For the fourth consecutive year, the month of September in California will be dedicated to wine, with Sonoma Valley front and center, celebrating the grape harvest with the 2008 Vintage Festival, which takes place Sept. 27 through 29. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared September 2008... Continue
In my last column, I reflected on the outstanding 2007 growing season and some of the other great wine vintages during my 35 years of winemaking. California has a generous climate, and we have our fair share of great winegrowing years. However, all of us... Continue
A reclusive Sonoma Valley doyenne has been resuscitated and will celebrate her 150th birthday with a coming-out party in August. The venerable Hood House, an 8,100-square-foot brick mansion near Oakmont, has been shuttered more than 30 years while county officials pondered its future. With an... Continue
Local residents can now buy passes to the 2009 Sonoma Valley Film Festival at a 50 percent discount. Regular passes to the April 1-5 event cost $250, but the first 250 people who request these passes will pay only $125, which also includes a basic... Continue
The marathon map for the Wine Country Half Marathon. Photo Submitted. Over 2,700 runners are registered for the fifth running of the Napa-to-Sonoma Wine Country Half Marathon on Sunday, July 20. The event has become one of the more popular destination running races in the... Continue
Marisela Rodriguez and Ana Jauregui grew up in Sonoma, and along with their sister and three brothers, they spent special occasions at La Casa restaurant with their family. As of April, the two sisters are once again together at La Casa – this time as... Continue
Physical trainer Julius Rivera, works with a patient on strength training for sports injuries. Photo by Caroline Hall. A jogger running along the bike path through the Sebastiani Vineyards. Photo by Caroline Hall. Summer is the time for fun – and between swimming, biking, hiking,... Continue
David Ogaz David Ogaz died peacefully, surrounded by family and friends, at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital on June 23, 2008. He was born on June 1, 1951 in Albuquerque, N.M. He lived in Sonoma since 1960. He attended St. Francis Solano School, Sonoma Valley High... Continue
Appreciates good Samaritan Editor: Riding my bike up Lovall Valley Road on Monday, July 7, my chain dropped and the derailleur flipped into the spokes. Yikes! I wasn’t able to fix it on the road, so I wound up carrying the bike over my shoulders... Continue
What better sign of the end of the world than fire? We saw burning skies in Francis Ford Coppola’s famous movie, and we read about them in the Revelation of John in the Bible. We couldn’t help but think of those references these past few... Continue