Wine Country Travels - Sonoma

Wine Country Travels - Sonoma

Sunday, December 24th, 2017 - Christmas Eve
If a winery was open on this day, they were closing early at 1:30pm, so we had to hustle if we were going to taste anything.  We checked out of our AirBNB (Lemon Moon Cottage) as quickly as possible and vroomed over to Imagery Estate Winery. Passing some of the wildfire damage along the way was heartbreaking.  Imagery was singed but thankfully not badly, and was still open.  Imagery is the sister winery to Benziger.  Benziger makes more traditional wines, whereas Imagery makes more creative wines with uncommon varietals and blends.

We met my FAVORITE tasting lady Kay.  Kay was just a joy to chat with, and she was definitely passionate about Imagery wines.  Imagery is not just a winery, it is an art gallery!  I had not remembered, until this point, realized that their labels were done by artists, and different for each wine.
"Imagery Winery prides itself on quality and taste. So much so that it has informed one of our most important pairings yet, wine and art. Imagery Winery infuses art throughout your experience, from unique artwork replicated on every label, to the tasting room, and the dedicated on-site art gallery, featuring label artwork commissioned from some of the world’s most notable contemporary artists. The entire collection has over 500 artworks by over 300 artists. Currently, around 60 pieces are on view in the gallery.
At any given time, as many as 35 artists are working – without a deadline – on pieces that will appear on future Imagery wine labels. The artists are not limited by size, medium or content – the only exception is: The work must include a likeness of the Parthenon (or section there of) replica on the Benziger Estate, which serves as the winery’s signature."

It was a little bit like a wino's "Where's Waldo" trying to find the Parthenon hidden in the artist's work.  I was so inspired, I bought their book, which features many of the labels and has information about each artist.

Kay, our tasting lady, had also lived in San Francisco (which we were going to be visiting for a later portion of our trip), and she had lots of wonderful tips on where to go for views and delicious food.

Next, it was off to Benziger Family Winery, a Demeter certified biodynamic winery.  Biodynamic wine uses organic farming methods and aims at the ecological self-sufficiency of farming as a cohesive, interconnected living system. Benziger has 2 Highland Coos on the property (great mowers, and they provide manure for compost), and sheep which graze, fertilize, and till the land (three times faster than the tractor method).  They also planted plants to attract "good bugs" which eat the "bad bugs" or pests, keeping the vines healthy, etc.  I absolutely love the sustainability of their vineyards, and the wines are delicious too!

We skipped over to downtown Sonoma to get a quick bite.  We had some coffee at Caffe Sunflower, and then wandered over to Oso for some snacks and a drink.  I tried the Champagne Cocktail (Raspberry Framboise, Cane Sugar, Cava, Lemon Peel), he had a Negroni.  We tasted a dozen oysters on the half-shell and the Mole Braised Pork Shoulder Tacos.  Fabulous!

We checked into our next AirBnB, The Loft at Palmer.  At $99/night we thought that was a pretty sweet deal.  After a refreshing nap, we popped on over to The Girl and The Fig for dinner.   We had lovely green olives as an appetizer, then the Bistro Plats du Jour (3 plate special with wine pairings) Grilled Mano Formate mortadella, camembert, chicories, pickled shallots, mustard vinaigrette, paired with the Qupe, 2013 Marsanne.  Then the smoked trout with sunchoke puree, cauliflower, and salsa verde, paired with Passaggio, 2016 Rousanne. and finally the baked alaska, fig and port ice cream, almond brown butter cake, port reduction, fig kiss, paired with Loxton Cellars, 2013 Syrah Port (that last course was much too sweet for me).  Beet Soup and Cider-braised pork shoulder with stone ground polenta, charred cabbage, and pickled mustard seed.  Everything overall was amazing.

Monday, December 25th, 2017 - Christmas Day
All nearby wineries are closed on Christmas Day, so we drove up the Coastal Highway, via Bodega Bay, through Jenner, over the Russian River, and up to Sea Ranch.  We dined for lunch at the Sea Ranch Lodge.  Christmas Lunch was: Cajun fried oysters, smoked salmon chowder, Dungeness crab Mac n cheese (because I had to!), roasted NY sirloin, Kokomo Sauvignon Blanc, Husch Sauvignon Blanc, Husch Cabernet Sauvignon, maybe it’s just my palate but I was not impressed w the Husch wines, we took dessert to go but never ate it (too full). Lovely place, you must visit sometime!

After dinner we walked past the lodge out to the ocean cliffs to see the views.  The wild waves were crashing forcefully on the jagged shores, such a beautiful bit of nature.