Sunday, October 23, Day 7

After a delicious breakfast at the Farmhouse--where they have several courses even for breakfast (consisting of baked currents, apples and walnuts to start, then corn waffles and stewed bananas with chicken sausage, yum!!!), we visited Copain, which afforded one of the many beautiful views to be had in this part of wine country:

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

http://www.yelp.com/biz/copain-wines-healdsburg#hrid:WMMLhK-r4mAtNJEIfbrZvg

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

We then went to Hawkes on the recommendation of a friend, and were thrilled with their wines, some of the best we had while in Sonoma. They also had really beautiful midcentury paintings by the mother(?) of the owner in their spare tasting room:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/hawkes-vineyards-and-winery-sonoma#hrid:06bMOl80TIstqzwyQuPPIw

Next door is Jimtown Store, which is well-known for it's appearance on "Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives" on the Food Network, but the hype isn't overrated, it's really good (oh yummy pulled-pork sandwich...the pork-a-palooza continues) and the store itself is like stepping back in time to a 5-and-dime with lots of vintage signs, wide wood planks, and cheeky goods for sale.

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

http://www.yelp.com/biz/jimtown-store-healdsburg-2#hrid:0j1TCZkmMUPIsrjkCygJ6A

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

After that we visited Robert Young, supposedly known for their reds... a beautiful, but disappointing visit:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/robert-young-estate-winery-geyserville#hrid:_mi_NdbC9pxri2cUYd2cgQ

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

We were nervous about not getting into the appointment-only tasting room Michel Schlumberger, but no worries there, they were very accommodating (and we learned the only reason most appointment-only wineries are appointment-only is because the number of public permits is limited due to the shear volume of wineries applying).
http://www.yelp.com/biz/michel-schlumberger-winery-healdsburg#hrid:jQxfcX53ENpH0jH2I1T_ug

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

We then went to Quivera just down the road and were delighted by their organic garden and their incredibly reasonable (and different) wines. We finally found the answer to the question "does all wine have to be aged in oak or stainless steel?". No! They actually had a white wine that was aged in Acacia and really tasty. Our server, who, like several of the men we met working in tasting rooms, was a Vietnam vet, and he was great, explaining their philosophy of balance and harmony. They have beautiful gardens with flowering plants, lots of vegetables, chickens, and fruit trees, and all organic! It's really inspiring to see that setup work as well as it does. They are pretty realistic about it too, recognizing that they won't get as big a yield on their crops as the wineries that use pesticides, but that they will be able to use their land indefinitely, as long as they take care of it: http://www.yelp.com/biz/quivira-vineyards-healdsburg#hrid:K7CZmrbvEBhPyeG8yleKbQ

From 10-17-11 to 10-24-11 honeymoon

Here's Sunday's route: