Hello from Segovia. We are in Segovia for one night and hoping to recoup from our long trip from San Francisco to Madrid. We now know on future trips never to lay over at JFK airport in New York. Segovia is about a 75 – minute drive from the Madrid airport.
Beyond Calistoga: A Visit to Alexander Valley
If you are hanging out in the town of Calistoga you might think about taking a day trip to check out a few wineries in Sonoma County. This is an easy drive along Highway 128 and perhaps one of the most beautiful roads in California wine country. The drive is about 25 miles from Calistoga to Sonoma County’s wine destination town of Healdsburg.
The Wine Traveler on the Bottle Line at Inspiration Vineyards
We stumbled on Inspiration Vineyards about two years ago when visiting Inspiration’s neighbor, the Harvest Moon Winery on Olivet Road near Sebastopol. Randy Pitts at Harvest Moon told us “you have to visit Inspiration Vineyards, the guy makes great wine.”One problem however, Inspiration owner and winemaker Jon Phillips holds down a full time job for the county of Sonoma. Randy calls Jon on his cell and convinces Jon to take a break, pour us some wine in his garage-sized winery. We were quite impressed with the wines and have been in touch ever since.
Frank Family Winery
Frank Family Winery is one of the busiest wineries in the Napa Valley but a very fun place to visit. During our visit, there was a constant stream of people wandering in and out of the winery. And this, mind you, was on a Monday. The winery is the site of former historic Larkmead Winery … Read more
The Wine Traveler Visits Russian Hill Winery
After having a leisurely picnic lunch at the Martin Ray Winery, we head out to find the Russian Hill Estate Winery. To get there, we head north on Laguna Road, a left on Trenton Road to River Road. At River Road we take a right turn and make our way to Slusser Road, a couple … Read more
Alpha Omega Winery
Alpha Omega Winery is a new winery, with its first vintage in 2006. The winery occupies the facilities that once were Quail Ridge Winery and then Esquisse Vineyards. It is located just off Highway 29 on Mee Lane in Rutherford. There are big plans for Alpha Omega. First, there is construction going on throughout the … Read more
Martin Ray Winery – Hidden Winery
From our home base in Sebastopol, the Martin Ray winery is about 15 minutes away. To get there, we take the Gravenstein Highway towards Forestville and take a right turn onto Guerneville Road. About two miles later, a left onto Laguna Road and then about one mile to the winery. Laguna Road is a quiet country backroad and Martin Ray truly qualifies as a hidden winery.
In Sebastopol Wine Country
Why wine travel to Sebastopol? Because Sebastopol is the gateway to the Russian River Valley in Sonoma County, the AVA that produces some of the finest Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the world. Plus, the city of Sebastopol is very much, to this day, a wine country secret. Lodging rates are still reasonable and there are some very good eats in Sebastopol. Here are my best bets for Sebastopol.
Brannan’s Grill – Calistoga
Too bad for visitors to Calistoga. Brannan’s Grill closed its doors in 2018. Brannan’s Grill has been a tourist’s favorite spot and Calistoga fixture since 1998. The corner restaurant on Lincoln Avenue continues to attract the tourist trade, especially on weekends, where the bar is jammed and reservations can be tight. We visited Brannan’s Grill … Read more
Diamond Oaks Vineyards
Diamond Oaks Vineyards has been around since 1982, not making wine but selling grapes to Napa wineries. It was not until 2001 that Diamond Oaks produced its first vintage of wine under the Diamond Oaks label. In 2003, the Diamond Oaks winery moved into its present location on Oakville Grade. It is a beautiful facility, … Read more