What makes Wings Over Wine Country unique isn’t that jets like the US Navy’s F-18 may rip across the sky with booming thunder trailing from its afterburners. Or that acrobatic planes will corkscrew into the heavens, then stall and fall backwards towards earth, only to pull out of the freefall at the last second and then level off and back into a stomach churning loop. And not even that the local sheriff’s department will dangle fearless SWAT-team members from a single rope attached to a helicopter as they swoop down on a bus. All of these things can happen at any number of large air shows across the country.

Wings Over Wine Country returns to the Sonoma County Airport August 20 and 21, 2011

What makes Sonoma County’s Wings Over Wine Country amazing is that the venue, the Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport, is so small and intimate that you can visit the classic car show one minute, then walk through a massive C-17 transport plane the next, and then grab some nosh at the food stands right after that.

In addition to the flying demonstrations there are climb-aboard displays from the Pacific Coast Air Museum’s impressive collection of military aircraft, including an F-14 Tomcat used in the movie “Top Gun”, Vietnam War-era Huey choppers, the A-26 Invader and a dozen others.

Ticket prices are:

- Children under 6: Free
- Children 6-12 years: $5.00
- Active duty service members with current military ID card: Free
-  General Admission, presale: $18.00
- Tickets at the gate: $20.00
- Tickets may also be purchased on line at: http://wingsoverwinecountry.org/tickets/

For those looking for more than just a chance to watch the show, there are also President’s Club packages with a private tent, seating, catered meals and free parking.

Sonoma County has some good spots for delicious snacks, whether it’s a great happy hour, a small plates roadhouse with a good wine list, or a neighborhood tasting room.

Here’s a few to check out next time you’re suddenly a bit hungry:

1) According to one in the know, Stark’s Steakhouse has the best deal in town: the nibbles are awesome, the happy hour runs through Saturday, and the hours are from 3 to 6 pm. The calamari is a good choice, as are the ahi tuna tacos and the truffle fries. Don’t forget the $2 happy hour martini on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Hint: today is Wednesday.

2) When your jonesin’ for a snack, head to Jimtown, where the Jimtown Store’s mellow vibe and classic Americana beckon. Treats for the sweet include the best chocolate pudding in the known world and amazing brownies, while those hankerin’ for something salty can split the brie and olive sandwich.

3) McNear’s in Petaluma is where to be for good tunes and good times. The potato skins are lauded, as are the mozzarella sticks. Don’t pass up a chance to catch some live music at the adjacent Mystic Theater.

4) Taco trucks. And other, assorted food trucks. Inside Sonoma is a big fan of the many food trucks that ply the byways of Sonoma County. Whether you’re talking El Caches of Windsor, La Texanita of Santa Rosa or That Guy Who Parks By the Kunde Billboard on Highway 12 in Sonoma Valley, these are definite must-hits for when the urge to snack overwhelms. We’ve put many of these on a handy google map, so you can always find the nearest taco truck…

1/5)  This one doesn’t merit its own point, so we’re just going 20% of the way  here: samples at Costco. With two convenient Sonoma County locations (Rohnert Park and Santa Rosa), the magic land of free samples that is Costco beckons. Sausage on toothpicks? Check. Cheese samples for the masses? Oh yes. And over in the cold area, you can spy a bit of pasta salad. If you feel bad about sampling without buying any food, assuage those lingering pangs of guilt by picking up something small on the way out, like this or this.

The new commissioner, who is not named Bud Selig, was cited in a press release as, “legendary current head of baseball at Sonoma State University, John Goelz.”

Not Bud Selig. Phew.

Wine Country Baseball will begin their second season after the college and high-school leagues are over, in the summer.

Also changing will be the split of the league in two: one league will be for summer collegiate league a la the Cape Cod League (open only to college-eligible players), and the second will be the Wine Country Old Fashioned Baseball League, which is a community league and open to all.*

Wine Country Baseball is the brainchild and passion of Sonoma County vintner Howard Leonhardt of Leonhardt Vineyards.

The teams for the Old Fashioned Baseball League for 2012 will be:

Cloverdale Bandits
Healdsburg Owls
Windsor Wonders
Santa Rosa Gnats

Sebastopol Apples
Rohnert Park Dragons
Petaluma Piratas
Sonoma Grape Crushers

St. Helena Frost Angels
Yountville Robins
Oakville Aces
Napa Knights

Watch this space for more information on Wine Country Baseball and how to get tickets. (Already a great deal at about $5 a pop.)

* Open to all? Oh yes – including this guy, who just wanted to be “the best that ever was.”

As every sophomore-lit teacher’s favorite author wrote, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” (Bonus if you name the author without using google.)

So, here’s my 3 places in Sonoma County to go and do nothing. Turn off your phones, let your facebook rest. It’ll be there when you return:

1) Goat Rock in Jenner. Crashing waves? Check. Stunning shore stretching for a mile into the Northern California mists? Yup. Time to sit and reflect? Oh yes. Goat Rock is a favorite of mine because it’s miles from everything, but only about 45 minutes from Santa Rosa. Also, for those seeking even more solitude a drive up the coast means miles of empty beaches and secluded coves perfect for having a stroll or a quiet sit.

2) People watching from a bench outside the Sebastopol Cookie Company. Okay, eating a cookie is technically doing something, but not much. Mostly, I just grab one of their great cookies (Chocolate Chip for classic, the Backpacker for the added everything) and a cup of coffee and then sit on a bench along North Main Street. Done. Sebastopol is delightfully quirky and fun, with visitors and locals popping in and out of the bookstores and shops that line the street. Bonus if arriving on a Sunday when the Farmers Market is happening in the square. Primo time to sit and do nothing but watch the world walk by.

3) The woods. No, it’s not Walden (hint for the trivia question above!). It’s better. Armstrong Woods is a fantastic spot to sit in the redwoods and do nothing. Not as crowded and often overshadowed by Muir Woods to the south, Armstrong Woods in Guerneville provides plenty of benches and stumps to sit on and ponder life. Many visitors stay on the easy to stroll trails that lead to the main tree – true nothing begins off the main paths and up the hills. Sit. Stay. Do nothing.

Start planning your nothing with a free Sonoma guide, available here.

Here’s a suggested day in Petaluma:

Start at Della Fattoria, the gathering spot for locals in the know. This bakery is one of the best in the San Francisco Bay Area, and you’ll know its reputation is well-earned once you bite into a baguette. The Eggs Benedict for breakfast are recommended. On your way out the door, grab a loaf for later. And a latte. Gotta stay caffeinated!

Poke your head into the Pelican Art Gallery next door and say hello to Linda. She runs the gallery that features Sonoma County artists, and also doubles as a frame shop. Linda knows a lot about the other galleries in Sonoma County, as she works closely with the Sonoma County gallery group. Ask her for some favorites.

Taking a left out of the Pelican, walk to the building that looks like a bank but which carries seeds and gardening implements. You’ve found “the Seed Bank,” which is the common name for Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. The variety of seeds here are worth a good browse, and the catalog is a great find for later dreams about what to plant in your yard. Sonoma County, blessed with a year-round growing season, is a great canvas for garden-artists. (Though I admit I went a little crazy on the squash this past year. Next year, I’ll plant more green beans.)

They look innocent, but these things eat backyards. And small animals.

Alright, time to get out of the quaint downtown and into the wild. If not the wild, then Shollenberger Park, which is on the Petaluma River and provides views of the Bay and of migratory birds. Lots of birds. Being on the Pacific Coast Flyway, and adjacent to the wetlands of the San Francisco Bay, there are hundreds of thousands of birds who stop here or reside here. Bring binoculars for the easy, two-mile, flat trail.

You can end your day at the Lagunitas Tap Room. Lagunitas is one of several local brews and their IPA is my favorite. The Tap Room isn’t just a restaurant, as it says on its website, it is also a “Beer Sanctuary.” And is there any better?

If you want help planning a trip to Petaluma, be sure to talk to the friendly folks at the Petaluma Visitors Center, conveniently located next to the commuter train tracks and the Petaluma Arts Center. The Arts Center is open now, the train is coming soon!

Here’s our list of five favorites in Sonoma County, in no particular order:

Armstrong Redwoods State Reserve
17000 Armstrong Woods Road
Guerneville, CA 95446
707-869-2015

The serene, majestic beauty of Armstrong Grove is a living reminder of the magnificent primeval redwood forest that covered much of this area before logging operations began during the 19th century.

These remarkable trees live to be 500-1,000 years old, grow to a diameter of 12-16 feet, and stand from 200-250 feet tall. Coast redwoods are classified as temperate rainforests and they need wet and mild climates to survive. The rainfall in Armstrong Redwoods averages 55 inches per year and the trees are often shrouded in a mystical fog that helps to maintain the moist conditions needed for the redwoods to survive.

For a great  day, stop by Coffee Bazaar in Guerneville on your way in, enjoy a fantastic hike, and then head back to town for lunch. The fine folks at the Russian River Visitors Center can point you in the right direction for eats and sights.

Sugarloaf State Historic Park and Robert Ferguson Observatory
2605 Adobe Canyon Road
Kenwood, CA 95452
707-833-5712

Sugar wasn’t always sold in the neat paper packages seen in the supermarket these days. Before the turn of the last century, it came in loaves that looked something like oversized, upside-down ice cream cones; the grocer just broke off pieces for his customers. So, many western mountains and hills including the ridge at the southern edge of this park were named after the familiar “Sugarloaf.”

Robert Ferguson Observatory: In 1996, Sugarloaf Ridge State Park became the home of the largest observatory in the western United States which is completely dedicated to public viewing and education. For public viewing schedule, visit http://www.rfo.org.

Sugarloaf State Historic Park is located northeast of Kenwood in the Mayacamas Mountains between the Sonoma and Napa valleys. Elevations within the 2,700 acre park range from 600 feet at the entrance to 2,729 feet at the top of Bald Mountain, which overlooks the Napa Valley with Mount Saint Helena to the north. On very clear days the view includes portions of the San Francisco Bay Area and even a glimpse of the Sierra Nevada.

Some 21 miles of trail wind through three distinct ecological systems: chaparral-covered ridges, oak/fir forest land along the open meadows, and redwood forest in the canyon of Sonoma Creek. People find this area most enjoyable during the spring and fall. After the winter rains, there is a picturesque 25-foot waterfall along Sonoma Creek below the campground. Also in the spring, the park comes alive with wildflowers.

Along the creek near the entrance to the campground, there is a visitor center with general information as well as a guide to the natural and cultural history of the park.

Bonus stop: Café Citti is a local favorite for lunch. Try the sandwiches or the lasagna, and be sure to sit outside on the patio.

Helen Putnam Regional Park
411 Chileno Valley Road
Petaluma, CA 94952
707-433-1625

Petaluma might be famous for Butter and Eggs, and not famous yet for it’s hip art and growing foodie scene, but add one more accolade to the list: Petaluma has great outdoor experiences. Helen Putnam Park is characteristic of the terrain: broad vistas, rolling hills of green (winter) or gold (summer) and easy access to Petaluma.

This 216 acre park offers panoramic views of southern Sonoma County and northern Marin County. The park has trails for hiking, bicycling and horseback riding. A gazebo, picnic area, and children’s playground are located at the trail head. There is a large pond for fishing (bluegill mostly).

Lake Sonoma
3333 Skaggs Springs Rd
Geyserville, CA 95441
707-431-4590

Nestled in the beautiful coastal foothills of Sonoma County, California, Lake Sonoma is surrounded by world famous vineyards and land that is rich in history. Created by the construction of Warm Springs Dam in 1983, the lake provides for flood control, irrigation and recreation. When full, the lake has a surface area of more than 2,700 acres and 50 miles of shoreline, forming the perfect setting for a wealth of recreational activities.

Insider tip: Both Geyserville and Cloverdale are great jumping-off points for the lake. In Cloverdale try a root beer float at Pick’s Drive In, while Geyserville’s Catelli’s is the newest kid on the block for dining (again.)

Spring Lake Regional Park
393 Violetti Road
Santa Rosa, CA 95409
707-539-8092

Spring Lake is one of Santa Rosa’s insider secrets. Combined with Annadel State Park, this large preserve on the eastern edge of the city sits at the northern entrance to the Sonoma Valley.

The 320 acre park features camping, fishing, picnic areas with barbecues, and four group picnic areas.

Trails are available for walking, hiking, bicycling and horseback riding. There is also a 3-acre swimming lagoon and a 72-acre lake.

Don’t forget to visit the Environmental Discovery Center at Spring Lake for a wonderful all-age educational experience.

(Insider tip: just down the hill from the Discovery Center and bordering the parking lot are some small boulders chock-full of lizards. Watch the kids scramble after their prey, which are far too quick to be caught.)

Sonoma Wine Country: there’s a map for that. And it’s free.

Get yours here.

The contest, called Savor the Flavor of St. Francis Turn Up The Heat Consumer Contest (STFOSFTUHCC for short) runs through July 30, 2010, with winners announced September 10.

Oh yes- about those winners. What do they win?

First prize – a Sonomatastic trip to Sonoma County, with VIP visit to St. Francis Winery & Vineyards, air to and from SFO, and a 2 night stay at an awesome Sonoma County spot.

Second prize – Weber Baby Q Grill, Elizabeth Karmel* BBQ-to-go Kit, $50 St. Francis gift card

Third prize – Trio of Elizabeth Karmel signed cookbooks, Elizabeth Karmel BBQ-to-go Kit, $50 St. Francis gift card

There are also honorable mentions for the following:

1. Best Wine Pairing

2. Boldest Flavor Recipe

3. Most Creative Way to Turn Up The Heat!

4. Sexiest Steak

Steaks too sexy for TV. (But ok on the internet.)

I know – I saw it, too. Sexiest steak? The mind reels, the imagination runs, the heart palpitates. Meanwhile, the steak burns. Best get back to it.

The contest starts now, so if you’re up for the challenge, pop open some St. Francis wines and get grilling.

I’m working on my secret Cabernet and Catfish entry.

* Who is Elisabeth Karmel? Dude, she’s only been called “America’s female grilling expert” by Steve Raichlen**, which means she is either: a) a female who is an expert on grilling, b) an expert of females who grill or c) an expert on female anthropophagy, whose preferred method of preparation is grilling. I opt for (a) or (b) as (c) is just too awful to contemplate.

** Steve Raichlen? He’s “America’s male grilling expert.”

As the official announcement tells us:

The festival presents the perfect situation to mingle with Master Fermenters of every kind gathered to share their wares and wisdom. Festival goers can graze on a wide variety of fermented foods to their hearts content, including breads, cheeses, miso, pickles, sauerkraut, natto and kombucha. Scores of hands-on demonstrations and educational presentations for children and adults promise to make this a unique spring community festival.

Freestone, of course, is one those hip little enclaves in West Sonoma County, adored by cyclists, day-trippers and serious Pinot-philes for it’s rolling topography, beautiful scenery and awesome winegrapes, respectively.

FFF: A Catalytic Community Celebration Joining Culture with Agriculture

The fact that the Osmosis Spa and WildFlour Bread is out there doesn’t hurt one bit.

The Festival is this Saturday, May 15th from High Noon to 5 pm, or whenever the kimchi runs out. Check out the schedule for the full run-down of whowhatwhenwhereandhows.

Tickets are $15 and they are here: http://travel.sonomacounty.com/2138_attraction-tickets_a924.html

The event, dubbed the “350 Garden Challenge,” is a countywide effort to create awareness of the value of community and residential gardens that save water and grow food. Organizers of the contest—a nonprofit group called Sonoma County Health Action—seeks to have 350 Sonoma County gardens registered by the end of this week.

According to the organization’s Web site, where gardeners must register to participate, each garden can be as large or as little as the gardener wishes. Wine barrels, edibles, fruit trees and drought-tolerant natives all count toward creating an oasis of gardens all over the county.

From igrow.com

The contest will conclude May 16 with a celebration at Juilliard Park in Santa Rosa.

Health Action’s Web site also offers a number of resources for helping first-time gardeners become green thumbs. Some of these resources include growing guides, recommendations for watering, planting schedules and more. What’s more, the site lists detailed directions for starting something called a “Neighborhood Growing Wheel,” a cooperative effort between neighbors and friends to create and nurture food gardens throughout the neighborhood.

Finally, the Web site provides a calendar of a number of gardening events in communities from Petaluma to Cloverdale, as well as information about Garden Camp, an ongoing workshop series held at the Sonoma Garden Park in downtown Sonoma.

Sounds like our kind of camp, for sure.

Want more garden info? The Sonoma County Tourism Bureau has a collection of them here: Sonoma County Gardens and Flowers

The company, Pure Luxury, dubs the new offering its “Eco Wine Tour.” OK, it’s not the snappiest name. But the itinerary is commendable.

According to the company Web site, trips visit three wineries overall: Quivira (where guests receive honey in addition to wine), Porter Creek and Montemaggiore (which is private and not usually open to the public).

For an additional fee, the tour also includes a picnic lunch at Montemaggiore, which usually comprises vegetables from the on-site garden and homemade pasta.

Customers can choose from a number of different vehicles for their tours—everything from towncars, vans, limousines and Chevrolet Suburbans. Still, according to Jennifer Buffo, the company’s COO, the vehicles are all “Flex-fuel,” which means they are designed to run on gasoline or a blend of up to 85 percent Ethanol.

Buffo adds that the company is part of the Green Ride Global (GRG) initiative, which means the company is committed to emissions reductions from all areas of business operations of 20 percent over the next 5 years.

“If every North American chauffeured ground transportation company committed to producing results similar to Pure Luxury’s, collectively the industry would be making a significant contribution toward the reversal of global warming by annually saving over 490,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases,” she said during a recent interview. “That’s the equivalent of removing 100,000 vehicles from the road, avoiding 1-million barrels of crude oil, and growing and protecting over 400,000 acres of carbon-absorbing forest.”

With prices starting at $119, this Pure Luxury offering is worth considering. Learn more at: http://pureluxury.com/eco_wine_tour.php.

Also good for golf.

The Sonoma County company states on their website that they put the fun back in golf with their crazy patterned pants, shorts, skorts and divot repair tools. (Note to golfers: the fun left golf the day before the release of Caddyshack II)

It’s no surprise that the pants come from Sonoma County – as the San Francisco Bay Area is a hotbed of pants innovation. Witness the amazing rise of parachute pants when MC Hammer ruled California, his pants being seen all over California, from Oakland to Sactown, the Bay Area and back down.

Coming to the 2014 US Biathlon Team

But back to the pants. How popular are Sonoma County’s own Loudmouth Golf pants for the Norwegian Curling team? As of this writing, the Facebook Fan Page for the pants stood at 455,420 fans, which is 11% of the total population of Norway. (But not of Denmark.)

If the pants have this many fans, wonder how many fans the team has?

Rather than return to Waffle House Atlanta he has opted to stay here in Sonoma County and work for not one but two different wineries.

According to the local news-paper of record, the Press-Demo:

The former Murphy-Goode social media dispatcher has agreed to do sales and marketing for Kevin Kelley’s Natural Process Alliance and Salinia labels in Santa Rosa. He was offered a marketing position at Murphy-Goode but declined.

Kelley’s wines are sold in reusable metal canteens within a 100-mile radius of the winery.  “We pick them up and drop them off just like the milkman,” Wallace said.

Wallace will also be doing some work with Michel-Schlumberger winery up in Healdsburg. This is good news because 1) the people at Michel-Schlumberger are very cool and 2) we don’t have to go through the charade of interviewing Hardy for the job he proposed of “Chief Hardy Officer.”

As far as we could tell, the CHO would be a guy whose job it was to make silly videos, tweet inane thoughts, post random things to facebook and all the while complain about the lack of quality coffee here at Inside Sonoma World HQ.

And, uh, that job is basically already filled.

Hardy working his rounds outside rural Windsor.

Besides, if Hardy DID work here, we wouldn’t have found out that Kevin Kelley’s wines are picked up and dropped off just like the milkman. Seriously? That’s awesome!

The Natural Process Alliance bottles. These are very cool. Cooler when full of Pinot.

If you don’t remember that line, you will when you check out the headliners for this year’s Sonoma Jazz Plus (or Sonoma Jazz + if you must): Earth, Wind and Fire. Granted, they are playing on May 22, 2010 at 9pm. But even in September, you will be remembering the way you danced in May. Or something like that.  Tickets are now on sale, book them today!

Per the official announcement:

EARTH, WIND AND FIRE

05/22/2010 – 9pm

Legendary band Earth, Wind and Fire is simply one of the most important, innovative, and celebrated contemporary pop/R&B music forces of the 20th century. The band has had a remarkable career spanning over four decades with accolades, awards and record-breaking achievements.

Earth, Wind & Fire’s signature sound is not easily categorized and since its inception has been profoundly influential…musically, socially and spiritually. Successfully breaking all musical genre boundaries with 23 albums, Earth, Wind and Fire have recorded eight #1 R&B singles and eight Double Platinum Top 10 Pop Albums over their career. They have received 20 Grammy Award nominations and won 6 as a group. They have earned more than 50 Gold and Platinum albums and sold over 90 million albums worldwide, earning them a place on the list of best selling music artists of all time.

Watch this space, Sonoma Insiders, for more info about Sonoma Jazz +, one of the best music festivals in wine country, if not the universe.

And if you need to groove a bit, watch these videos below and do a little dance in your office. We are.

It won’t be accurate. It will be entertaining:

January 2009

January dawned anew and afresh, with adjectives astrewn about. We were getting a new president and historic things were happening. To commemerate, IS took on such august topics as ugly dogs, the fiddle festival and Bobby Flay. If you did a Venn diagram of those, the overlapping parts would be utterly mindblowing. We also went in for in-depth reporting, sending out the Jenntern to find the best beers in Sonoma County. The other major events were Winter Wineland, the HGTV dream house in Sonoma and that we actually titled a post “Wine, Chocolate and Sweet, Sweet Loving…” (I’m not even going to link to it. You want it – you search for it.) A good beginning.

The mind reels

February 2009

We spent most of this month trying to figure out what to get people for Valentine’s Day. Since no one was sending us free samples (guess we’re not those kind of bloggers) we had to get creative. We also wrote a bit about romance, since this is evidently the true meaning of Valentine’s Day. The blog posts were abysmal. I take full credit for that since I wrote them. Highlights include several bad puns about cougars spotted in wine country, with some of you chiming in on good spots to view them. (There is a place in Healdsburg where cougars doth roam. Now I know.) We also talked about the vine pruning contest and 12 more free things to do in wine country. Finally, our video series showed Where Peggy Sue Got Married and deconstructed Howard the Duck. All filmed in Sonoma County. Moving on…

March 2009

Barrel tasting! This event is so good it needs its own song. Since I can’t write music, or prose for that matter, I leave it to you. We took on the MSM and their blatant biases against whippersnappers and barrel tasting with a scathing blog. It changed the world, man. Or at least the lives of the 107 people who read it. The Irish dancers at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts got a nod from us for St. Patrick’s Day with a nifty video. Michael Flatley is just off-screen I heard. It was a month of promise.

Lively fellow waiting in line for a prosciutto wrap at the DC General Store

April 2009

Hudson Hawk came to Sonoma Valley when Bruce Willis was the honored guest at the Sonoma International Film Festival, still the best acronymed festival around, beating even the Cornwall Light Acrobatic Parade. We also took on the Murphy-Goode people for daring to bring in an outside blogger to basically write about anything and nothing. I could show you a Flying Goat-full of people already doing this. And for free. Also, we got a nifty itinerary for people to follow along the scenery from “Bottleshock” which featured some of our staffers as extras. They were standing next to Michael Flatley in the final cut. It wasn’t the cruellest month.

Actually, I don't think you could handle Merlot...

May 2009

Still no wine country blimp. But we got some help from better writers in May, including Carey Sweet, James Knight and Thomas Pynchon. We also got a post about a dream wine country wedding from SiouxsieQueue, which seemed to involve tamales, kilts, wine and the bride getting hauled off to jail. (I made up the part about the wine. They drink beer.) We did get in a bit of hot water when we suggested that Napa and Sonoma chefs were going to square off in a caged death match against a furry lamb. Again, we apologize. We got it wrong. Oops. All in all, a good month.

June 2009

We finally found out who the world’s ugliest dog was. Phew.We also started the World’s First Sonoma County Food and Wine Tattoo Contest, much to the chagrin of every branding expert in the universe. This contest not only spawns entries from across the internets, it features promotional videos that use comical sounds in the place of body parts. The videos win 2 Golden Globes. Halfway there!

July 2009

In July we welcomed back the Wine Bloggers to the Flamingo, where they voted for the winner from the finalists in the tattoo contest. Feeling competitive, we challenged Levi Leipheimer to a bike race, with the caveat that he had to wear no-iron, comfort-waist khakis, just like we do when we bike to work. Leipheimer has yet to accept this challenge. Keeping things more serious Beth gave us a run-down of the next month’s Grape to Glass event. Steering things back to the absurd, I challenged the Bohemian Club to invite me to their annual meeting of world-domination and horseshoes. They have yet to accept this challenge.

August 2009

Fort Ross was a good post, and was a guest blog from Lynda Browning. Remember that name folks – she’s a good writer. We also unleashed all the local secrets in August. Got one we haven’t found? Still want to share it? You can peep them here… For all those locavore and slow-foodies we got a good rundown on where to go to get the good stuff. for those who would rather see a slow foodie blown over by the hot exhaust of a screaming loud fighter jet, well we had that, too at the Wings Over Wine Country Air Show. August – something for everyone.

September 2009

“Crush” was in full swing in September. Crush is the word for harvest when the item being harvested sells for more than $2000 per ton. We heard where to go for wine country on the cheap, where to spot cool public art in Sebastopol and managed to work in a blog post that tied together the tomato festival and Boogie Nights. Crush is always a wee bit crazy though.

October 2009

Pupusas! Loves the pupusas! And we found the spot for ‘em when Carey Sweet told us where to go. Cycling came back when Levi’s Gran Fondo came rolling through (c’mon Levi! What are ya – size 30 waist? I’ll buy you the khakis.) Also, Inside Sonoma received it’s first ever invite to an event in San Francisco as a member of the press. Yes! To celebrate, we found a clip from the movie “The Jerk.” It made sense when we first wrote it. Halloween came and left us. No Great Pumpkin. Sigh.

November 2009

A turkey and twenty guests went into our dining room. Not all of them made it out. This month Chef John Ash showed off by telling us how to cook not one, not two but six folks, six game hens. We also found out that Top Chef was going to be in Healdsburg and managed to tie-in a reference to the movie 2012. This so terrified us we found some clips of the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Special. Happiness is a warm turkey.

Would you go to the end with an empty wine cellar?

December 2009

Bacon! We told you about Black Pig Meat Co and the bacon that supplies zazu and bovolo. The recipe actually didn’t use bacon – it was a panettone. Oh well. There was some sort of dust-up at the local government offices involving stars and angels and which caused our inbox to fill with some amazing Christmas letters. Hey – doesn’t anyone want to talk about public option healthcare? We also detailed which wineries are open on New Year’s Day. Finally, in a bit of meta-blogging, we did an amazing wrap-up of the year on the blog, and in under 1300 words no less.

Thanks for reading, tweeting, facebooking and whatnotting.

Happy New Year!

- The Sonoma Insiders

Because Inside Sonoma is not affiliated with any government (wait – is zinfandel a government? No? Okay then that statement stands) we were blissfully unaware of what exactly had transpired. But from the tenor of the tender missives sent our way (wow – have some of you folks been brushing up on your Emily Post! Those were some good letters!) we gather that you want to find out where to find stars and angels in Sonoma County. Not to worry! We have a list.

Of course we do…

Stars, Celestial Bodies, and Other Things That Doth Illumine the Firmament:

Robert Ferguson Observatory
If you want to see stars, start here. This is a community observatory located in Sugarloaf Ridge State Park, near Kenwood in Sonoma Valley. Public solar day viewing, lunar night viewing, night classes and camping are all available for nominal fees. Public evening events make a fun-filled night, with docent led presentations on astronomy, reviews on what you’ll see in the evening sky, and amateur’s trying out their own telescopes. The observatory’s telescope takes beautiful photos of galaxies, and it’s easy to see amazing star alignments because there’s no street lights.

Wells Fargo Center for the Arts
Andy Williams. Brian Setzer Orchestra. Lisa Lampanelli. Oh yeah, those are stars. Sweater-wearin’, swing-boppin’, foul-mouthed stars, respectively, and they are all at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts. A favorite of music fans and HBO producers because its intimate seating means everyone is close to the stage, you are guaranteed to see some stars here.

Wine Stars
The Sonoma County Winegrape Commission recognizes and supports the wineries and restaurants that put “Sonoma County” on their wine labels or feature Sonoma County wines on their wine lists. You can see the whole list of 2009 Wine Stars at their website, or if you are a restaurant or a winery, view the criteria and download the form for 2010.  In addition to local places, restaurants in New York, Las Vegas and Washington DC are featured.

Windsor
Starr Road in Windsor runs across the western section of this cute lil’ town known for good restaurants and access to the Russian River Valley. It’s a favorite of cyclists coming down from Healdsburg and on their way out to the river. Cycling star Levi Leipheimer and Lance Armstrong were once spotted by Inside Sonoma coming down Starr Road. We even have a blurry cell phone photo of our thumb to prove it.

The BoHos
Because of mix-ups at the post office, we have yet to receive our invite to the Bohemian Grove, the annual encampment of the rich, the powerful and Jimmy Buffet. But, if what we hear is true, then there are tons of stars to be spotted at the Bohemian Grove in July.

Seraphim, Cherubim and other Angels:

Mission San Francisco de Solano
Often referred to as “the mission” or the the “Sonoma mission” the real name of the small church-turned-museum on the north side of the Sonoma Plaza is San Francisco de Solano. The physical northern end of the Spanish empire in California, the quaint church is now a place of quiet reflection and a good spot to rest from the mid-day sun on hot summer days. As for angels – it’s a church. Look around. You’re bound to see something.

Copperfield’s Books
A quick scan of local book store chain Copperfield’s reveals over 100 books with the word title in it. Of course, for all you blue stockings, that means somewhere between Angels in the Wilderness and Glitter Tattoo Angels is the celebrated work of Nobel-Prize winning author Dan Brown, Angels and Demons. Keeping with his tradition of mixing Hardy Boys-type suspense with an internet-ethos of adhering to sanity, Brown truly shows his mastery of the paperback. (Wait – this thing came out in hardcover? On purpose?) For more illuminating (ha!) thoughts, be sure to check out the unbiased reviews on Amazon, including the one that begins,

“My first introduction to Dan Brown was through his incredible thriller, ‘The Da Vinci Code’ and figured that I had missed out on his previous works, so I picked up ‘Angels & Demons’ the day after I finished TDVC. This is in every way it’s equal. Every bit as compelling. Every bit as entertaining. Every bit as FUN. If you enjoy solving puzzles — especially REAL ones, than Dan Brown is an author you NEED to get to know and F-A-S-T.”

Patisserie Angelica
A bakery in Sebastopol (town motto: “A nuclear-free, hate-free, Dan Brown-free zone”) that offers some awesome looking treats, it even has angels in the middle of its name! Plus, they make wedding cakes, and what can be more angelic than a wedding cake? Aside from an angel-food wedding cake. Made by angels.

St. Helena Angels
Wine Country Baseball, found by local vintner and baseball fan Howard Leonhardt, will have a team called the St. Helena Angels. We know – St. Helena isn’t Inside Sonoma. It’s Over There In Napa. But we’re ecumenical here at I-S, and so we’ll claim them. Besides, we can’t wait until the Sonoma Crushers meet the St. Helena Angels, and then the sports writer for the Sonoma Index Tribune can come up with an apropos headline.

Well, that’s an impartial list. We suppose there are a lot of places locally to see stars and angels.

Merry Christmas, all. Happy New Year.

- Inside Sonoma

Not only did we geek out at your Halloween light display, but your Christmas extravaganza of light and sound makes it look like the entire Trans-Siberian Orchestra is jamming on your front lawn.

Well-played.

Rather than reinvent an itinerary for Holiday lights, we’re just going to say – check out Chad Dunbar’s house, as well as the other awesome entries that Petaluma has for their holiday lights tour.

See more tree farms in Sonoma Wine Country

In three years, as anyone who is anyone knows, the Mayan calendar stops, meaning the world will basically end, leaving only the guy from Say Anything, the girl from The Whole Nine Yards, and quite possibly the best looking first-daughter ever (B-E-L-O-V-E-D) floating in some massive arks on the Indian sub-Continent with 39,997 other less photogenic people.

What does this have to do with Sonoma?

Well, if the Mayan calendar is correct, and the sun starts shooting out massive solar flares, and these flares bombard the earth with more neutrinos than normal, and the core of the earth starts to, in the parlance of the movie, become “microwaved” then not only are we all doomed, but this may be the last year you have a chance to buy futures for wine at barrel tasting in March.

Think about it. The world might end on December 21, 2012.

Plan on saving some money and buying some wine futures in 2010.

You’ll get that wine in 2011, maybe 2012, but earlier in the year. Drink up, I say.

You never know when a massive tidal wave will come crashing threw your window and basically devour Pasadena.

Would you go to the end with an empty wine cellar?

As we’ve said before, and we’ll say it again, Sonoma County is awesome for cycling. If you want to go cycling in wine country, this is your spot.

Look for more cycling news soon – especially in North County.

Story from the Press Democrat, the local newspaper of record, has more:

Bike-friendly city wins bronze designation

Here are my three:

1) Jack London Park. Hike through oak trees and past small creeks in Sonoma Valley to the remains of his dream house which burned down before it was finished. The ruins are awesome. And since this is where London wrote many of his books, when the wind is blowing and the leaves are rustling, it’s perfect to envision the “ferine strain” that Buck had in him on the ranch in  Santa Clara before being sent to the Yukon.

2) The Sonoma Coast. Blowing wind? Check. Crashing waves? Check. Full-on Shakesperean drama? Oh yes- when the wind is blowing and the waves are crashing, standing on a bluff overlooking the not-so-Pacific Ocean is the place to be. It’s The Tempest meets King Lear meets Whitman’s barbaric yawp all in one. Sound too much like Sophomore lit? Sorry. But this is a great spot to watch and feel the wind. If you want to escape the wind, head to Gourmet-au-Bay in Bodega Bay for some wine surfing in a chillaxed way.

King Lear - time for some wine surfing?

3) Paradise Ridge Winery. Perched on a hill overlooking the Santa Rosa plain and into the Russian River Valley, Paradise Ridge’s tasting room has a fireplace with a cozy couch in front of it. Go outside and face the wind on their impressive deck that dangles over the vineyard, retreat to the fireplace with a glass of their Rockpile Zinfandel.

Those are mine. What are yours?

But a lot of people don’t know that Sonoma Wine Country is also the Sonoma Ocean Country – the 50 miles of Pacific Ocean coastline not only moderates the weather and provides fog for redwood forests, it is also home to great sea life like whales, dungeness crab, dolphins and salmon.

Wineries like Quivira in Healdsburg work hard to enact “fish-friendly” farming practices to protect the little guys and encourage them to return to the small creeks where they spawn. (Quivira is even the official winery of Trout Unlimited. Unclear if rainbows drink more than brown or lake trout, but I’m all for it nonetheless.)

According to the Sonoma County Water Agency, the first Chinook Salmon were noted coming up the river on October 9.

Below is a neat video taken in the Russian River of some chinook coming “home.”

Welcome back guys!

Their new project, cleverly called “US Street View Special Collections Poll” asks you, the great unwashed, to vote where you want Google to next invade your privacy map using their nifty tricycle mapping machine. The bicycle will go where cars can’t, tracking and mapping places like college campuses, state parks and San Francisco.

According to the video (below), you will be able to see the trike coming because the guy riding it has on a google cycling shirt and there is blaring rights-free video rock music following him.

If there are some places you want google to record here in Sonoma County, be sure to submit them. My top five choices are:

1) Armstrong Woods – there are some awesome little routes that wend through the woods here, and cars can’t get to them all. I say – send the trike!
Location: Guerneville, CA

2) Bodega Head – again, some nice trails around the Head with fantastic views, but cars aren’t allowed. Send the trike!
Location: Bodega Bay, CA

3) Bohemian Grove - they won’t let me in, but if Sergey and Larry show up for the annual conclave of the elite, and they happen to be riding the google trike, then maybe we’ll finally get some good footage of the animal sacrifice, world government planning and intense games of charades that goes on there. I can see it now: “Two words…. first word… tri.. trilat… Trilateral Commission!”
Location: Need to know basis.

4) Northwest Sonoma County – good luck with this one, as there aren’t many roads up in those rugged mountains for a reason. It’s stunningly beautiful, and a side of Wine Country most people never get a chance to experience. Plus, would love to see that guy in the trike take on some of the fire roads off Skaggs Springs. That would be awesome. (For me, not him.)
Location: Between Healdsburg, Cloverdale and Sea Ranch.

5) The Cotati Crawl – you can’t drive it, and you probably shouldn’t bike it, but if you could outfit your best party shirt with all those cameras, you could see a good stretch of bars down in Cotati. I believe there are five. No need to over-indulge. Just take your time, enjoy the college-town vibe and then see one of the nation’s only hexagonal town plazas.
Location: Cotati, CA

Alright – be sure to tell google where to go with their maps!

Inside Sonoma, after toiling in obscurity for weeks (years – one and a bit) finally got noticed and hit it big time.

We’ve been invited to a grand opening, in The City no less, of a new tasting room at the Boudin Bakery on Fisherman’s Wharf.

Suspend your disbelief. We’ve been doing it for a year and bit (see above.)

Below is the actual invitation from an actual PR firm, actually addressed to Inside Sonoma. No title. No honorific. Just simply “Inside Sonoma.”

It appears that Buena Vista Carneros is opening a new tasting room at the Boudin Bistro Bakery and Center for Advanced Sourdough Science right there in Fisherman’s Wharf. To which we say- awesome. If we can’t get San Francisco to come to wine country, we’ll bring wine country to San Francisco. Sonoma and San Francisco, together again.

As for the event? Sorry PR flaks, we can’t make it. Inside Sonoma, as our name implies, must never leave the gilded boundaries of our promised county.

Can you open a Boudin Bakery in the Buena Vista Carneros tasting room?

We're in a PR database! We're in a PR database! (Apologies to "The Jerk")

A lot of wine country, for just a little dough. Find out deals, where to eat, and what to do, without spending a lot of money. We call it wine country on the cheap.

View Wine Country – Cheap Eats in a larger map

The festival is pretty cool, with an incredible varieties of tomatoes as well as wine and, of course, cooking demonstrations.

We have some heirloom varieties in our backyard, picked up from the big plant sale K-J does in the spring. I can attest, as my son was pelting my daughter with some lovely Peace Vine Cherry tomatoes, that heirloom varieties can fly through the air with just as much if not more accuracy than their regular counterparts.

The video is below – nice work Hardy. Though I have to ask about the music – is this the Boogie Nights soundtrack?

Over 40 venues are open with food and wine around the artsy, BoHo enclave of Railroad Square in Santa Rosa, here in Sonoma Wine Country. Held in August every year, this is a great chance to meet winemakers, food purveyors and chefs, all within a quaint historic walking district.

The city that knows how will be emptied of Mission District hipsters and Pac Heights plutocrats. The steady buzz of tattoo guns will cease up and down Valencia.

And San Franciscans will be in one of two places:

1. Burning Man
2. Sonoma Wine Country Weekend

To help San Franciscans find the correct spot for their long weekend escape, Inside-Sonoma has put together this simple test: Are you a Burning Man “Burner” or a Wine Country Weekend “Weekender”?

You journey begins now.

Your idea of a good time is:

a. To hang out with a few thousand of your closest friends in loincloths in the desert. Also, see cool art.
b. Hang out with some close friends in the Russian River Valley. Also, eat cool food.

You think pink lace:

a. Is part of a matching ensemble with your Utilikilt and a Bedazzled vest that complements your belly-button ring.
b. Is none of your business, but if it was, it would be La Perla.

You are guided by:

a. Ten principles, including decommidification, gifting, radical self reliance, participation, immediacy and radical inclusion.
b. Thirteen AVAs, 60 local chefs, 150 wineries and a radical search for awesome wines.

When a friend says, “See you at the Playa” you immediately think:

a. “Dude, in Camp Chillax or Pan’s Garden?”
b. “Dude, in Cabo or Puerto?”

You think a “Burner” is someone who:

a. You will be hanging out with somewhere in Nevada.
b. Your brother-in-law hangs out with.

You think a “Weekender” is:

a. A meaningful relationship.
b. Someone who can almost fake pronouncing “viognier”.

So- how did you rate?

If you answered (a) to all of the above – awesome. Get your art car ready, dust off your fire poi and get thee to some BLM land somewhere out there by Reno! You’re heading to Burning Man.

Wait – did you get a ticket? If not, that’s ok, because you can join the folks below.

If you answered (b) to all of the above – nice! Find some comfy shoes, a sun hat, and think of something witty to say to Kate MacMurray and all those vintners and grapegrowers. You’re going to Wine Country Weekend! Make some room for the Burners who didn’t get tickets to the desert. Hey- they’re into gifting – share some wine!

Have a good weekend.

Then it turns out “Naked Ladies” is what you call Amaryllis belladonna when you want to make a trip to the plant store a little more titillating.

As Meg McConahey wrote in the Press Democrat:

The oddly bare, leafless two-foot stalks sporting pink lily-like flowers appear like space aliens, seemingly uninvited in old farmyards, along fencelines, in ruts and swales, dusty ditches and along the railroad tracks, shamelessly flashing their shocking pink heads and ungainly long gams for a couple of weeks before vanishing as mysteriously as they came.

Meg was right – these plants are everywhere, and they appear right about the time that the grape harvest begins. They are hardy, ubiquitous and stunning.

Naked Lady of the non-floral type. Nakedness redacted for people at work.

Naked Ladies, as found on the Internet.

As for the quote that I never got included in the article? Here are a few I tried out:

“When I pointed out the neighbor Amaryllis belladonna to my wife, she slapped me and pulled the shades.”

“We have, and always will, stand behind Sonoma County’s Amaryllis belladonnas”

“Officer, I drove off the road and into this vineyard because when looked up from reading my text messages I saw a whole stand of Amaryllis belladonnas and swerved to get a closer look.”

Naturally, no one would ever print these quotes. Ever.

To see the Naked Ladies yourself, book a room in Sonoma County and take a stroll or drive along the backroads. They’re out there.

And they’re naked.

I went this past weekend with the two little helpers, aged 4 and 2.  By and large it was a good time, though I have some pointers:

1) Bring a chair – you are on the tarmac, and there isn’t a lot of places to sit

2) Bring shade, a hat, sunscreen, and water. It gets hot out there.

3) Get there early, and you can stake out a spot in the shade under some of the planes.

4) Corrolary to (3), some of the planes you are camping under will move, as this is an air show where planes fly. If you try to sit under the c-17 all day, you may be run over when it taxis for take-off.

5) Go on – buy the turkey leg from Willie Bird’s. When else are you ever going to eat a whole turkey leg? (Aside from County Fair, Harvest Fair and Thanksgiving.)

I was amazed how close we could get to the action, walking among p-51s, A-10s, stunt planes and even classic cars.  The S.W.A.T. team demonstration was exciting, though a bit much for the 2-year old.

All in all, well worth the admission, and I can’t wait to see it again next year.

Best quote from the video – “He says it’s like flying an airplane with a gorilla sitting RIGHT on your chest!”

All the work, none of the pay. Your title: Sonoma Shill.

Apply now!

Yes friends, Levi Leipheimer is promoting a cool bike ride here in Wine Country to raise money for the Tour of California, as well as for a local group that brings together at-risk children with animals.

Of course, Levi has yet to explain why he didn’t show up for my “bike to work day” challenge.

Recall: Inside Sonoma dared Levi to test his mettle on the grueling morning commute from Windsor to Inside Sonoma World HQ, passing through verdant tract housing subdivisions, cutting through the warehouse parking lot of Beam Wine Estates, and finally, dodging trucks at the Kendall-Jackson production facility, all while wearing khaki pants. It’s kind of a mix of cyclocross, Pleasantville, and the Land’s End catalog.

Long story longer – Levi totally bagged on us. Evidently he was in “Italy” doing something called the “Giro” which is a big load, since everyone knows gyros come from Greece. QED- Levi was afeared of us.

Luckily, this October, Leipheimer is hosting this awesome big ride, where average joes and janes can bike along with Levi on a fully supported ride through some of the best cycling areas in the United States.

The rides, ranging in skill from casual riders to people who never take off spandex, will raise money for the Tour of California and Forget Me Not Farms. Because Sonoma County is heaven for cyclists, and has some of the best cycling around (wait – did I say that already?) we want to make sure that the Tour of California comes back. Ride with Levi and help us keep the tour!

Will Inside Sonoma be there? Oh yes, oh yes we will, Levi. Look for us. We’ll be the one coming up from behind, the one breathing in your ear as we pass you, the ones in the front comfort waist no-iron chino pants… from Land’s End.

Watch yourself!

(And sorry about the broken wrist – we were all pulling for you!)

Levi Leipheimer’s King Ridge GranFondo

Description:

Join three-time Amgen Tour of California winner, Levi Leipheimer, for a fully-supported fall bicycle ride in some of the nation’s finest cycling country.  Three different routes, ranging from a fairly flat 36 miles, to a very hilly 103 miles, capture the romance of Sonoma County’s most picturesque vineyards, towering redwoods, grassy meadows and coastal panoramas. In the tradition of the gran fondo, these are timed, non-competitive rides. Very strong, skilled riders may opt for the 103-mile GranFondo; the 65-mile MedioFondo is intended for riders with plenty of experience but who ride only once or twice a week; we suggest the gentle 36-mile PiccoloFondo for less experienced riders or those looking for an easy pedal through beautiful landscapes.

When: October 3, 2009

Where: Sonoma County, California. Start and finish in Santa Rosa

What:

Recreational, fully supported mellow-paced bicycle ride with three options (distances subject to minor change):

1. GranFondo – 103 miles on a challenging mountainous course with outstanding coastal views

2. MedioFondo – 65 miles on a picturesque hilly course with fine coastal views

3. PiccoloFondo – 36 miles on a flat valley-floor course through redwood forests and vineyards

Rest stops every 12 miles (approximately)

Why:

The rides raise funds for the Tour of California and Forget Me Not Farms.

Prices:

Solo: $90 – $115

Tandem:  $180- $230

Registration closes at midnight on September 15.

Event director:

Bike Monkey LLC

Event website:

http://www.levisgranfondo.com/

Email:

levisgranfondo@bikemonkey.net

Event hotline: 707-543-4300

Hotel info: www.levisgranfondo.com/lodging/

Not to be confused with BoBos, who are all over the place in Northern California, or even lowercase bohemians, who are oft caught at non-corporate coffee shops sneering at those who order things by asking for a “venti” ; the BoHos are the members of the Bohemian Club, an exclusive men’s club based in San Francisco and which owns a fair chunk of coastal redwoods for their annual encampment.

While my invitation to the encampment is routinely lost in the mail, I am told by several sources that all sorts of unique things go on out there in the woods beyond Guerneville.

To wit:

• Bohemian Club members dance naked, pray to Moloch, and feast on the flesh of young children. Source: a guy on the internet.
• Bohemian Club members drink too much and talk a lot. Also, dirty jokes are told. Source: Neighbor kid who gets summer job there.
• Bohemian Club members plot world domination, monetary policy, and so many massive conspiracies that Dan Brown* himself can’t even write a bad novel about it. Source: guy on the internet; the neighbor kid.
• They put on a song and dance show in Monte Rio. Source: people in Monte Rio, the Press Democrat.

While I can’t address the first three issues, again owing to the unfortunate fact that my BoHo invite keeps getting misplaced, I can say for sure that the show in Monte Rio is a real whiz-bang, gee-whiz kind of affair. Jimmy Buffet has performed for the small town, further proof that the Parrotheads aren’t quite as benign as we think they are.

The variety show is July 23 at the Monte Rio Ampitheater. It benefits local charities, which is cool. Skull and Bones members get 10% off.

(Ok- I made that up.)

Now can I get an invitation?

* People, if you still think Dan Brown is a good writer, please please please go on Amazon and order Umberto Eco’s “Foucault’s Pendulum.” It’s like Brown’s other stories, but written for people who own library cards. That is, it’s way way better.