It all started with a grape

Petaluma, CA – As I headed out of the KOA park to the early service at the Epis-copal Church in Petaluma this morn-ing, I saw two cows calmly grazing among the flowerbeds.  They are quite big animals when they’re not dotting a hillside 100 yards away! By the time I returned, the cows were nowhere to be seen, so they must have found their way back to their appropriate grazing spot.  Maybe the fresh green sprouts were too tempting; everything is bursting into bloom here.

Our outing for the day was to see the wine country of Sonoma and Napa, although it didn’t take much driving to come across endless vineyards, covering the rolling hills with striped rows of dormant vines. While we are not avid oenophiles, and I actually don’t drink wine since it can trigger a migraine, we still appreciate the art and diversity of wine making.  It would be unthinkable to travel through the heart of the California wine industry and not stop in for a look-see.

A beautiful castle set against a mountain backdrop and surrounded by acres of vines was our first stop just outside Sonoma.  The owner of the Ledson Winery built the castle as the family homestead, but there were so many inquiries about when the winery would be open to the public that he turned it over to the business and set up house elsewhere.

Even on a Sunday morning, there were groups of wine enthusiasts in various wood-paneled tasting rooms, looking much like students in a classroom.  Lots of vintages were on sale in the wine shop, as well as accessories and deli offerings.  Outside, the expectant vines, pruned lovingly for optimum output, stood ready for a new growing season.

We continued along the highway into the town of Sonoma, and made our way to the town square.  Sonoma City Hall stood at the centre of the square, surrounded by green space, and in a ring around the park were small restaurants, hotels, boutiques and gourmet food shops with free tasting signs in the windows.  Naturally I had to pop in for a chocolate tasting or two!  We ordered lunch at the Sonoma Cheese Factory and enjoyed it on the patio outside.

The Kunde Estate Winery on the Sonoma Highway covers 1,850 acres, with a wide variety of soil types, topography and even climate conditions, all of which produce different grapes and different wines.  Apparently the volcanic soil from lava flows five million years ago, in which some of these vines grow, is responsible for producing the “complex, intriguing wines” described in the estate’s literature.

It was inter-esting to compare different vineyards.  Some vines were slender and young, while others had clearly been there for many seasons, with thick woody trunks and twisted branches. Colourful wildflowers flourished between some rows, while other vintners kept the rows free of all extraneous vegetation.

A few miles further along, we came to the town of Napa, with its Victorian houses along the main street, lined with more fruit trees covered with a white froth of fragrant blossoms.  Our pleasant Sunday drive continued through more huge tracts of vineyards as we circled back to the KOA.