Southern Sonoma Country Life

Celebrating the Bard's Birthday in Sonoma County with A Night of Shakespeare Shorts, April 6th, 2019

 

“A Night of Shakespeare Shorts” is a celebration of short scenes from the plays of William Shakespeare in the spirit of a competition at the iconic Phoenix Theater, 201 E. Washington Street,  Petaluma, CA where Harry Houdini, Enrico Caruso, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Huey Lewis and Santana have performed.

A variety of short scenes from Shakespeare’s plays interspersed with music by local musicians will be performed by a variety of participants.  Scenes will be adjudicated by a panel of Shakespeare savvy judges and participants have the chance to win $500 for Best Scene of the evening, Best Dramatic Scene $100 and Best Comedic Scene $100. 

Shakespeare Shorts is hosted by The Petaluma Shakespeare Company, Shakesprints and The Phoenix Theater on Saturday April 6, 2019.

Doors open at 7:30 p.m. Performance at 8:00 pm. Tickets $15 under 18 and $20 adults. All tickets include a slice of birthday cake.  It’s early but we have to celebrate William’s birthday when we can!

http://shakespeareshorts.brownpapertickets.com

What inspired A Night of Shakespeare Shorts?

"We were having a cup of coffee with Crispin of Shakesprints, thinking of what to do to celebrate Shakespeare's birthday in April and how we could bring Shakespeare's work back to the people he intended it to be for, which is everyone," says Petaluma Shakespeare Company.  "There are not a lot of opportunities for young performers to perform so we decided to create one for them."

A Night of Shakespeare Shorts (April 6th, 2019) will be a celebration of Shakespeare's plays, giving young performers from all over Northern California a chance to perform, be seen by Bay Area Shakespeare savvy judges from Marin Shakespeare, ACT, SF Shakespeare, and others, a chance to win money and pursue their love of theater.

The Phoenix Theater has a long history of promoting youth in Petaluma and the once upon opera, now skate club and music venue offers the contemporary vibe which is perfect for Shakespeare in the 21st century.  The Phoenix has a music program for youth so Petaluma Shakespeare Company decided to collaborate together by interspersing the scenes with music by local musicians, giving everyone an opportunity to perform. Of course there will be birthday cake too!  I mean it is William's birthday after all. 

There are two ways to support this wonderful new program. Purchase tickets on the brown paper ticket link above and attend and/or secondly, be a star and pledge to the Night of Shakespeare Shorts Kickstarter fundraiser, to boost the coffers to raise $1,000 for production costs and cash awards to the top players. Pledge as little as $10 or $50 to $100 for VIP seating, beverages and being a part of something special in our community. 

CLICK HERE FOR A NIGHT OF SHAKESPEARE SHORTS KICKSTARTER FUNDRAISER

Located in Petaluma, California, Petaluma Shakespeare Company is a non profit 501(c)(3) dedicated to put Shakespeare's timeless works into the hands of 21st century performers. It us the only free Shakespeare theater group in Sonoma County and is supported by an annual fundraiser and through donations. Past seasons of Free Shakespeare By The River under the stars at The Foundry Wharf, has enable the group to provide the community with theater culture, strengthen community bonds through shared theatrical experiences and create more compassionate global citizens.  2019 will be its 5th season and the group is excited to bring forth Macbeth.  Past productions ofTaming of the Shrew,  As You Like It, Henry IV part I, and All's Well That Ends Well  have brought collaborators from all of the Bay Area to bring Free Shakespeare By The River to thousands of audience members of all ages. 

Tickets for 13th Annual California Artisan Cheese Fabulous Range of Festival Farm & Producer Tours and Seminars & Events (March 23 to 24, 2019) Now Available for Purchase

California’s premier cheese event, the California Artisan Cheese Festival, to be held March 23-24, 2019, at various locations in Northern California, brings together cheese enthusiasts for a weekend filled with cheese tastings, pairings, tours, seminars, a culinary competition, and cocktail and wine tastings. While the festival’s larger events like Cheese, Bites, & Booze! (where guests can nosh on tasty bites created by cheesemakers, chefs and cheesemongers’ and sip on regional artisan wines, ciders and spirits) and The Marketplace (where attendees are invited to taste, discover and purchase specialty items from over 100 artisan producers) are sure to appeal, it's the smaller events like the festival's Farm & Producer Tours and Seminars that provide festival goers intimate, immersive experiences with some of the most reputable and knowledgeable experts in the industry. 

The Festival’s 2019 Seminar Schedule is as follows:  

 Seminar 1: Red or White? Best Wines for the Cheeses You Love

Instructor: Janet Fletcher, author and educator

9:30 – 11 a.m.

$75 per person

Join the debate as to whether red or white wine is a better match for cheese with Planet Cheese publisher and educator extraordinaire, Janet Fletcher. Attendees will sample five cheeses alongside both a red and white wine while Janet shares some sensory research into wine and cheese pairings. 

Seminar 2: California Cheese: Old School to New School 

Instructor: Juliana Uruburu, cheese expert, Market Hall Foods

9:30 – 11 a.m.

$75 per person

California has a rich and dynamic history of cheesemaking. Juliana Uruburu leads guests on a tasting journey illuminating the connections between the Golden State’s storied old school and new school cheesemakers.

Seminar 3: Cheese, Beer & Cider

Instructor: Rachel Perez, American Cheese Society (ACS) Certified Cheese Professional®

1:30 – 3 p.m.

$75 per person

Unique beers and ciders are the pairing of choice for many cheesemongers as an alternative to wine. Rachel Perez guides attendees on a tasting journey demystifying the characteristics that make beer and cider so cheese-friendly. Guests will leave this session with a solid foundation of pairing principles and several foolproof beer, cider, and cheese pairings to try at home.

Seminar 4: A Taste of Cheese Science with The Cheese Twins

Instructors: Charlie & Michael Kalish, The Cheese Twins

1:30 – 3 p.m.

$75 per person

Having made cheese on more than a dozen dairy farms across Europe with some of the finest affineurs (professional cheese agers), Cheese Twins Charlie and Michael Kalish bring their savoir-faire home to California. This comparative tasting gives guests a crash course in the science behind cheesemaking and highlight how seemingly subtle shifts in pH, moisture, and aging result in staggeringly different cheeses. 

Seminar 5: Cheese & Cocktails: The Basics of Bitters, Booze & Cheese

Instructors: Vanessa Chang, American Cheese Society (ACS) Certified Cheese Professional® and Lassa Skinner, co-founder of Culture magazine

1:30 – 3 p.m.

$85 per person

Cheese mavens Vanessa Chang and Lassa Skinner demonstrate how a well-made cocktail can shake up preconceived notions of what goes with cheese. This dynamic duo will distill the basics of the various spirits, demystify the universe of bitters, and help identify cheeses to round out cocktails like Manhattans, Mai Tais. 

 

The Festival’s 2019 Farm & Producer Tours are as follows: 

Tour A: Point Reyes Farmstead & The Fork

9:15 a.m. – 3:45 p.m.

$150 per person

Attendees of this tour will spend a day at Giacomini Dairy to discover what makes Point Reyes so special. Visitors start their day with a tour of the farm, meet the cows and learn about the farm’s history. Following the tour, guests head to The Fork, Point Reyes Farmstead’s education and culinary center for a focused cheese tasting and end the day with a three-course lunch and cooking demo with Chef Matthew Accarrino of San Francisco’s Michelin-starred restaurant, SPQR.

Tour B: Pennyroyal Farm Tour

10:45 a.m. – 2:45 p.m.

$120 per person

Start your day with a guided walking tour at Pennyroyal creamery and vineyard to learn more about the integrative farming methods behind Pennyroyal’s handcrafted cheese and wine. Following the tour, enjoy a seasonal multi-course lunch prepared from the bounty of the kitchen garden as well as farmstead meat and cheese. Pennyroyal Farm cheesemaker Erika McKenzie-Chapter and It’s Not You, It’s Brie Author and Educator Kirstin Jackson will lead a delicious and instructive seminar that poses the question, “If it grows together, does it go together?” while leading a tasting that explores the cheeses, wine, beer, and cider of the Anderson Valley.  

Tour C: North Capitol Area Tour

8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

$150 per person

This tour explores the North Sacramento Valley cheesescape beginning with a tour of Pedrozo Dairy and Cheese Company, to meet Tim Pedrozo, a third-generation dairy farmer and self-proclaimed “accidental cheesemaker.” After Pedrozo, the tour will head to Orland Farmstead Creamery, followed by lunch and a talk with Rumiano Cheese Company, California’s oldest family-owned cheese company.

 Tour D: Hop to It! 

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

$150 per person

The Santa Rosa area is home to an amazing community of talented brewers and delicious beers. This all-day tour starts at Russian River Brewing Co., crafters of legendary Pliny the Elder, with a cheese pairing from Beehive Cheese Co., followed by a stop at the Barrel Brothers Brewing Co. to taste hops and malts alongside chocolates by neighboring Volo Chocolates. Seismic Brewing Co. is the next stop on the tour to taste brews paired with cheese from a local cheesemaker and concludes with a visit to Old Possum Brewing Co., one of Santa Rosa’s newest breweries. 

Tour E: Farm Forward 

8:30 a.m. – 3:45 p.m.

$150 per person

This tour travels west of Petaluma to Toluma Farms, home to a herd of goats, a flock of sheep, and Tomales Farmstead Creamery. Guests will have the opportunity to tour the organic pastures, meet the goats and sheep, taste an array of cheeses, and enjoy an incredible brunch spread from Daily Driver SF, California’s newest creamery. The tour will continue with a stop at AppleGarden Farm to meet owner Jan Lee, learn about cider apples, and taste the fruits of their labor. The day concludes at Marin French Cheese, the country’s oldest continuously operating cheese company to taste their signature cheeses, including Brie and Camembert. 

Tour F: Dairy Divas 

8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

$150 per person

This tour begins at Cowgirl Creamery in Point Reyes Station where attendees will taste their way through a flight of Cowgirl Creamery and witness a curd-making demonstration before heading over the hill to DeBernardi Dairy, home to Two Rock Valley Goat Cheese. Attendees will stop for lunch before heading to Achadinha Cheese Company where Jim and Donna Pacheco, with help from their four children, milk goats and make cheese inspired by their family legacy and the Old World traditions of Portugal. 

Tour G: Stars of Sebastopol – Sold Out

8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

$150 per person

Start the morning off at Wm. Cofield Cheesemakers, one of California’s newest creameries known for its fresh cheese curds, clothbound cheddar, and Stilton-esque blue cheese. Next, attendees will visit Bohemian Creamery and meet Lisa Gottreich, one of the region’s most creative artisan cheesemakers, followed by a stop at The Barlow where Chef Duskie Estes, a regular guest on the Food Network and self-professed cheese lover, will prepare a delicious multi-course lunch inspired by cheese and locally-sourced ingredients. The tour will conclude with a visit to Spirit Works Distillery for a guided tasting though its local spirits alongside pairings from Cypress Grove Cheese. 

Tour H: Local Legends

8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

$150 per person

Rise and shine at Nicasio Valley Cheese Company, California’s only organic farmstead creamery with a tour and tasting of its award-winning cheeses followed by a visit to Marin French Cheese, the country’s oldest continuously operating cheese company, which will celebrate its 154-year anniversary in 2019. Guests will continue on to Valley Ford Cheese & Creamery to enjoy a delicious cheese-focused lunch, tour and tasting of Valley Ford cheeses, crafted with milk from the family’s nearby herd of Jersey cows.

Tour I: The Milky Whey

8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. 

$150 per person

Attendees start their morning outside Petaluma at the Pacheco Family Dairy for a tour of the farm while learning why the Pachecos transitioned from a traditional cow dairy to a goat dairy; complete with a tasting of the farmstead cheeses. Next, the tour will head to Nicasio Valley Cheese Company, California’s only organic farmstead creamery, to taste its award-winning cheeses that capture both the essence of this 1,150-acre family ranch and the legacy of the family’s Swiss-Italian heritage. Guests will stop along the way for lunch before heading to Lagunitas Brewing Company just in time for happy hour to taste a selection of their innovative local brews paired with cheeses from Sierra Nevada Cheese Company.

 ***Note: Bus transportation is provided by Pure Luxury Transportation for all tours except Tour B and Tour C (Tour B does not include transportation, Tour C transportation is provided by North Valley Shuttle.) Start and end times and tour departure pick-up and drop-off locations vary. All sales are final, and events takes place rain or shine. A more detailed list of the tour descriptions can be found at https://www.artisancheesefestival.com/tours.

Following the educational seminars and tours, guests can opt to end their day participating in Cheese, Bites & Booze!, Saturday night’s grand tasting event held inside the Jackson Family Wines Aircraft Hangar at Sonoma Jet Center. This delicious competition features cheesemakers, chefs and cheesemongers’ creating their “best bites” of California artisan cheesy goodness. Guests sample the amazing creations while sipping on regional artisan wines, ciders, spirits, and beers at this light-hearted walk-around tasting event. Tickets for Cheese, Bites & Booze! are $80 per person (21 and over only, no children will be admitted). 

 

Don't Miss The National Parks Plein Air Project by Petaluma Artist Mary Fassbinder January 29th through March 23rd at Petaluma Arts Center

Sixty plein air paintings of each of the U. S. National Parks are the product of an extraordinary 72,000 mile, 3 ½ year journey by Sonoma County artist and gallery owner Mary Fassbinder and the centerpiece of an exhibition at the Petaluma Arts Center opening late January, 2019.

“The National Parks Painting Project by Mary Fassbinder & Guest Artist Davis Perkins” exhibition will run from January 29th through March 23rd, with the public opening scheduled for Saturday, January 26th, 2019 at 5:00pm.

“This project forced me to push, crawl, climb –you name it, through my own set of obstacles and most importantly to trust the outcome,” Mary recalls of the many challenges she overcame.  “It truly was a rite of passage”

Mary Fassbinder feels more strongly than ever that, “this is a crucial time in the preservation and conservation of our national treasures. I sincerely hope these paintings will be an inspiration to generations to come.”

Joining Mary at the Petaluma Arts Center will be Davis Perkins, a California landscape painter with an exhibition featuring his landscape paintings from around the world.  Dave Perkins, who has had an exciting career as smokejumper, firefighter, and paramedic, received a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Oregon. In 2015 he was selected as a Signature Member of the Oil Painters of America.  He exhibits his work in galleries and other art venues in Northern California, while continuing his life of travel and public service.

Story Pole Event — "A Fine Balance" for Petaluma's First Public Art Installation — A First Look at The Proposed and Much Debated Bathtubs on Stilts

Photo: Frances Rivetti 

Blue skies made for a bright backdrop as Petalumans were invited to see for themselves how the city's first proposed large scale public art installation will look in place during a story pole event for San Francisco artist Brian Goggin's controversial five Victorian cast iron bathtubs on stilts. "A Fine Balance" has drawn hot debate from a vocal range of residents, most of whom either love it or hate it, with plenty others on the fence as to its potential for somewhere else other than Water Street. 

To put the scene into perspective for anyone who is reading this post and is not familiar with Petaluma's Water Street, which runs parallel to Petaluma Boulevard's restaurant row in the riverfront city's charming iron front historic downtown, this is, in the words of my friend, photographer Frank Simpson, whose photos are featured in this post: "the most abused street in Petaluma." 

It's also one of the most beloved historical locations given the importance of the river and its turning basin as a vital lifeline throughout the city's founding Gold Rush era. Blighted by a failed cobblestone installation, frequent rat infestations, an historic railroad trestle that is fenced off and is shamefully crumbling day by day into a river that has almost filled with mud, a big art debate shines a major spotlight on the indisputable fact there's a lot to be done to save the grace and beauty of the little street that once was the city's most dynamic incoming and outgoing hub.

Flash forward from the Gold Rush to 2019 and the city of Petaluma's first ever large scale public art installation has many of its citizens spitting verbal abuse at one another online and in person as to whether or not the San Francisco artist's idea should continue to make it through the final steps to go forward in this prime location. I talked with one resident who said she had expected to be met with neighbors holding torches, their pitchforks at the ready. "The villagers are not happy," she remarked, adding that the prototype was not nearly as big or oppressive as the unfortunately post-apocalyptic artists impression that has been splashed across social media. A reliable source told me later that particular take of a dark sepia illustration was never intended to have been distributed. 

The community of Petaluma is a notoriously headstrong one. That Goggin's concept is Petaluma's pathway as it navigates the path forward while maintaining its treasured heritage, agricultural roots and eclecticism seems to be lost on the majority of its naysayers.      

Photo: Frank Simpson, Artist Brian Goggin arrives on the scene for a public story pole event on Petaluma's Water Street.

A crowd of around 200  mingled and awaited Goggin's story pole procession, slowly moving the same large scale prototype from one of its five positions to another. There was some shouting and scuffling and reports of people not being on their most polite behavior at the start of the event, but on the whole it proved a civil gathering and a there was lots of debate and discussion going down between both sides of the yes or no nod for the installation being made permanent. It still has one more round with the city council for a final vote after the story pole event is reviewed.

Newly sworn in Mayor of Petaluma Teresa Barrett was surrounded by constituents vying for an impassioned word in her ear. The mayor kept her cool, reminding people that whatever the outcome of the installation, it would not feed or keep someone from being fed. One of the key talking points being that the $150,000 awarded to the project by a specially assigned Public Art Committee is earmarked for public art and public art alone (sorry, no budget anywhere else for dredging the river & fixing up the trestle). 

"I don't find it offensive," said Mayor Barrett, in discussion with a politely agitated group. "There is nothing that we'd all like. Let Petaluma be the town that can have controversy and keep community." She pointed out that people were talking to others they wouldn't usually be having conversations with. "If you look at it in context," she said, referring to the positioning of the fifth and final tub on stilts mid-Water Street, with the feed mill in the background, "it doesn't look so out of place." The Mayor did concede that she would have liked to have seen the installation across the Washington Street Bridge in the more industrial part of Water Street down by Brewsters Beer Garden, though that was not the part of town the public art fund was earmarked for. 

Carol Isaak is a Petaluma resident for over fifty years and the city's Volunteer of the Year for 2017 for her years of exemplary volunteer service. A former librarian with a 30-year career with the Petaluma City Schools District managing the teaching and learning resources center at the district office, Isaak has dedicated her retirement to sorting books and home goods in the store room of Alphabet Soup, the fundraising store of Petaluma Educational Foundation. Isaak is not a fan of the bathtubs on stilts. "Absolutely not," she said, when I talked to her during Saturday's story pole event. Isaak and several others I spoke with were not against the art being relocated to a more suitable location. "If they put it in the wetlands over at Ellis Creek (Water Cycling Facility) it would be better suited. It would look like long-legged shore birds standing in the water."

Landscape architect Louise Leff on the other hand, is thoroughly on board. "It's thrilling to me to see a bathtub juxtaposed with the river," she said. "I love the form, the beautiful, round, elegant form, the heaviness of it, the tension on the stilts." She considers it "really cool to have sculpture amongst the trees and five of them have a rhythm."

Photo: Frances Rivetti

Goggin spoke of his research into Petaluma history and his interest in "some of the only existing iron front buildings in California." The Victorian era ball and claw tubs he'll be using were cast in San Francisco and reclaimed from an abandoned building — representing a tribute to the bathtubs traded with early Petalumans building their Victorian homes in exchange for farm goods during the Gold Rush era. Goggin's mom was in town to support her artist son and served tea to attendees. 

I spotted multi-generational Petaluman and journalist John Sheehy author of the wildly popular newly released On A River Winding Home, a beautiful book of photography by Scott Hess and his own essays on the Petaluma watershed. "Another river story," John said of "A Fine Balance" and the energy it has whipped up, "an important new element of Petaluma's history."

A large comment box filled up with folded paper by the end of the afternoon. A good sign that there are still opportunities for all sides to be heard.

The Wall Street Journal sent a photojournalist who spent a good part of his day capturing the event. Look out for his take on our riverfront conundrum, it will be interesting to read a report from an outsider looking in. 

Citizens Against Bathtubs posted the following on Facebook after the event: "There are many many issues with this "event". First, no construction project I have ever seen that included story poles has had only a portion of the structure represented, and then not at full height, and only for 30 seconds. If the intent if this was to give the public a feel for the installation, and its impact on circulation and visual elements, it failed, big time! IMO the PPAC has not met the requirement set forth by the council as a provisional of moving forward. They need to go back and erect actual story poles representing all FIVE tubs and all 20 poles, at full height, and leave them there for at least a week or two." The group will be taking this up with he council at the next meeting.

Photo: Frank Simpson 

Photo: Frank Simpson

Photo: Frank Simpson 

"Art is not what you see, but what you make others see," 

Edgar Degas

 

 

Petaluma Gap Winegrowers Celebrate the First Anniversary of the Petaluma Gap American Viticultural Area (AVA) with a Showcase of Wine Labels and 90+ Point Ratings

What a celebration! 

One year ago, the first wine labels bearing the Petaluma Gap American Viticultural Area (AVA) were submitted by winemakers to the Alcohol, Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) for approval by the federal government. A year later, the Petaluma Gap Winegrowers Alliance (PGWA) is cheering on its growers and winemakers for the plethora of wines now bearing the AVA on the label and for the accolades these wines are receiving from top wine writers and reviewers.

To mark this auspicious occasion, after years of hard work to make the AVA dream a reality for local growers and winemakers, Petaluma Gap members and friends partied this January in the grand ballroom in the beautifully remodeled Hotel Petaluma, downtown, to toast this accomplishment and showcase all the fabulous wines now displaying Petaluma Gap on their labels.

All of the wines pictured above are being well received in the market place. I thoroughly enjoyed tasting my way through with a couple super standout mentions to make — Thirty-Seven Wines, The Hermit 92 Points, Gold Medal, SF International Wine Competition and Kerith Overstreet's Gap Crown Pinot Noir hand harvested in the moonlight! Keller Estate's beautiful bubbles 2015 Brut Rose sparkling wine was a treat to taste as the team over on Lakeville, up in the hills don't make a sparkling every year. Winemaker Erica Stancliff, of her family's Trombetta Family Wines was on hand for a media pouring. Erica is one to watch in wine country. Her wines are terrific and she has so much energy and enthusiasm and a collaborative spirit that is refreshing in the competitive world of wine. 

Bigger name wineries such as Kendall Jackson and Rodney Strong have joined in the Petaluma Gap with their wonderful wines made with premium local fruit, keeping company with one of my stalwart favs, Cline Family Cellars, which has been a longtime active Petaluma Gap member and ambassador.

“We are thrilled to see so many of our winery members receiving 90+ point ratings on the wines they are making from grapes grown in the Petaluma Gap” says Justin Seidenfeld, Director of Winemaking for Rodney Strong and President of the Petaluma Gap Winegrowers Alliance. “The wind that ushers in the cool air from the Pacific and that defines our wines is challenging for our growers, but also rewarding for our winemakers. Grapes grown in the Petaluma Gap typically ripen more slowly, but there are many rewards that result from the longer hang-time.”

There are now dozens of winemakers who have labeled their wines with the Petaluma Gap AVA and more than half of the PGWA members have received 90+ point ratings on wines produced from Petaluma Gap fruit.  

As a big fan of the cool climate wines of my home micro-region with a history dating back to the first ever dinner party with a small group of local growers where the idea of an alliance was first floated, I would so love to see more of our stores and outlets in the Petaluma area dedicating a section to Petaluma Gap AVA wines so that consumers such as you and I grow more accustomed and inclined to buy super local when it comes to our wines.

I'd also like to see restaurants in and around Petaluma boosting the numbers of Petaluma Gap wines on their wine lists and maybe even a free corkage promotion of some sort for Petaluma Gap wines. 

“2018 was a busy year for the Petaluma Gap Winegrowers” says Cheryl Quist, Executive Director. “In May we held a celebration of the approval of the AVA where government dignitaries presented proclamations from the State of California and the Federal Government. In the Spring and Fall the Alliance conducted technical seminars to educate members on topics focused on the Petaluma Gap AVA, and our group’s participation throughout the year in Sonoma County Vintners’ promotional events included the Sommelier Summit, the Sonoma County Barrel Auction and Taste of Sonoma.”

Erica Stancliff, Vice President of the Board and Winemaker at Trombetta Family Wines adds “At a recent Board of Directors meeting, we agreed that the approval of the AVA is really just the beginning of our effort.  The next phase is to educate consumers about Petaluma Gap wines, and showing the AVA designation prominently on the label is the first step in that process.”  

In December members of PGWA elected seven new board members to bring additional talent to assist with these efforts:  Kim Badenfort (Wine Industry Network), Al Brayton (Thirty-Seven Wines), Catherine Caruso (Amy’s Kitchen), Tom Gendall (Cline Cellars), David Meyers (Attorney), Scott Welch (Jackson Family Wines), and Kristine Youngberg (Adobe Road Winery). The group plans several activities in 2019 including a technical seminar series and continued activities with Sonoma County Vintners, as well as participation in other industry events. For more information see www.petalumagap.com.

About the Alliance

Founded in 2005, the Petaluma Gap Winegrowers Alliance (PGWA) exists to educate members of the wine trade and consumers about the Petaluma Gap and to increase awareness of the region’s unique growing conditions and resulting wine quality. PGWA additionally supports member winegrowers and vintners within the region through ongoing programs and communications designed to help them maximize their success within the industry. The group’s membership is made up of grape growers, wineries, associate business members, sponsors and local community members with a passion for the region and its wine. Throughout the year, the group conducts educational events and tastings independently and through the Sonoma County Vintners.

Love Linda, The Life of Mrs Cole Porter — Petaluma's Cinnabar Theater Through January 13th, 2019

Photo: Cinnabar Theater - Maureen McVerry as Linda Lee Porter

I must confess it has been a while since I've seen a show at Cinnabar Theater, our wonderful center for stage arts for all ages in West Petaluma. It was with much pleasure I returned to take a seat in the cabaret-style audience area to be transported to New York, Paris and Los Angeles of the late 1920s through the late 1950s with the music of genius composer Cole Porter. 

Black and White Photos Via Pinterest

Bay Area favorite the super talented and glamorous Maureen McVerry is making her Cinnabar debut as a captivating Linda Lee Porter in the West Coast premiere of Love Linda, interweaving the unforgettable songs of Cole Porter with compelling story-telling as his devoted and elegant wife. 

Peek behind the glitter of her sensational life  to experience a unique, highly unconventional, sometimes difficult but truly love-filled marriage. All-so-familiar musical numbers include the hits Let's Do it, So In Love, I Love Paris, My Heart Belongs to Daddy, Night and Day, Wunderbar

American composer Porter wrote songs, both words and music, for more than thirty stage and film musicals. His best work was considered to set standards of sophistication and wit that were hard to match in popular musical theater of the day.

Maureen McVerry's Linda is commanding and enthralling at the same time. I loved her costuming, by Ellen Howes. She impressively carries this one-woman show, singlehandedly up front, though classical musicians Cesar Cansino (piano), Steven Hoffman (Bass) and John Shebalin (Drums) are in fact, visible in the back of the set and fairly took  my breath away with their outstanding renditions of Porter's beloved scores. 

Set and lighting by Wayne Hovey was splendid. Click here for tickets. 

This year's line-up at Cinnabar is a good one. I'm booking tix for the next show for sure — Underneath the Lintel, by Glen Berger, opening Feb 1st and running through Feb 17th. When a reclusive librarian discovers a 113-year overdue book in the night slot, curiosity compels him to pursue the borrower. His search for answers leads to a worldwide, whirlwind journey, where he discovers instead the great mysteries of humanity. Called “powerfully human and ultimately sublime,” this comic tale reminds us that the joy is in the journey itself.Featuring beloved Sonoma County actor John Shillington (She Loves Me, The Price, Time Stands Still) as the Librarian.

Join Pamela Joyce & Tom Farnham, Acoustic Guitar Singer Songwriter Duo 2 of Us at the Newly Revamped William Tell House Tomales, Friday, December 14th, 5.30 pm to 8 pm

Learn about Andrew Carnegie and the American Public Library Movement at Petaluma's Own Carnegie Historical Library & Museum Saturday December 8th, 4 pm

History and architecture fans as well as book lovers alike take note, don't miss a wonderful event on Saturday, December 8th, 2018 at 4 pm at the Petaluma Historical Library & Museum.

Hear distinguished academican Dr. Kenneth Breisch speak about Andrew Carnegie and the American Public Library Movement in our own community's treasured Carnegie architectural gem, former library turned museum.  

The event is free and presented by the Petaluma Museum Association as part of an exhibit celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Petaluma Historical Library & Museum, curated by Paula Freund. This exhibit tells the story of the founding of the Carnegie Library through the dedication of the building as a museum in 1978, and the continued work of the Petaluma Museum
Association to preserve the cultural heritage of the City of Petaluma.

 

A Tasty New Chapter for the Historic William Tell House, Tomales, Showcasing All Local California Coastal Cuisine

Marin County's oldest roadhouse, The William Tell House, is celebrating a tasty new chapter in its intriguing west country history. New owners are implementing a a fresh take on an Old California institution, established in 1877.

I stopped in with friends on a foggy Saturday evening this November. Walking in from the pea-souper outside, we opted to huddle on a bar table beside the fireplace seeing as it was still rather quiet in the dining room given the recent change-up. The menu is a pop-up starter deal until the restaurant's kitchen is fully up and running some time in the new year.  

Don't let that deter you from tasting your way through. Everything we tasted was terrific, starting with a smoked fish platter, moving on to the most delicious clam chowder, melt-in-the-mouth short ribs and a pecan/ginger pie to cry for. 

A self-described humble, casual restaurant serving fresh, local ingredients, The William Tell house, nestled in the town of Tomales, California, was ripe for reinvention given that its neighbors to the south, Nick's Cove, Hog Island Oysters & The Marshall Store are jam packed with customers in summer, on weekends and holidays  This is the foodie epicenter of where land meets the ocean. A stone's throw the East and South, are some of California’s best dairy and meat producers such as Cowgirl Creamery and organic pasture foraged beef from Stemple Creek. Minutes to the West from the Tell House, you’ll find yourself on the California Coast, rich with oysters, fresh salmon, multiple species of rockfish, halibut and of course Dungeness crab. 

New Owner, Bay Area food entrepreneur and catering company owner, Ted Wilson has executive chef Austin Perkins at the helm in the kitchen, a smart move as the former head chef of Nick's Cove and previously, cooking at two Michelin-starred Healdsburg restaurant, Cyrus, he is immersed in California coastal cuisine  & West Marin’s wealth of dairy and oyster farms and fishing communities, creating seafood-driven cuisine with local ingredients. 

For now at least, all bottles of wine are $40 each  and the craft cocktail menu is enticing. 

After rebuilding from a devastating fire in 1920, the Tell House has remained a cherished community gathering place for generations and home to countless locals' dinners, weddings, and celebrations. It was always busy on a bustling summer's weekend afternoon or when the weather was especially good, but most of the time in the off season it was a bit of a locals only sort of place, bot having a lot of curb appeal in the quiet months, for many years. It's good to see new life breathed into such an old gem and once word spreads as to the quality of the food, I expect its popularity as a destination super casual but quality dining spot will build fast. 

According to the roadhouse website, The William Tell was named by Swiss brothers Arnold and Henry Dado in 1897, and takes its name from the Swiss folk hero and marksman attributed to the foundation of the Swiss Confederacy. While the details of the bar’s origins remain somewhat hazy, the building was founded in the late 1800s as a hotel and saloon and was operated by the Dado brothers for a few years.

From 1869 to 1900, Clover Stornetta Dairy co-founder Arnold W. Dado leased the Tell House. In 1903, together with his wife, Maria, Antonio Matteri purchased and operated the location’s hotel, dining room, and saloon. In 1920, the building burned to the ground along with several other surrounding structures in The Great Tomales Fire. One year later, the Matteris rebuilt the Tell House, designing the structure that remains intact today. After Antonio’s death in 1931, Maria continued to run the business herself. The Tell House remained in the family for three generations, and was owned and operated by the couple’s daughter, Edith Bonini, and later her son, Bill Bonini Sr.

Eighty-six years after his grandparents purchased the Tell House, Bill sold the building in 1989. The building passed hands once more in 1996 and in 2011, Marcos Pareas purchased the building and business. 

I featured The William Tell House in the chapter on prohibition in my 2016 Book Fog Valley Winter, Pioneer Heritage, Backroad Rambles & Vintage Recipes: "Bottles of cheap home brew and smuggled Canadian whiskey were deftly stashed under floorboards of bars such as the historic William Tell . . ."

"As soon as the (federal) agents left, up came the floorboards and it was 'what'll you have?' all over again," according to Jack Mason in his 1970s evocative book Point Reyes, The Solemn Land in which he described the bootleg years on Point Reyes as: "rowdy and romantic."

Happy Thanksgiving from Southern Sonoma Country Life!

“Forever on Thanksgiving the heart will find the pathway home.” —

Wilbur D. Nesbit 

 

Much as we liken our turkey dinners to those first years of survival of the Mayflower pilgrims it wasn't until 1863, in the midst of the American Civil War that President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving an official national holiday. The older woman in this vintage photo surely remembered the first time her family celebrated around the table with an entire day off work. This year and last we have much to ponder and take pause with in Northern California as we slow things down and gather with our own. Times move on at a clip, a dramatic and devastating change of landscape especially changing things up, not once but multiple times in our region and yet some things do, blessedly stay the same. 

However you choose to spend your Thanksgiving, may it be with people you love and appreciate and may it fill your heart and spirit with positivity, energy and good cheer going into the end of 2018 and into a whole new year of fresh starts and possibilities. 

Wishing you a very Happy Thanksgiving. 

 

“What if today, we were just grateful for everything?” —

Charlie Brown