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What better way to spend a long, lazy Sunday, than lolling in the sun and drinking some delicious wine? At Scribe Winery in Sonoma, you can wine-taste from the comfort of your own individual picnic blanket. Then when you’re done trying some deliciously non-buttery Chardonnay (yes, the wine gods do exist), and young, feisty Pinot Noir, you can take a turn on the swing. It’s all beautifully picturesque and while the strains of Mumford & Sons do verge a little on the self-consciously SF hipster, admit it, they’re a perfect soundtrack to a day of sipping and sunshine.
I’d love to tell you where Scribe is, but I’m afraid I want to keep it a secret, all to myself…
Now that Spring is finally and officially here, (I would wish it for it to be Summer too, but I live in San Francisco, so Summer is kind of a moot point), I’m itching to pack up my bags and head out on adventures with Rick.
Luckily, living on the West Coast of the US gives you plenty of nearby options for exploring, so here’s my (pretty much) local wish list for this season. All of them do-able in a weekend. Let’s see how many we can get to…
1) Ace Hotel, Palm Springs: The coolest kid on the desert block.
2) Lake Tahoe: Can I get another ski trip in this year? Doubtful, but worth a shot.
3) Bettane Ranch, Sonoma County: For an overnight getaway that feels like you could really get away from it all.
4) Pelican Inn, Muir Beach: Booked and happening! Just so I can tick it off my “living in San Francisco” list.
5) Big Sur: Yep, still haven’t done this after five years. I know, I know…
6) Indian Springs, Calistoga: An old favorite, but one look at the art deco pool and I’m sold, time after time.
7) Portland: Because I want to pretend I’m a smug eco-warrier. And because everyone that lives there looks so darned happy all the time. Must be all the non-fat, dairy-free, wheat-free, vegan gourmet delicacies.
8) Jupiter and Orlando, Florida: Not local at all. And a somewhat random entry. But hey, when you’ve got good friends and a great hotel luring you there, as well as sunshine and cocktails, what’s not to love?
We’ll get a little further afield during the rest of the year too, to spend time with both sides of the family on both sides of The Atlantic. But this is a pretty good list for starters! I’ll let you know how many actually come to fruition!
My summer in the wine country continues, this time in Calistoga, for a long weekend to celebrate Labor Day and the ushering in of Fall. Calistoga is a little further north than Sonoma/Napa, and a LOT more quirky! One of the reasons I like Calistoga is its pretty much absolute refusal to become all ‘shiny shiny’ like its wine country neighbors. There’s not a lot of gloss to Calistoga, but that just adds to its slightly disheveled appeal.
If you’re thinking about spending a couple days here, definitely think about the partaking in the mud bath experience that the town is famous for. I’ve been to Golden Haven before, and it was a lot of fun (if uncontrollable laughter when lowering yourself into a vat of warm, bubbling mud is your idea of fun) and super relaxing. However, this time around, Rick and I are opting for a slightly more aesthetically pleasing spa experience, with a an afternoon at Indian Springs. Forget the thermal mud bath, just look at that pool! I’m a massive fan of the Deco look, so this really appeals to my sense of symmetry and geometric style.
After that stab at health and exercise, I’m looking forward to the rest of the weekend being all about relaxing, wine country style. In Calistoga, that might mean renting bikes and cycling to several wineries in the sunshine – Sterling Vineyards being one of the nicest, with a Greek-inspired whitewash villa effect – then dropping by the infamous Fainting Goats at the Old Faithful Geyser, for a bit of kitschy California sightseeing.
Evenings will be all about California cuisine, and a glass of local wine. After my Cakebread experience two weekends ago, i might even become a Chardonnay convert – Sacrilege!!Happy Labor Day!
Yesterday I was in Sonoma for the day. Not really for wine tasting, although we did stop by Benziger Family Winery (delicious bio-dynamically farmed grapes) and Ledson (having a strangely off day, and also recently blighted by pestilence – i did cave for a bottle of the Legend though, couldn’t help myself – thanks to Bride In Exile for her recap of this delicious red blend). No, we were there for lunch at The Girl and the Fig, one of my favorite restaurants. We sat in the lovely covered patio, and thank goodness it was covered, due to the blazing 90 degree heat. And yep, I’m a typical Brit in that I crave the sun, and then complain loudly when i get too hot. To be honest, it was too warm to fully enjoy the food, although it was wonderful, a fig and arugula salad being a highlight. No, I was really there, after an hour-long drive, for one cocktail.
The Girl and the Fig serves beautiful and refined cocktails, with the First Street Cosmo being my absolute fave. It’s a cosmo with premium tequila instead of vodka. I know, I know, it doesn’t sound too good, but trust me. Looks like Betsy Husband agrees with me. Very delicately flavored, it’s a blend of Arette Tequila, St Germain elderflower liquer, fresh lime juice and cranberry juice. It’s beautiful too, the palest rose pink in a chic little martini glass. This is my favorite cocktail of all time and i’ve tried many times since (way too many, according to my boyfriend) to replicate it at home. After a few disastrous attempts, I’ve come pretty close (the trick is not adding very much cranberry juice, but stop by the restaurant for the actual measures, after you’ve ordered one of course), but it’s still not close to the one they serve at the Fig. If you’re ever in Sonoma, skip the final few wineries and head for one of these beauties instead.
My version - still not pale enough!!
