Healdsburg - April 2013

Shawna had to attend a class in Healdsburg for work and so Keith joined her for a quick weekend get-a-way. 

Accommodation:

Hilton Garden Inn - Sonoma County Airport - Shawna stayed here for her class so we made it easy and stayed here for the weekend as well. It is what you would expect of a Hilton Garden Inn. 

Activities:

Keith arrived on Friday night around 7:30 pm. Shawna was just ending her 'graduation' dinner with her class so Keith killed some time by grabbing a quick bite at a restaurant right next to the hotel. When Shawna joined him, he was just finishing up and then we went to Healdsburg for a drink.  We were both really tired so we only had one drink before we went back to the hotel and crashed for the night. 

On Saturday, we grabbed a light breakfast at the hotel and then worked out. We then went to the Oakville Grocery in Healdsburg to buy bread and cheese for a picnic lunch. We spent the rest of the afternoon wine tasting, sticking to wineries along the Dry Creek Road. When we returned to the hotel, we took a long nap and then went out for dinner. 

We left early on Sunday as our flight left at 11am out of Oakland. We stopped along the way to see the progress on the Aimco apartment property that is being renovated in Corte Madera. 

Restaurants and Wineries:

Mi Burrito - Keith had a burrito here for dinner while waiting on Shawna to return to the hotel from her class.  Nothing special but convenient.

Healdsburg Bar and Grill - We had a glass of wine on Friday night.

Oakville Grocery - We bought bread and cheese for our picnic launch - awesome deli.

Dutcher Crossing - Our first winery that we visited and definitely the best.  They have a nice picnic area so we ate our lunch here.  We liked the chardonnay and zin. The guy pouring was funny and personable.

Dutcher Crossing Winery

Yoakim Bridge Winery - A very small winery that has a decent zin and cab.  The owners grow and make their own wine. The woman who poured our tasting reminded us of a combination of Jackie and Maryann (both friends of Keith's family).

Yoakim Bridge Winery

Truett Hurst - The building is shaped like a barn and is nice inside.  There is also a nice picnic area.  There was live music playing inside which made it hard to hear; although the guy pouring our wine was not very personable anyway.  Wine was not great.

Truett Hurst Winery

Mauritson Winery - The tasting room was interesting but the wines were not.  And the woman pouring was way too serious for us.

Wilson Winery - The worst winery we went to - tasting room was not great and the wines were even worse.

Barndiva - Went to dinner her on Saturday night.  Awesome decor and atmosphere.  Food was good also.  We started with the scallops and shaved apple salad and then shared the bacon wrapped pork tenderloin.