Sonoma Coast Vacation II:

Although we arrived in Jenner not knowing what to expect, I had diligently planned the first three days of our trip. As a Sales Representative/Fine Wine Consultant for a distribution company in Southern California, I had personal and professional motives for the trip. I had visited Sonoma on a company trip a few months earlier and wanted to share the experience with my husband. I also really like wine and selfishly wanted to visit some of my wineries.

Needless to say, Monday morning we got in the car and began the trip to our first winery tour and tasting. In Napa. Other-than-Californians will quickly tell you that Sonoma is not close to Napa - in fact, it is about an hour and a half away, if not two. But, I had decided which wineries I wanted to visit and driving be damned, we were going there. Besides, we live in SoCal. An hour and half drive is what it takes to get decent dinner!

We had a scheduled tour of Raymond Vineyards, but arrived early and decided to pop into Louis M. Martini. The winery had been purchased a few years ago by the Gallo family and had been updated accordingly. All the bells and whistles you can imagine are in place there. The tasting room is warm and inviting and that first thing you think when entering the exterior courtyard is "Party!" Many of the wines are excellent, with a few falling in the nice range. Ones I highly suggest include the Lot 1 Cabernet Sauvignon, which is from 5 hilltop vineyards in Napa. It is a delicious Cab with great structure and aging potential of about 8-10 years, but is definitely ready to drink now. Good luck finding any and don't expect to pay less than $75. Another I recommend is the Monte Rosso Cabernet Sauvignon. This is slightly more affordable and is also a drinkable Cab with the nice option of further aging.

We moved on to Raymond after having a quick tasting at Martini, a quick jaunt down the road, and were pleased to find our tour included other people. Our tour guide was fabulous and was very knowledgeable about the property, as well as very patient with the non-industry folks on the tour. (As a side-note, do not wear perfume/cologne while wine tasting, even if it costs a bizillion dollars - you will not be able to taste or sniff the wine without interference and you may make your tour mates pass out.) We tasted through the wines and were very happy with all of the new vintages. I am not a big fan of oaky, buttery Chardonnays, but for those of you who are, the Raymond Napa Reserve will float your boat at a nice price point. For Raymond, as with Martini, the Cabs are where it's at. Try the vineyard designate Cabs right now or invest in the Generations Cabernet Sauvignon, but be prepared to lay it down for a couple of years - it is is too young to drink right now. My personal favorites are the Raymond Merlots. They drink like Cabs, with big flavors of chocolate and dark berry, with a smoothness and deepness you do not often find in California merlots of the same price.

Day two we visited Dry Creek, Trentadue and Pedroncelli in Sonoma County. We were excited to see the labeling of an undisclosable wine at Dry Creek (which we now have a bottle of - thank you, John!) and had a very nice vineyard tour. Dry Creek makes exceptional Zinfandels and has a property that is to die for. The grassy area outside of the tasting room is built for picnics and weddings. Try the Heritage Vine Zinfandel, unless you are lucky enough to get your hands on a vineyard designate.

Trentadue was amazing and is a very popular wedding venue for those of you who like big, overblown weddings. I am not, but was still impressed with the pics of previous ceremonies and receptions held at the property, which adorn a table in the tasting room. What I highly suggest doing at the winery is tasting the La Storia line of wines and their dessert wines. A fun part of the story or the history (la storia) of the winery is that the name comes from the owners, the Trentadues, but also that trentadue is the number 32 in Italian. You will find that many of the bottles are marked with the number 32 and there is even a La Storia Cuvee 32, a Super Tuscan blend made at the Trentadue property. Yummy!

The last winery of the day was Pedroncelli. This is a truly family operated winery and the person to give us the tour was Julie, one of the Pedroncelli offspring. Love her! She gave us a fabulous tour of the vineyards and explained their sustainable practices, as well as acquainting us with the history of the valley - the place where she herself grew up. The Pedroncellis are one of the oldest families in the area, particularly when it comes to making wine. I can't tell you enough what a treat it is to visit such a down to Earth tasting room and winery. Do not miss it if you are in the area. Unless you are a giant snob. Then I suggest you go to one of the corporate owned joints staffed by minimum wage employees. Pedroncelli is for the true wine lover. The wines are amazing and at a price that is way below market value for the quality. You will not be disappointed! Try any of their wines, but make sure to check out the Zinfandel Rose. It bears all the wonderful attributes of the grape - spicy, jammy raspberry fruit and a complex nose and mouthfeel. Under $15 a bottle. Need I say more?

Okay, so I said that there were three days of tastings planned. Well... after the two that I put poor Jeremy through, I decided to give him a break. We drove up the coast on day three. It is one of the most beautiful drives you can imagine. Wind-swept coastline dotted with modest vacation homes and campgrounds. Views of the Northern Pacific Ocean unencumbered by oil rigs. We had almost made it to Mendocino when we decided to veer off the PCH to go to Anderson Valley, the home of Anderson Valley Brewing Company.

We'll have to catch up later; it is dinner time in Huntington Beach, according to my Chihuahua...