Romantic Getaway Guide to Sonoma

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Wildwood Farm, located next to Kenwood Inn and Spa on the Sonoma Highway, is a garden and nursery specializing in maples, dogwood, and other ornamental trees and shrubs. It's also a sculpture garden and outdoor gallery, featuring works by West Coast artists designed to be displayed outdoors. There are gigantic cast iron sculptures, stone carvings, ornamental birdbaths, and ceramics. Stop by to make a purchase for your garden, or just to take a stroll through the gorgeous grounds.

Gardeners all over the west know Wildwood Farm, which specializes in exotic varieties of decorative trees and rare plants. Proud of their selection of more than 300 different Japanese maples and 40 types of dogwood, Wildwood Farms has also expanded their stock to include Gingko biloba trees and other hard-to-find trees and shrubs. But that's only one reason to visit. Owners Sara and Ricardo Monte and their son, landscape gardener Joe Monte, also display an en eclectic and adventurous selection of sculpture and garden art by artists of both local and national renown. Stroll among gigantic abstract cast iron structures and insects, or sit and contemplate elegant stone carvings and ceramic sculptures. New in... read more

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Under a Tuscan Sun: Best Italian vacation to be had without getting on a plane

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Located in the Valley of the Moon in California's Sonoma County, the Kenwood Inn and Spa is designed in the spirit of a Mediterranean Villa. Each of the Inn's 29 guestrooms are appointed with fireplaces, featherbeds, Italian linens and luxurious robes. The intimate hideaway offers a dining room and wine bar exclusively for Inn guests, spa featuring ARCONA products and vinotherapy, two heated pools, sunning terraces, a steam room and hot tub. Wake up each morning with a complimentary signature breakfast that includes a daily feature like eggs over grilled farm bread with asparagus and tomato basil cream sauce.

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On the ground level of Sonoma Hotel, The Girl and the Fig offers eclectic French cuisine. The decor is casual and laid back and can get loud when the crowd streams in. Braised pork loin, steak tartare, duck confit, croque monsieur, pan seared duck, salami and brie sandwich, niman ranch jambon, salmon nicoise and homemade fig cake are some of the menu listings. Moreover, the bar has a great selection of French wines and cocktails. Reservations are the way to go.

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Best house-made mustard to accompany wines

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Once a kiln used for roasting locally grown hops, the aptly named Hop Kiln winery makes a great stop for tasting specialty wines, learning a bit of local history, and takig some snaps in a spectacular setting. Located on Westside road at the south end of Dry Creek valley, Hop Kiln is equidistant from Healdsburg and from the Russian River valley, and should be included in either itinerary. A gorgeous example of local stonemasonry, the historic hop kiln itself dates back to 1905 and is surrounded by vintage gardens and orchards of gnarled fig trees, roses, and other heirloom plantings. The duck pond is a favorite of kids, who will want to throw bread crumbs to the quacking resident ducks. Picnics a must.

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Hidden behind a small retail storefront selling wine-related gifts, Prohibition is accessed through a "secret" entrance accessed through an antique telephone booth. Once inside, you find yourself in a mid-century moderne-style wine bar where small tables made from burnished cask lids are enclosed behind silky draperies and local wines are on "tap" at the sleek semi-circular bar.

Among the artisanal beers on tap are Prohibition Ale, Speakeasy Ales and Lagers, White Lighting, and other small-batch brews. House-designed cocktails are cutely named after iconic pre-War stars and characters; I don't know if the hipsters who will flock to this joint will order a drink called "Bubbles LaRue," but only time will tell.

With the full name of Prohibition: A Speakeasy Wine Club, it doubles as a wine club; members will receive two bottles of award-winning local wine every two months, or six bottles every six months, depending on the arrangement. Sure to be a popular stop on wine country getaways, Prohibition seems destined to be a locals' hangout as well.

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A founding member of Fork & Shovel, an alliance of chefs and local farmers, BarnDiva is the ultimate farm-to-table dining experience. The staff proudly explains that scraps from the kitchen feed the chickens, which in turn produce the eggs used in tonight's meal. The used cooking oil is recycled to run the farm's tractors. But none of this is done in hippie fashion; everything looks polish, artistic, upscale. Owners Jil, Geoffrey and Lukka Feldman have backgrounds in architecture, design and photography as well as food and hospitality, so the whole enterprise feels sophisticated and cultivated.

While chef Ryan Fancher is a "name" thanks to his three-year stint at The French Laundry and role in opening New York's Per Se, Barndiva doesn't stand on ceremony. The bar is warm and friendly, the back patio an almost perfect copy of a Provencal garden cafe. The rustic yet elegant interior feels like a country barn cross-pollinated with a downtown loft. The list of local purveyors on the menu is as long or longer than the list of available dishes; local cheeses, figs, olive oil, heirloom vegetables, and local seafood, free-range chicken, and grass-fed beef are the centerpieces of every... read more

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Zichichi Family Vineyard and Winery was founded in 2000. It is run by Steve and Kristin Zichichi, who decided to open their own winery after years of selling their grapes to other local wine producers. Taste the Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Syrah, and jammy Zinfandel right at the redwood bar in their tasting room. If you're lucky, you may even get to go in back for a barrel tasting!

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Would you like to sip your wine from a crystal glass, expound your opinion on it and keep the glass as a souvenir? Too good to be true? Not at the Dry Creek Vineyard, which offers all this at a reasonable price. If you are a member, you can enjoy it for free. Designated one of the "Top 10 Wineries in the U.S.", the winery owns beautiful picnic grounds, where you can enjoy a nice lunch-or take in the sights and aromas while munching on the Dry Creek General Store's hefty sandwiches. White wines abound here, and you will also find a decent selection of recipes on their site, paired with their many spirits.

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A. Rafanelli Winery is located on the Dry Creek Valley overlooking the hillside vineyards. This is a small family owned business, which has been growing grapes and making wine for four generations. Furthermore, it uses the traditional wine making processes, such as open top fermentation and non-filtration. Some of the specialties include Zinfandel, Cabernet, Sauvignon and Merlot. The wines are not available at retail stores and can be bought only at this winery, so if you visiting Sonoma, don't miss out on these high quality blends. Wine tasting is available by appointment only.

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Best Sonoma-savvy wine pairings courtesy of Sonoma's most sincere and enthusiastic Sommelier

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You don't have to trust Zagat and Michelin to tell you that Applewood is one of Sonoma County's top dining destinations -- though in fact both rate this wine country find highly. Rather, ask SF Bay Area residents where they dine when they want a romantic gourmet dinner in the Russian River valley, and Applewood will be one of the first names mentioned.

Despite this restaurant's long and respected history, it feels fresh and new thanks to the arrival two years ago of chef Bruce Frieseke, a Sonoma boy made good who worked in Paris and San Francisco before returning to his Russian River roots. An even newer arrival is young sommelier Christopher John, whose enthusiasm for the local appellations he's just discovering is palpable and fun to share.

Applewood's menu of beloved Tuscan farmhouse favorites maintains its classic selection, but many dishes have been refreshed to better highlight local ingredients. The overall impression is one of lightening - a salad of tender butter lettuce and Laura Chenel chevre felt farmer's market fresh, and there are more seafood selections to balance the beef, pork, and lamb choices. It's hard to single out any one item from the stellar menu, but the... read more

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Best seafood and sunset dining on the Sonoma coast

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Everything about River's End is an unexpected delight, from the friendly, unpretentious atmosphere to the thoughtfully organized menu listing one joyfully inventive dish after another.

Named for its breathtakingly romantic location, River's End overlooks the mouth of the Russian River where the placid waters mix with the crashing waves of the Pacific. Repeat guests know to time dinnertime reservations for the sunset hour, and to come early for handcrafted cocktails or "bubbles and oysters," to be savored while toasting the fiery sky from the riverside deck.

This isn't one of those seaside restaurants where the view trumps the food, however; everything we ate was mysteriously delicious enough to have us dissecting the details of dishes from first to last bite. We ate every crispy leaf of the kicking ahi salad, with its zingy Mandarin orange vinaigrette, and had to take multiple photos of the technicolor beet salad, a rainbow tower of farm-fresh beets layered with mascarpone and goat cheeses. The eclectic entrees feature pan-seared duck and roasted elk in addition to more standard fare, but the star of the show is the Dungeness crab tasting menu, which showcases the day's catch in... read more

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Best way to beat stress and get your mojo back

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Like a magical trip to ancient Kyoto, a visit to Osmosis day spa and sanctuary feels like an escape to another time and place. Oddly located in the tiny town of Freestone, west of Sebastopol, this holistic therapy spa is less about pampering and more like giving yourself the gift of a health-boosting treatment. Despite the name, an "enzyme bath" is more akin to a ritual sauna than a soak. Used by Japanese practitioners as a detoxification procedure, an enzyme bath involves immersing your body into a hot bed of fermenting cedar chips, which raises your internal core temperature and allows your body to sweat out toxins. Osmosis founder Michael Stusser is a serious believer in the importance of alternative healing, and hires only the best massage therapists available. So take advantage of the deep relaxation you'll feel after your bath and indulge in a massage as well, and you'll leave feeling restored, relaxed, and energized beyond what you thought possible.

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Heartiest country breakfast at a luxury retreat

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The only AAA 4-Diamond, Mobil 4-Star Inn north of San Francisco. This Elegant Victorian Inn is the best kept secret of the Sonoma Wine Country. An ultimate experience for those who expect nothing less...a secluded place perfect for rejuvenating mind and body...just one hour north of the Golden Gate surrounded by countryside and redwoods of unsurpassed beauty-near the Sonoma coast. Furnished with original art and antiques. Local wineries, enzyme baths and massage, golf, tennis, kayaking, hiking, biking, horsebacking.

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