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Sonoma County [all categories]

Sonoma - Wineries to Visit

Interesting Resources

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Author	Topic: Interesting Resources
damombo Member	posted 10-13-2012 08:22 AM Great to know! I'll plan to stop and pick up those maps - especially the Cornerstone stop. I do think I know right where that is! Thanks Yes IP: 96.8.187.200
yesilovewine Member	posted 10-13-2012 07:45 AM Wanted to tell about some new items available in Sonoma to help you navigate your tasting plans. At the Visitor Center located in "Cornerstone", which is a multi-purpose garden/shopping/tasting room property near Schellville, ( You know. the village around the blinking yellow light where 116 and 12 /121 split) they have town maps of Glen Ellen, Kenwood and Sonoma which show the tasting rooms and restaurants. Very Helpful tools In the town of Sonoma at the visitor center, they have the Sonoma Wine Walk maps I mentioned elsewhere; helpful for tasting rooms around the plaza. In Healdsburg there is a cartoon-style map of Healdsburg and Geyserville ( pretty cute) called Maittioli's Pocket Guide which is helpful in located tasting rooms as well as shops and restaurants. We found it at tasting rooms. Last is a street map of Santa Rosa that is great for finding those restaurants and the area where Carol Shelton and Trecini have their tasting rooms. I got ours in the lobby of the hotel- its put out by the chamber of comerce These are all "free" publications. IP: 76.182.4.159
yesilovewine Member	posted 09-20-2012 07:14 PM Hi everyone. This has been dormant for some time but I wanted to tell about a couple of resources I've found that y'all might enjoy. If I'm repeating myself, sorry... First, a book called "The New Connoisseurs' Guidebook to California Wine and Wineries". Its a good reference for lots of basics like grape types, how wine is made, and regionally specific information on wineries and the wines they produce, as well as characteristics which define regions. I like "understanding" wine, so it suited me, but even if you just want to read about wineries in a region and get another point of view this may work for you. Published by U of California Press, ISBN 978-0-520-25313-1 Next is a website that you may already be familiar with, californiawineryadvisor.com You can type in any CA region and get reviews on wineries written by users. Ratings for facilities are garnered by reviews. It also has a wide range of other offerings like coupons and blog links. I like it because of the breadth of winery listings and the fact that it allows you to participate in the process by writing reviews. I've had a couple questions and the webmaster has been very responsive, so I'd say these folks are truly listening to their users. IP: 76.182.4.159
yesilovewine Member	posted 01-01-2012 10:51 AM Received a copy of California Wines for Dummies and I have to say this is an interesting volume. Would recommend it; easy to read, usable information and good tips. IP: 71.65.248.214
winegirl1976 Junior Member	posted 04-12-2011 02:33 PM No problem, enjoying it all IP: 76.31.105.239
Hawkeye Member	posted 04-12-2011 09:29 AM Hi Winegirl, I hope y0ou realize that we were just pulling your chain! IP: 68.169.189.111
winegirl1976 Junior Member	posted 04-12-2011 08:37 AM I apoligize, I was not trying to discriminate on anyone. I posted the info that I saw on TV-The Doctors thought it was interesting. I too am a wine drinker. enjoy it and love it IP: 76.31.105.239
damombo Member	posted 04-11-2011 07:20 PM So, I take my age, multiply by 365 to get the number of days I've been around and able to drink... then divide by the number of years I've been drinking wine - come up with a huge number, which means I can drink several glasses a day and still be statistically A-OK!! Do ya like that logic? Did I mention that my college degree, from a "few" years ago, was in Quantitative Management Science" (aka Statistical Analysis). Trust me!! IP: 98.198.194.134
yesilovewine Member	posted 04-11-2011 04:01 PM Ok, So does this mean that as long as there is something in the glass I can keep pouring and call it 'one drink'????? [This message has been edited by yesilovewine (edited 04-11-2011).] [This message has been edited by yesilovewine (edited 04-11-2011).] IP: 98.232.221.183
Hawkeye Member	posted 04-11-2011 03:31 PM Hi Winegirl, Now, I think that is sexual discrimination. We have others on here from Texas, also. [This message has been edited by Hawkeye (edited 04-11-2011).] IP: 68.169.189.111
winegirl1976 Junior Member	posted 04-11-2011 01:39 PM DRINK-UP good review on drinking red wine! Malbec: Lowest in calories and sugars of all red wines, but tend to have slightly higher alcohol content. • Cabernet: Highest levels of polyphenols, the heart-healthy chemical, and most flavonoids of all reds. • Syrah/Shiraz: High in polyphenols. Australian and Californian Shiraz tend to have higher alcohol contents. • Zinfandel: Most calories, least flavonoids and tends to have the highest alcohol content of all the reds. • Pinot Noir: Highest resveratrol, which can help heart health, high in flavonoids and low in calories. A great choice! • Grape Juice: If you don't drink wine, grape juice may have some of the same benefits, but is also very high in sugar. When enjoying wine, women should limit themselves to one drink per day, while men should not exceed two drinks daily. Enjoy everyone [This message has been edited by winegirl1976 (edited 04-11-2011).] IP: 76.31.105.239
yesilovewine Member	posted 04-11-2011 08:56 AM I have come across some very interesting reviews of Sonoma and Napa wineries at www.wine-pages.com over the weekend. These offer an interesting point of view as the guy is from Europe. He offers ratings and tasting notes as well as venue reviews. IP: 98.232.221.183
yesilovewine Member	posted 04-09-2011 05:23 PM Here's one with a twist, y'all. Tastingroom.com offers samplers of all sorts of wines. You can buy them in different combinations, too. The example that caught my eye was a Dutcher Crossing sampler of 6 bottles ( size appears to be a typical "split", not like a "miniature") for -get this- $19.99! Not bad.... IP: 98.232.221.183
yesilovewine Member	posted 04-06-2011 10:17 PM Well, they sure did appeal to me, so I thought it only right to share with my friends... Hoping y'all find something helpful! Cheers... IP: 98.232.221.183
Hawkeye Member	posted 04-06-2011 04:49 PM Great find, Yesilovewine without the .com. Have enjoyed looking through this blog. IP: 68.169.189.111
damombo Member	posted 04-06-2011 03:52 PM JACKPOT! IP: 98.198.194.134
yesilovewine Member	posted 04-06-2011 11:48 AM Well friends, we are having rain and snow today- and yes it IS April and this nonsense should be over with by now- so I am playing with wine today instead of doing chores. I found 2 more very interesting resources today- the first is a listing of all the Dry Creek wineries which includes tasting notes/reviews. Drink Dry Creek.org has several handy tools to use for determining potential stops; I'm researching Maple Zins and that is how I found it- reviews of wineries that have it. Next, NE14ZIN. Type it like that and you'll get it. All zinfandel reviews IP: 98.232.221.183
yesilovewine Member	posted 04-04-2011 04:16 PM Just found these 3 resources for you to explore: www.sonomavalleywineries.org- this is a listing of most, if not all, of the wineries in Sonoma Valley. They have a printable list of 90+, unfortunatley NOT in alphabetical order , but it is easy to use and has information on wineries that I could not locate on the other 3 places I usually use, including our host. Clicking on the winery name will take you to their website, if they have one. Embedded in the information on one of the wineries was this site- www.vintnersclub.org. I haven't gone beyond what I needed for my research, but apparently this is a group from the bay area that does regular tastings and posts the results...very interesting on ratings and scoring. Plan to do more checking, but thought I'd get this out so that anyone going soon can look into wine that they may want to try. In February they rated Rodney Strong's Pinot as the top wine for that tasting...and there were some "Pinot Houses" in that flight! Third is a new source for those interested in very small places- Bennett Valley Grape Growers' website. There are only 3 bonded wineries in this AVA: Matananzas Creek is the only one with a tasting room here; 2 others are open by appointment. Many of these have been sources for other brands for years, but are just beginning to produce under their own labels. Maybe THIS time I got everything right and we won't have a third edit..! This is getting ridiculous...sorry. [This message has been edited by yesilovewine (edited 04-06-2011).] [This message has been edited by yesilovewine (edited 04-06-2011).] IP: 98.232.221.183
yesilovewine Member	posted 02-11-2011 08:05 AM I just came across a great little publication from the Sonoma area ( but it includes Napa info) that I had forgotten all about. winetravel.com is the name of this little booklet that I picked up on our last visit. It includes articles about activities, restaurants, and has easy to understand maps. I think my favorite part is that the guides give cost comparisons and suggestions based on criteria that people really use. And, its a freebie. IP: 98.232.221.183
yesilovewine Member	posted 01-30-2011 04:29 PM Hawkeye, my computer skills don't go so far as to know how to bookmark anything, but here are some other resources that I have used with relative frequency: Magazines: Touring and Tasting Sunset Napa/Sonoma Wine and Jazz ( new to us, picked it up at a local event and really like the listing of wine/jazz events across the nation) Newspapers: SF Chronicle weekly wine section ( reviews of tasting rooms and wines) Press-Democrat- Sonoma county paper that is good for events and general information about what's happening in the area ARea publications that you might find on a rack in the grocery but offer on-line as well: Wine Country This Week IP: 98.232.221.183
Hawkeye Member	posted 01-30-2011 03:30 PM Probably all of you are aware of most of these websites, but here is the list that I have bookmarked. http://napavalley.com/ http://www.wineroad.com/ http://www.sonoma.com/ http://www.sonomawine.com/ http://www.sonomavalley.com/2000/index.htm http://winecountrythisweek.com/ http://www.healdsburg.com/index.asp http://preiserkey.com/ http://www.winespectator.com/ http://www.geyservillecc.com/clientPage.php?page=viewBlogDetail&blogCat=Visitors&blogID=405&blogName=Wineries http://wdcv.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1&Itemid=3 http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g580460-i10025-k3318881-Napa_Valley_wineries-Napa_Valley_California.html http://www.napavintners.com/wineries/open_public.asp If you have any to add, I would appreciate having them. IP: 68.169.189.111
yesilovewine Member	posted 01-30-2011 09:32 AM The Visa Signature program is a great savings tool, Hawkeye; we saved over $200 in tasting fees and purchases the first time we used it!!! That's a BUNCH of wine for the cellar!!! Another good program is the Ticket to the Wine Road. Are you familiar with that one?? Does the Napa area have anything like these? I've heard of the tasting passes, but I don't think they are as broad-reaching. IP: 98.232.221.183
Hawkeye Member	posted 01-30-2011 08:09 AM Hi yesilovewine, Thanks for the connects to some other wine information. I have been on the Sonoma County Vintners site before, but had forgotten it. One of the best things about this site is the listing for those wineries accepting the Visa Signature Card in one form or another. If others on this Board are not familiar with the program, at many Sonoma County wineries, especially those around Healdsburg, if you present the Visa Signature Card, the wine tasting is free. Also, some will give a discount on purchases. If you are wanting to make your wine country experience a little less costly, this is the way to go. You can print off a map with the wineries identified by a dot, with a complete listing below. There is also an alphabetical listing of wineries that tell if they are open by appointment only, special card offerings, etc. A great tool for planning. IP: 68.169.189.111
yesilovewine Member	posted 01-29-2011 08:15 PM ' Welcome, damambo....enjoy! IP: 98.232.221.183
damombo Member	posted 01-29-2011 06:05 PM OOhhhhh Yay! Thanks yesilovewine! IP: 96.8.187.200
yesilovewine Member	posted 01-29-2011 10:51 AM Found these 2 sites that offer tasting coupons for both Napa and Sonoma facilities today and wanted to share. I know that Wine Country has some, but these 2 seem to have a wide variety to offer as well- most are for complimentary tastings, and some are 2-for-1 offers. There are even some other discounts like tours in the mix. www.bayareaonthecheap.com/napa-sonoma-wine-tasting-coupons and www.winecountrythisweek.com/deals there were probably 30 choices or more on each of these lists. Hope that some of you with upcoming visits will take advantage of these! More $$ for making purchases that way! IP: 98.232.221.183
yesilovewine Member	posted 11-18-2010 11:49 PM Also, there is a website called Sonoma County Vintners which has an interesting search option- "wineries by features" that I have found fun. They also offer a winery directory by region, which in Sonoma County is particularly helpful since it is so spread out and some of the delineation between AVA's can be confusing. IP: 98.232.221.183
yesilovewine Member	posted 11-18-2010 09:17 AM I thought it might be helpful to start a thread that focuses on resources. We all have favorites, or come across particularly pertinent articles or websites in our planning processes, so here is a spot to share your finds. I just received this new ( to me) publication called Wine and Jazz Magazine over the weekend. It is a good mix of information about jazz music - including artist profiles and current trends, and wine information - including pairing ideas with recipes, winemaker profiles and a section called Exploring Wine Country which has a focal theme ( in this case architecture and tasting room experiences). There is a great event calendar included, which is my favorite part. And this one is not limited to the west coast; wine, jazz and food events from all over the country are included. There is a website, WineandJazz.com, which I haven't checked out yet. If you like jazz, and we know you like wine , then you might enjoy giving this a look. [This message has been edited by yesilovewine (edited 03-26-2011).] IP: 98.232.221.183

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