Life-a learning experience: Santa Rosa, the hidden gem of Northern California

We left Southern California and headed north to Santa Rosa to spend a few days with Jon's great aunt and her husband. We arrived late in the evening and bless Aunt Jo and Uncle John, they were up and ready to welcome us into their home. It is amazing how some homes have the ability to transport me right back to my Babci and Pop-pop's house in Rhode Island just by their smell...and this house had that power. After receiving a quick tour so we could get our bearings, we said goodnight to our hosts and made ourselves comfortable.

We set out the next day to enjoy some of the local wineries and take in the views of the countryside. Uncle Jon was our designated driver for the day, arranging for us to visit the Kendall-Jackson and Korbell wineries. The wonderful thing about touring a winery is that tasting is always encouraged, regardless of the time of day. Visiting a winery is the ONE valid pass you get to have a drink before noon.

I do not think I will ever have a refined enough palette to understand the nuisances of wine, I do however have enough common sense to write down the name of a wine when I like it. We found some keepers at Kendall-Jackson.

While Jon and I were familiar with Korbell champagne, but we knew nothing about their wines that are only offered at the winery. So we decided to forgo the champagne tasting options and focused on trying the wines. Big mistake, there is a reason the wine is only offered at the winery and not mass marketed like their champagne...but hey, here's to trying to new things. Korbell offered a fantastic tour and we walked away with a better understanding of the Korbell family history and champagne itself.

After a quick stop at the Armstrong national park to see Colonel Armstong, the largest redwood on sight, we made our way home to meet up with Aunt Jo and Uncle Jon's crew for dinner. After all the activity from the day, our hosts called it an early night and Jon and I set out for a walk. Armed with the flashlight application on his iPhone, Jon navigated us trough the dark streets and we even explored a newly paved but not yet opened road that butted up against the property. We arrived back from our walk and savored some of Aunt Jo's home made grape juice. She could make a killing selling this stuff, hands down the BEST grape juice I have ever had.

By the next morning we were ready to go out and explore some of the local recommendations given to us by Ryan from Witch Creek Winery in Carlsbad. As we were finishing up breakfast, Aunt Jo mentioned how a mountain lion had recently attacked and killed one of the farm animals next door. Good thing that sucker was not out when we had our walk the night before, since there is no application for "save your ass from a mountain lion" on Jon's iPhone.

We made our way to Joe Matos Dairy farm to sample the one-of-a-kind Saint George cheese. Ryan had told us this stuff sells upward of $30/pound, but we could get it for $7/pound if we visited the farm. So visit we did.

As Jon maneuvered his car down the puddle ridden dirt road we both thought ...this cheese better be worth it. Joe himself, fresh off a tractor, welcomed us to his farm. We told him we were there to taste the cheese and he called out for his wife to open the shop. Joe and his wife are Portuguese and she speaks little English. We entered the shop, she cut a few slices for us to sample, we tasted and then she asked "how much?" Trust me, she was not being presumptuous...you simply DO NOT taste this cheese and even consider not buying some. The only question you have to ask yourself is, "how much should I get?".

Our next stop was the Wildflower Bakery where Ryan promised us we would have a cinnamon bun that would change our life. Unfortunately for us, our lives would remain the same that day...the bakery was closed. The place looked adorable though, so here's to trying it on the next trip to Northern California.

Our original plan had been to grab a bite to eat and head back to Armstrong park for a run. We thought we could combine some exercise with further exploration of the trails. Although we had not really thought of a breakfast Plan B in advance....we did have some awesome cheese and some not so awesome Alien Jerky in the car...the perfect combination for a road-trip worthy breakfast.

We spent the afternoon exploring the Charles Schultz ice rink and museum, Sonoma lake and the Ferrari Winery. We left Santa Rosa December 7 to make our way to San Francisco. We said goodbye to the breathtaking country side and our wonderful hosts Aunt Jo and Uncle John.

At the Kendall-Jackson Winery.