So in love with Sonoma.

On my last day in San Francisco I had something really fun planned!  I was going to Sonoma, California!!

I really wanted to go on a wine tour tour for 3 reasons:

1.) I love wine.

2.) I wanted to see another part of California, as this was my first time visiting.

3.) I had all day to kill and my flight wasn’t leaving  until midnight so I wanted to do something that would take up some time.

I did a good amount of research and red some good and bad things about wine tours.  At first I thought I wanted to go to Napa but then everyone said that I should go to  Sonoma instead.  Rumor has it that Sonoma is less crowded and less snooty.

I decided to book my tour through a company called Terrific Tours. Seriously, such a great experience!  My tour guide’s name was Hamilton and he was such a knowledgeable and nice guy.  He explained everything perfectly and was very attentive to our group’s needs.  Hamilton also had a cooler filled with water bottles that we were free to drink whenever we pleased.  And all of the wine tasting fees were included!  Which is an awesome perk because a lot of companies will charge you a tour fee and then make you pay for the wine tastings as well.

I met my tour group at a specific spot where we were picked up on time.  There was a young couple and a daughter and her mom on the tour.  I was a little worried that it would be two other couples but everything worked out perfectly.  And the one couple that was on the tour wound up being so nice and we hung out for most of the day.

On our way from San Francisco to Sonoma, Hamilton stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge for some pictures.  I was really thankful because I didn’t have an opportunity to check it out with all the Foodbuzz activities going on!

As we drove, Hamilton told us interesting facts about the different parts of California.  I loved  that he knew so much!

Oh, and it was seriously the most gorgeous day.  It was a little warm but with a crisp bite in the air.  I was able to not wear my coat all day.  And the sky was so clear.  I was so happy with how perfect the weather was.

Our first stop was at the Kunde Estate Winery.

When we arrived our first stop was inside this wine cave!  I was really excited to be able to see a wine cave.  As you first walked in the aroma of delicious wine just surrounded you and it was so amazing.

This was really neat.  It showed all the different layers of the ground that the grapes grow in.  And you can actually have an event in the cave!

This would have been the perfect barrel if it was made just one day later!  March 10th is my birthday 🙂

California = grapes + sunshine.

And me + California = happy.

We then headed inside for a delicious wine tasting where I bought several bottles of wine!

Next, we headed to St. Francis Winery.

This place  was beautiful on the inside.

And it was so so so beautiful on the outside.

I couldn’t get over how breathtaking the views were.

This was my awesome tour group 🙂

After taking it all in and having a few more sips we headed off to have lunch!  We went to The Sunflower Caffe, a really cute and quaint restaurant.  The food was excelletnt, well priced and they had a wide vairiety of things to chose from.

And they had a really cute dining area in the back where you could sit outside.

I had the  roasted chicken breast sandwich: rosemary and garlic marinated,  roasted chicken breast served cold with cambazola cheese,
mayonaise, Dijon mustard & mixed salad greens.

Right across the street was the Girl and the Fig, a restaurant that Hamilton said is excellent.

But we were short on time.  Guess that means I’ll just have to come back to try it 🙂

We stopped in Roessler Cellars tasting room, which was right across the street from where we had lunch.  We were only able to stay for a few samples but it was a great little pit stop!

Next, we headed to the Larson Family Winery.

It was so neat to actually see some wine being processed while we were there!

After visiting our last winery we headed to the ferry.  I was thankful that the price was included with our tour so we didn’t have to figure that one out on our own.

The sun was setting on the ride back and it was so picturesque!

It was the perfect way to spend my last day in California.  I really couldn’t have imagined it any better,  from the weather to the  delicious wine and everything that I learned.

I would recommend Terrific Tours to anyone and think that visiting Sonoma is a MUST!

I’m sure you’re all glad that my CA tales are over.  In case you missed any of it here is a recap:

2nd Annual Foodbuzz Festival

Day 1: Part 1 Part 2

Day 2: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Day 3: Part 1