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Northern California wine country can be overwhelming, in the best possible way of course. One tip that I like to follow wherever I am traveling and especially in a place with so many unique areas, is to find a great home base from which to start your adventures. For me, in Sonoma, my home base is Healdsburg. It’s enchanting town common charms the New Englander in me, and the little town sprawls out toward the Dry Creek Valley, one of my favorite wine regions in all of wine country.

I’ve put together a list of favorites and helpful hints for the area. It is a great jumping off point for exploring both the Napa and Sonoma Valleys.

 

Sleep:

Bella Villa Messina You will feel at home in this gorgeously appointed bed and breakfast, and any need or question you have will be responded to with warmth and great attention to detail. While eating a fresh, gourmet breakfast you will get winery and restaurant recommendations from the B & B’s owners. It is truly a haven for relaxation.

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Eat:

Scopa This intimate little Italian restaurant on Healdsburg Square is the perfect place to cozy up to your significant other for a romantic meal or to gather with friends for a night filled with laughs and chatter. The food is top notch, the wine list includes many local wines in addition to wine from several regions of Italy, and the atmosphere is a sit back and relax kind of vibe.

Dry Creek Kitchen Definitely a special occasion restaurant, Dry Creek Kitchen serves upscale “neighborhood” food that is artfully prepared and made from fresh, local ingredients. The service is impeccable, and the people watching from their wide open windows is unbeatable. Dry Creek Kitchen allows you to BYOB and does not charge a corkage fee for Sonoma wine, so stop by Big John’s on your way for a bottle to have with dinner.

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Sip:

There are so many wineries in the Dry Creek Valley, and I have only had a chance to visit some of them. That said, I highly recommend the following:

Michel-Schlumberger Call ahead to make an appointment for a tour and tasting and learn about Michel-Schlumberger’s organic winemaking efforts and the unique, balanced ecosystem that they maintain at the winery. Then sit back and sip on a chilled Pinot Blanc while taking in the mission-style architecture.

Amista Come for the warm hospitality and airy, artsy tasting room, and stay for the killer Syrah. Amista sells tiny tasting kits that you can even take in your carry-on to enjoy the Sonoma experience in your own home.

Zichichi A picturesque view and some of the best Zinfandel I have ever had, Zichichi is a small, must-visit winery in the Dry Creek Valley.

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Breathe Healdsburg is minutes from the beautiful Lake Sonoma, a great place to hike, boat, swim, and picnic. It is a breathtaking site and a nice break from wine tasting if you have the time on your visit.

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Wherever you decide to stay in wine country, make sure to at least make a visit to Healdsburg. I promise that with its variety of wineries, downtown tasting rooms, restaurants, and shops, you too will fall in love with this little gem.

Tags: Bella Villa Messina, Dry Creek Kitchen, Healdsburg, hotels, Sonoma County, Travel, vacation, where to stay in wine country, wine, wine country, wine travel, wineries

Happy Solstice! With a busy week ahead, I am still reflecting on my beachy mini vacation last weekend. . .

Part of the Cape trip tradition is a yummy breakfast, and last year my friend Raija started making us her uncle’s famous waffle recipe for breakfast. Luckily she was willing to share the recipe with all of us!  I paired my waffle with a bowl of cherries and a spicy Bloody Mary 😉

homemade waffles bowl of cherries

Since it was cloudy and a bit chilly last weekend, we opted to hang out at the beach in front of our cottage. It was a lot of fun spending the morning doing nothing but catching up. The scenery was pretty amazing as well.

Cape Cod flowers

Cape Cod beach path

beach snail

After lots of relaxing, it was time to head to the Taste of Truro at Truro Vineyards. We last visited the vineyards a few weeks ago, and I was excited to attend another event at this beautiful property and to try more Truro Vineyards wines.

First we had a little photo shoot.

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Then it was time to do some wine tasting! I ran into the fabulous Mara who I met at the Coastal Wine Trail kickoff and who also happens to have a really great blog, and she recommended the 2008 Maritime Zinfandel which is brand new and which I was already eyeing up, given my Zinfandel love.

image Truro Vineyards Zinfandel

It was really good! It had some great berry flavors and a little bit of spice. It was actually the perfect choice for the day that was in it, and I instantly wanted to pair it with broiled salmon with cherry compote.

I also split a glass of Vignoles with my friend; I had really enjoyed its crisp, fruity flavors at the Coastal Wine Trail Kickoff and liked it just as much a second time.

Truro Vineyards Zinfandel Truro Vineyards

One thing that was different than our last visit to the vineyard were the vines themselves! Tiny little grapes are everywhere just waiting to spend their summer taking in the sun and growing big and fat to make more wine for us! 😉 It’s just so interesting to watch the weather and to see its affect on the grapes and thus the wine itself. Hopefully it will be a good year.

Truro Vineyards Grapes

Truro Vineyards Grapes

The Taste of Truro had a variety of delicious food offerings from local restaurants as well which made it perfect to try out new places. These clams with chorizo looked and smelled amazing.

clams and chorizo

There was also lobster chowder, arancini, whole grains salad, and a variety of other treats. I love “Taste of” events. Luckily this week I am going to Taste of Cambridge!

Truro Vineyards wine glasses

Taste of Truro, like the rest of my visit to the Cape, was a great way to spend time with friends. We followed our wine adventure with a trip back into Provincetown, some dress shopping, oysters with some killer spicy horseradish at The Lobster Pot, and finally dinner at Front Street, an incredible P-town restaurant that deserves its own post!

Lobster Pot Provincetown oysters in Provincetown

Provincetown, MA Front Street Provincetown

I hope you are all having a great Monday so far. I am so excited for the week ahead; there is lots of fun to be had at a variety of blogger events, and I can’t wait to see everyone, eat great food, drink good wine, and to have lots to blog about!  I will also be introducing my “Dinner in 10” and “Wine from Where?” series that I hope to keep going periodically on the blog. Finally, I am excited to say that based on my BBQ & Beer post, the husband decided he does indeed need to have Buster’s BBQ in Calistoga on his birthday. We are going to wine country in July! Woop woop!

Siggi’s winners will be announced on Wednesday, so don’t forget to enter!

Tags: beach, breakfast, Cape Cod, Food, provincetown, recipe, Truro, vacation, waffles, wine, winery

Cape Cod embodies much of what I love about New England. From its picturesque villages and towns to its stunning dunes and beaches to the great local food and friendly, laid back vibe it is truly a special place. And my favorite parts of the Cape are two that I get to return to as part of an annual tradition started years ago with old friends. Every summer we make the trek up to North Truro where we stay in a little cottage on Cape Cod Bay. The nearby town of Provincetown provides us with endless opportunities for eating, shopping, and sightseeing. Provincetown, with its open minded and artsy feel is an instant vacation, and truly one of my favorite places on earth.

Lots of prep work happens before the annual weekend, and one of my tasks was to get celebratory cupcakes. After trying Mix Bakery cupcakes at our blogger wine tasting, I knew that there would be no better dessert than these cupcakes. Nothing I have tried in Boston can compare. After work on Friday, Kelly from Mix had strawberry cupcakes with vanilla butter cream perfection waiting for me.

Mix Bakery cupcakes

Mix Bakery strawberry and vanilla buttercream

We kicked off the trip on Saturday morning, and while I snacked on a cupcake, my friends had farmer’s market strawberries.

local strawberries Two moms in the raw

I also tried this Two Moms in the Raw granola bar which had an AWFUL aftertaste. Bleh.

Before we knew it, we were passing beachy cottages and rolling dunes and meeting up with our other friend, Deb, to head to the beach. Unfortunately, the weather had other ideas, and we only had time to eat our Box Lunch sandwiches before the rain came down.

Rain at the beach can be lovely, and we spent the rest of the day food and wine shopping and relaxing.

Truro Beach

island roses

While watching some USA vs England World Cup action, I sipped on a VitaCoco and a Sea Dog Blueberry ale.

Vita Coco coconut water Sea Dog Blueberry

Before we started our lobster feast, we toasted my friend Raija’s Masters graduation and Deb’s pregnancy (she had seltzer!) with bubbly from Gloria Ferrer, one of my favorite Sonoma wineries

Gloria Ferrer Sonoma Brut

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then it was time for food.

lobster

lobster

corn

There was lobster and corn, lots of butter, and Segura Viudas cava followed by the magical Mix Bakery cupcakes. Cava and lobster make an excellent pair. 🙂

The night ended with us all dressed up and dancing in Provincetown.

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It was the perfect way to burn off of all of the calories of deliciousness that we enjoyed all day!

Do you have a favorite summer tradition?

Tags: beach, Cape Cod, Food, lobster, provincetown, Truro, vacation, wine

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