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Today we headed over to the town of Guerneville, to Johnson’s Beach along the Russian River in Sonoma County for the 34th Annual Russian River Jazz & Blues Festival.

We’d never been to Guerneville nor are we rabid jazz fans (with the exception of Dave Brubeck and those other classic jazz types), but Tom won the tickets so we thought why the heck not check it out.

It turned out to be quite the serendipitous adventure.

Be prepared to park in town (there is no dedicated parking lot) and to walk in to the beach. The spot we found was about 1/2 mile away. And though we didn’t do much exploring in town, it’s cute and we’ll visit again to check it out more.

The river was beautiful. The festival was great—on the small side and mellow—but even better was the opportunity to expose Samantha to the experience of live music and to all the different types of people.

We had excellent “seats”–second row, center. But even the general admission seats looked fun. The word seats up there is in quotes as all seats are those low-back chairs. Ours, being gold-level & all, were supplied by the event company–but sure were rickety. Better than hauling our own though. But if you’re particular about your seats, I’d recommend hauling yours.

But wherever you sit, be prepared to be on gravel. We didn’t bring our picnic blanket and wished we had. I’d also recommend a small personal umbrella or such as all seating is in the full sun.

Blissfully, the river is but 15 steps away from all seats so it was easy to quickly cool off. Plus, Samantha was able to practice her newly-acquired swimming skills.

We brought our simple lunch of sandwiches and deli salads, but there were plenty of interesting food stands–including Indian, BBQ, and more. One vendor even had fried gator (which I swear I will try next time I get such an opportunity).

Alongside the food stands were several merchants offering a vibrant selection of textiles and other hand-made goods.

Bring cash.

We didn’t see a whole mess of other kids, but there were a few (all of whom were kiddo’s age or older). We felt no resistance though–no tight smiles, subtle shrugs, or muffled groans of “oh, there’s a kid.” As I mentioned earlier, the vibe was quite mellow, very easy-going. That said, we only smelled pot but once (and though we couldn’t see the source, it was coming from the canoes on the river. Or, perhaps, the band members back stage).

And we overheard less than a handful of curse words. And I think all of those were “damn!” & in response to a particular fervent guitar or drum solo. Fewer (and nicer) than our typical housecleaningyardwork days at home…

If you’re local, think about going next year. If you’re planning a visit to Wine Country and it falls during this time next year, think about going.

Who: Families with kids ~5 or older

What: A small, mellow live music festival–on a gravelly beach

Where: On the Russian River in the town of Guerneville, just off Hwy 101 in northern Sonoma County

When: Annually in mid-September

Why: To relax, listen to live music, swim in the river

Even though it’s just a few minutes from our home, we hadn’t visited Sequoia Grove Winery in years; in fact, it’s been since before Samantha was born.

I suppose we didn’t think it was family-friendly.

But then, in using our favorite winery finder tool, I found that Sequoia Grove fits both of our two main criteria:

1) Family-friendly
2) Picnic area

After tasting through a few wines, we decided on a nice rosé. A perfect pairing with our picnic fare, the wine offers pretty strawberry & raspberry notes and a nice balance.

We settled into a bistro table on the shaded patio and tucked into our charcuterie, cheeses and breads.

Samantha ran around the expansive grassy area, and made some new friends.

Who: All ages, though of course you’ll need to watch those toddlers closely

What: A low-key wine tasting experience in a casual atmosphere (but as the winery is right on Highway 29, I bet it can get quite busy)

Where: 8338 St. Helena Highway (that’s Higway 29)–their website says they are in Napa, but I’d swear it’s more like Rutherford or Oakville

When: Non-peak Highway 29 tourist times, so weekdays in spring or fall, would be best

Why: Nice wines, unimposing tasting room, pretty grounds and convenient location

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The most interesting change since Update #4 is the grow of the grape clusters in the second photo below. The leaf canopy hasn’t seemed to have grown much, with the exception of filling out some.

So do you like that this year I’ve been featuring the same vineyard in each update?
Or would you like to see more on other vineyards?

Looking Towards Nickel & Nickel Winery

Grape Clusters Thirteen Weeks Post Bud Break

Looking Towards Robert Mondavi Winery

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Below you can see the amazing growth in the month’s time since Update #3.

In fact, the vines have grown so that you can longer even see Robert Mondavi Winery in the background of the last photo.

Looking Towards Nickel & Nickel Winery

Grape Clusters Ten Weeks Post-Bud Break

Looking Towards Robert Mondavi Winery

Last year, a friend of ours started this little thing called Cheers! St Helena.

He calls it a “Friendship Celebration” and a “Main Street Toast to Friends & Wine.” I can’t even imagine all the work he’s put into it, and all of the hoops he’s had to jump through.

See, our little wine country town is very, well, careful. And I am glad it is so.

And Cheers! St Helena, what with the 100+ fabulous wineries pouring their wine in all the wonderful establishments downtown, the live music, the street closures, the street performers, the face-painting, the sidewalk food vendors–and, of course, the Wine Train actually (gasp!) letting off passengers–is rather revolutionary. In a good way. In the best way.

Did I mention you get to walk around town sipping fabulous wines from premier Napa Valley wineries (out of another friend’s govino glasses no less)?

But more importantly you get to really, truly experience our town.

I’d never been in most of our shops and boutiques until Cheers! St Helena. And I most certainly didn’t spend much money in these shops; I always thought we were priced out. But, I’ve found that the prices aren’t really all that much more than elsewhere. Plus, it makes me happy to be spending money–even if it is more–locally and supporting our community.

By the way, Tom bought me the most beautiful locket at Daisy.

These shots were taken in the same vineyard as Update #2.

It’s amazing how much growth has occurred in three weeks time.

Nickel & Nickel Winery in Background

Grape Clusters Six Weeks Post-Bud Break

Robert Mondavi Winery in Background

The scene: A cave tour at a local winery

Samantha: “Oh no! He doesn’t look very happy!”

Tom and me, simultaneously: “Actually, kiddo, he is REALLY happy…”

Honig is a small, family-owned winery and was one of the first tasting rooms Tom & I visited when we moved to the Napa Valley five years ago.

That was, of course, pre-kiddo. And while we had a wonderful visit then and have been long-time fans of their wines, we hadn’t thought of the winery as being kid-friendly.

That is, until we saw them listed on our go-to winery finder tool on the Napa Valley Vintners website.

So while we were out & about this past weekend, we gave them a quick call (tastings are by appointment only, so be sure to call ahead), and to our delight, got in that afternoon.

Recently, I wrote about this time of year as being ideal to visit because the tasting rooms tend to not be busy. And indeed, we were the only ones there for most of our visit.

Our tasting took place seated at a long table in an open, comfortable room. As our host poured the first of the wines–their popular Sauvignon Blanc (which we purchased and enjoyed that evening), she asked if Samantha would like to check out the toy cabinet.

And boy, was she excited.

We spent the remainder of the tasting–a second Sauvignon Blanc, two Cabernet Sauvignons and Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc–with kiddo happily occupied.

And when she did grow bored, she headed out to the expansive patio (easily viewable from the tasting room) and explored.

I am a fan of rosé. Not the sweet stuff, but rather a nice, dry rosé.

Good rosés are lovely and versatile; gorgeous to look at and easy to pair with a wide variety of foods.

For me, rosés are also quintessential summertime. And while, yes, this summer is about done–though it was 75 degrees in Napa Valley today–I still am very much enjoying the rosé Tom brought home this evening, a 2007 Domaine Sorin C­otes de Provence.

It is characteristic of the style I’ve been leaning towards recently–a pale light pink, simple while plenty interesting with qualities of strawberry and rose petal (as opposed to the style of rosé which is deep fuschia in color and more reminiscent of cherry and raspberry).

Plus, it was only $10.99 at the always-awesome-albeit-pricey Sunshine Foods here in Saint Helena.

Plus, the packaging is very nice–with even a wax (wax! at $10.99!) closure. We did double-check our receipt to make sure Tom didn’t inadvertently grab the wrong bottle.

All in all, an excellent wine at an excellent price. Cheers!