sonomajom's Profile
Springtime in Sonoma
will have to try them again this season. everytime i did the test last year and previous kenwood won out but i'm guessing it's super micro climate dependent and could change in days
kenwood hasnt got apricots but they did have delicious asparagus
i tried cherries and apricots on sale at roadside stand near kenwood strawberry patch but was not overly impressed
i totally agree with the nose test approach!
Springtime in Sonoma
Strawberry stand in kenwood on highway 12 actually opened before May 1. My eyes popped when I saw it was open - apparently their earliest date to open in recent years. Berries have been pretty good for this early in the season. I always find them sweeter than Watmaugh if you're passing that way and have a chance to compare it's worth it
Looking for Mendocino or Sonoma Farms!
Oak Hill farm in Glen Ellen, just outside Sonoma - just started oding tours - I tink it might only be once a month but you could contact them to check
Great pizza in Truckee - where?
Thanks - apparently they are closed - any other suggestions , maybe we'll have to settle for soemthing besides pizza!
Great pizza in Truckee - where?
We're headed to Truckee tomorrow, actually skiing at Sugar Bowl but I figure Truckee would be best bet for dinner? am I right. We have our kid with us so would love to find a place that does great but original pizza. I'm not thinking thick cheese and tomato rather original mixtures of toppings. Does that exist locally or should we head somewhere else for dinner. My husband a vegetarian so we need somwhere that will give him some options too
Durum Wheat Flour in SF or North Bay?
Thanks didn't realise that it was semolina.
Just looked at Giusto's site - which seems to suggest they are in South San Francisco . Do they have a store in Petaluma - do you know where? Looks perfect for various ingredients I need for baking Italian breads Mmmm thanks
Durum Wheat Flour in SF or North Bay?
Anyone know where you can buy durum wheat flour, preferably in the North Bay but SF would work also, thanks
restaurants serving after 9pm on Sat in Santa Rosa - El Coqui?
We ended up at El Coqui since we were on the east side of town and Willi's seemed like a long drive. Food was pleasant - plantain stuffed with pork and cheese (though pork was poor quality and stringy - plantain was good, rise and beans good and nice avocado and tomato salad. Service was very friendly if a little haphazard but friendliness made up for it and no one tried to rush us out which often happens when you arrive late
restaurants serving after 9pm on Sat in Santa Rosa - El Coqui?
Looking for somewhere to eat around 9/9.30 tonight in SR. We usually end up in Rosso but I'd like a change. Saw El Coqui is open late but review seem mixed. Is the food oily?
Napa - Chase Cellars
we have friends who are big fans of Hagafen. They generally like full reds, more european styles but not very austere. I believe their wines are kosher - though that was not a factor in the decision. I've had their cab and liked it - full, some tannins
Santa Rosa Wineyard tasting room
Anyone been there? Is it just for tasting or coul dyou go there to meet someone for a glass of wine and chat. It's on Cleveland and apparently just opened. Cant find their opening hours on web site and my email to the contact email bounced back and no one answered the phone.
Chinese in Santa Rosa
nothing worthwhile in Sonoma or Glen Ellen for chinese
the indian place in Glen Ellen at jack London village - yeti - is very pleasant
I like tov tofu beside whole foods in santa rosa on yulupa - not chinese but asian
mid week wine tasting Lompoc SSR hills Edna Valley
you're right. I'm actually looking forward to making it to Lompoc and the tasting rooms there. I dont really think of them as in the same style as main st Los Olivos
mid week wine tasting Lompoc SSR hills Edna Valley
Went pretty well considering mid week and a 6 yr old. We only hit 3 places
Mosby just off the highway 101 on Santa Rosa rd
specialized in Italian varietals - stretching the envelope a little as they had some wines made on their property in italy described as estate wines .. my husband is big into italians wines so he was excited to taste sagrantino - good tannins and not overwhelming fruit - and terodelgo - ,smooth red with some softer fruit - cannonau a rose which it turns out is the italian grenache which being a fan of dry grenache roses I liked, also tasted their sangiovese. I tend to limit my tasting to 4 or 5 wines at one place. tasting room lady was pleasant and helpful
we then headed on to Alma Rosa which you had mentioned and I had also flagged . it's about 5 miles further in on Santa Rosa rd - very nice rural feeling property , nice setting for picnicing in the right weather. Tasted their Pinot Blanc - some may find it a little acidic, discoverd afterwards that ph is 3.1 - which helped explain that. and of course the Pinot Noirs. I'm not a huge Piot Noir fan but i did enjoy their La Encantada - round smooth new world style -and the 667 clone - darker more intense more subtle oak. Their wines are full of subtle flavor and well balanced. The tasting notes are a riot - available on the web site and actually capture the personalities of the wines well. The tasting room lady was delightful - chatting to my son and so giving us an opportunity to really savor the tasting
She recommended our 3rd stop - which in hindsight I should have known wouldnt be my style in that it was in Los olivos amidst the 'mall' of tasting rooms - though to be fair the wines were very palatable. It was Carhart. It is a delightful rustic little tasting room with a pretty garden behind wher eyou can sit out and taste. Liked their grenache blanc - fresh, not overly citrusy, their sauv blanc is very tropical - syrah quite peppery bourdeaux blend little sweet and oaky for my palate. Tasting room lady was very friendly and helpful and definitely the right person for a busy more tourist oriented location.
What Ir egretted overall was none of the locations had anyone on hand who really knew about the wines in depth but hey it was holiday season.
Overall the visit was fun and definitely worth going back to the area - next time I'll stick with my plan to just visit wineries themselves and more out of the way the better. It's still way less commercial than Sonoma area but all the tasting rooms do have a tasting fee - which is wavied with any purchase.
Our big serendipity moment of the trip was in SLO where we spent the night and stumbled into a GREAT restaurant Sidecar - I posted a review separately.
Thanks for asking and reminding me I needed to do this post. Next time I'm hoping to make the Lompoc ghetto!
Tomales Bay Oyster Co
it can also get pretty noisy on a nice w'end with loud music -
Need recs for Napa Valley and Sonoma for end of Jan/2012
suggest you also stop in at Della fattoria on one of hte main streets down town petaluma for breakfast or coffee - they do great bread and morning pasteries. it's not a large place but you should get room to sit maybe over two tables
sidecar san luis obispo
we stumbled on this gem by accident and it was serendipity supreme. On a Tue evening post New year it was pretty quiet - menu is limited 4 main course choices but food was creative, flavorful, fresh and amazing. We didnt have any starters - we had our 6 yr old with us for whom hanging out in restaurants is not a priority. However they offered several very tempting salads - kale with persimmons and pomegrantaes, a burrata salad. The 4 main courses on offer were fish stew , which they were out of , hearst ranch burger with homemade smoked ketchup and kimchi, papardelle with mushrooms, celery salsa, smoked olive oil and cannelli beanstew with tree mushrooms . My son loved the burger and I tasted it (and ate the kimchi which was a greta original touch) and the meat was good and flavorful and ketchup added a very nice touch. I had the papardelle which were wonderful - smoked oil giving it a really interesting twist and celery salsa adding a hint of green. M husband 's bean stew was also delicious. Alas they were out of the apple tart tatin with cheddar cheeseicecream.They have a good wine list both bottle and glass and waiter was helpful with suggestions on what to pair. They also have a superb list of beers on tap and again great guidance. If you're in SLO it's a not to be missed. Prices were reasonable with all dishes except fish stew under $20 and I think the stew was $21.
mid week wine tasting Lompoc SSR hills Edna Valley
we're going to be passing through above areas on Tue or Wed Jan 3 and 4. I've got lots of info from the board on what sound like great tasting rooms in Lompoc and area but most seem to be open only at weekends. Any suggestions for where to go on above days. I like old world style wines, unusual varietals esp reds and bordeaux blends nad rhone. Hate big fruit forward high alcohol wines
Kogi Truck
anyone know if there will be a Kogi truck in or near Venice or Santa Monica between Dec 26 and Jan 2?
Commonwealth review
thanks to suggestions from the board we opted for Commonwealth over Bara Agricole recently. Overall good experience, liked that parkign was easy. We got there at 10.15 on a Fri night and it was quieter than I would have expected in pre Xmas season. Place is a tad noisy, even with not all tables occupied. Server was great - attentive, informed, good on wines and not too cloying as some are. Loved chips with sea weed flakes as an amuse bouche instead of bread
We enjoyed several unusual wine by the glass and I thought they had a pretty creative wine list
canary islands red was exactly as described - somewhat on mineraly side, some pepper notes
grenache was good and balanced
Had the root veg terrine - good strong flavors but nothing amazing
sea urchin - definitely novel, seaweed brioche though tasted more like cracker than brioche but overall a winner
ced smoked mussels - great, wonderful, smokey, bacony, chorizoy flavor Mmmm
desserts were not so inspiring - i'm a choc fan but not PB fan so that option was out
maybe that's why it sticks in my mind more than the one we had :)
overall enjoyable thx for suggestion
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Commonwealth
2224 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110
Commonwealth or Bar Agricole (or elsewhere)?
Thanks for making me realise I'm not alone in thinking that the food was way too spicy in an unrewarding way
Commonwealth or Bar Agricole (or elsewhere)?
My husband and I are going to be in SF on Fri and want to have a late (10.30) dinner. We dont get to the city too often to eat out. We're both adventurous eaters but he's vegetarian - eats all fish and seafood - and we drink wine (rather than cocktails, and love adventurous wine lists). We ate an Aziza a while ago and liked it. I had take out fron Mission Chinese recently and was severely underwhelmed after all I'd heard. I was thinking either of hte above since they serve late and dont seem super expensive. the reviews I've found on bar agricole on the board arent raves (and comment on wines suggested a leaning towards natural wines which can alas suffer from problems over time) whereas those for commonwealth seem more positive. Anyone got more recent input or any other suggestions that would fit above.
Sonoma Itinerary Recommendations (for next weekend!)
Oops forgot to add some suggestions - for Sonoma. I'd add Loxton just next door to Wellington. I'd also suggest avoiding the big labels and going more for smaller wineries where you can taste wines you cant get elsewhere
BTW Paradise Ridge has a tasting room just next door to Mauscardini Caton
I havent tried Little vineyards just next door to BR Cohn - might be worth a try. I've heard some positive reviews
Weekend in Sonoma with a Little Kid
We've taken our kid now 6 to tasting rooms for years - definitely Benziger, some swings and peacocks as well as the ride (which you might want to reserve if you're going at a weekend since kids dont like to wait! Kunde has a cave tour that kids like and I tink Gundlach Bundshau also does. There is some small winery tastings at Cornerstone on the way into Sonoma and there are lots of other garden related things there he might like to look at
Train town is definitely a winner with kids and it's not too expensive either. Dependingo n where you're staying Sonoma Market local supermarket is a great place to buy picnic items as is the Cheese company on the square and there is a new place just opened off the square opposite Cafe La haye which should have some good food items - name escapes me at the moment
hard to say if it will be too cold - today was fabulous but you never know
Another place that might work is El Molino Central - they have great mexican and picnic table kind of setting and my kid like the quesidilla there (see other postings about it on the board)
If its nice Hopmonk on Broadway also has outside seating and a good variety of food
Sonoma Overlook trail is a nice hike - if your son is used to walks he'd like that . Mine did it at 3 but we had to encourage him for hte last piece on way down. It gives fabulous views on the town
otherwise the bike path through town which ends just opposite Sebastani winery is a good one - also tricycle suitable as its completely flat
Where to buy a pound of coffee?
I dont remember where you are in the North Bay but if you're near Sonoma my husband who is coffee drinker in our house and is fussy loves The Barking Dog - just opposite Mission Inn or also beside Whole Foods in Sonoma. They roast their own beans so you could always check with them what days they roast too
Want to treat my wife to special dinner in Bay Area - both vegetarian
we just had dinner at Aziza on Geary. in SF My husband's a vegetarian and he thought there were some great choices on the menu. it's also along the line of more gastronomically adventurous
The sommelier was very good too
local crab before season opens
I promised some friends a crab dinner this coming w'end - sigh! I got my season dates mixed up
Our local seafood place in Santa Rosa (on santa rosa ave) has Washington Dungness at 6.50 lb ! anyone any suggestions as to whether its possible to get any locally around Santa Rosa at a better price or whether any of the sport fishing people sell if you go out to bodega or am i suggesting something illegal :) i dont even know
Loose leaf tea in Santa Rosa
I'm a big drinker of loose leaf black tea (not herbal, not green etc etc). Any suggestions on where to go to buy in Santa Rosa area. I dont like what they have at Pete's. I seem to remember some specialist tea/cafe somewhere around Steele lane or Menocino ave but I might have address wrong
burrito near 19st bart in oakland
any suggestions on where to pick up a really good burrito within walking distance of 19th st Bart in oakland after 6pm tonight
Glen Ellen take-out and tasting menu
Weny by y'day - they hadnt ramped up for the weekend yet so they only had the hazelnut and blueberry/lemon avail. when I arrived early afternoon. Hazelnut looked seriously decadent
but I went for the blueberry. It was definitely enough for 2 for dessert . It was very well done but I like my lemon pretty strong and acidic and would have liked a stronger lemon flavor - however I'm probably on the acid side of normal:)
She's going to add some more choices ot the pasteries - showed me a peanut butter and compote that will be on sale soon
It's alovely set-up and would defiitely be a nice stop on a wine country tour or a fun place for a glass of wine and dessert on a Fri evening since they are open til 9
