A beautiful and relaxing drive through the redwoods and along the coast on California Hwy 101. Okay, relaxing for ABN, but not so much for the Captain. If you've ever travelled the winding highway, especially towing a vehicle, you understand.
Stopping in Benbow, we explored in the Redwoods with Roger (aka the little Ranger).
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| Tree Hugger |
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| Little red truck in the big red woods |
What’s not to like about the former Gold Rush town!
Unique tasting rooms, preserved buildings,
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| Choc-o-Latte coffee shop, previously a pharmacy. |
charming boutique shops, and bubbles.
But the best part, and fortuitous for us, it is where our good friends and favorite wine maker now live.
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| Zach and Bill |
Yep, he’s the Bill that made the William Gunn Wines many of you have enjoyed in our home. Tipsy Tuesday friends, you will be happy to know we have a case of his The Boss and Chardonnay scheduled for shipment this fall.
We were reluctant to leave our friends and their lovely home
but we heard the wines over in Sonoma County calling us.
How lucky can we be to have two of Captain’s high school friends
in the California wine industry?
Mike and Valarie Thompson own and operate a small vineyard, Thompson 31Fifty in the Russian River Valley. They are known for their outstanding Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Note here, their Pinot Noirs have a fuller body and are more favorable to our palates than those we tasted in Oregon.
Revisiting Mauritson, we found their Rockpile Zinfandel to be every bit as good as we remembered, and we discovered a Sauvignon Blanc as well as a port that we had to have, so we joined their club. We found host Doug to be most engaging.
Indiana friends and family, there is a Hoosier making wine in Sonoma, he is a Purdue graduate.
Tasting room host, Nicole, at Kokomo is a delight. Unlike rote descriptions of wines in many of the other regions in which we tasted, we found the hosts in Sonoma to be refreshingly personable.
Years ago we discovered the most wonderful Parmesan, Truffle French Fries at Healdsburg Bar and Grill. They are a must every time we are in town
and they continue to be as good as the first time. The Grilled Chicken Panino (with prosciutto, balsamic-onion jam, pepper jack, Swiss, Dijon-mayo dressing, focaccia roll) was pretty good too. Even with temperatures hovering around 100 degrees, dining on their patio was comfortable.
While climbing in the Redwoods, Roger developed a little cough. In Amador, he had a fever with exertion, so we decided to give him a rest and rented a car for touring in Sonoma. We will get him in for a check-up when we get home.
In the past 20 years, we have explored California from north to south, east to west and still have the desire to return. The wonderful wines are, of course, a draw but so is the diversity in terrain with mountains, forests, desserts, beaches, farmlands, and vineyards. And, there are the cultures; small towns and big cities; celebrities and farmers, the cultured and the bohemian and so much that we have yet to discover.
We came, we saw, we tasted, we purchased. The Wanderer, with Roger in tow, is now pointed to the east and toward home.
Wines we tasted in California (for our future reference.)
Amador County
Borjon*
Iron Hub*
Rombauer
ANDIS*
Vino Noceto
Raven’s Reach
Sonoma
Foppiano
Limerick Lane
Thompson 31Fifty*
Kokomo
Mauritson*
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