with whole grain mustard, slaw and homemade pickles. Vito can even offer drink pairings, such as Pedroncelli Sauvignon Blanc with the trout, or Anchor Steam Porter with the pastrami.

Details: BBQ Smokehouse, 6811 Laguna Park Way (near North Main Street), Sebastopol, 707-575-3277, bbqsmokehousecatering.com.

First, they bring the bike to you. Second, they’ll be arriving with high-quality, super-comfy folding bikes.

“People can just pop them in the trunk of their rental cars and take off exploring up the coast, along the Russian River, or through the redwoods,” says Smith. “They can go wine tasting or exploring tide pools with the bikes safely concealed in the trunks. And once they hop on our bikes they’ll have a quality experience.”

Smith isn’t just talking through his helmet, either. He’s been a cyclist most of his life. As a boy growing up in Santa Rosa, his family was involved in the Santa Rosa Bicycle Club.

In high school he rode long-distance touring bikes, and in college he was founding manager of the U. C. San Diego Bike Shop. Over time he became proficient at leading group cycle outings, bike repair, customer relations, and more.

Smith and Armstrong – his wife, business partner, and cycling companion – are now the sole proprietors of BikePartners.net. The company rents only Bike Friday folding and travel bicycles, which are hand-made in the U. S. and enjoy an international cult following.

“We’re the only company in the country that rents Bike Fridays,” Smith said. “Others sell them to you, and we can do that too – but you can only rent them from us.”

Smith and Armstrong rode traditional bicycles for years. “We’d always had a whole stable of full-sized riding, touring and tandem bikes,” Smith said.

But in 2004, planning a bike trip through Europe, the couple balked at the notion of boxing up a big touring tandem bicycle for shipment. Looking around at alternatives, they heard good things about Bike Fridays and purchased a used Tandem XL.

The result? “We were sold,” Smith says. “We love the way these bikes feel and ride—not to mention that they’re big conversation starters because of the way they look. These days I’m hard-pressed to use my other, full-sized bikes.”

BikePartners.net rents both single and tandem bicycles by the day (a 24-hour period), with prices ranging from $50 for a New World Tourist single bike to $100 for a Tandem Two’s Day.

Bike racks are not required, since the bikes fold down to fit even a small trunk. “I put a tandem bike in the trunk of my 2000 Honda Insight,” Smith said, “and there’s room left over for other things.”

Delivery is free within 10 miles of Santa Rosa, and $1 per mile for further distances.

“We’re a customer-oriented concierge service,” Smith said. “We’re happy to meet customers at a coffee shop or their hotel to deliver the bikes.”

Smith’s favorite bike renters so far are a retired couple from Arizona, “probably in their late 60s. They were vital, vibrant, and in good shape.”

They rented a Tandem, which he delivered to their hotel, and they “ended up riding the Joe Rodota Trail out to Forestville and back. The gentleman kept texting me about what a great time they were having. He’d done a lot of riding in his life but was thrilled to death to be riding this bike. They kept riding, went on the Santa Rosa Creek trail. They rode 50.5 miles all told.

“They were planning to buy a Bike Friday when they returned to Arizona.”

Contact BikePartners.net at 855-483-3732, rentabike@bikepartners.net, or  facebook.com/BikePartners.net.