Every Saturday during the summer, Landmark will be offering free Horse-Drawn Wagon Vineyard Tours from 1 pm – 4 pm. There will also be music in the courtyard every Saturday from 1 pm- 4 pm.  So pack a picnic and some bocce balls for a sunny Saturday afternoon.  Here is the schedule of musicians:

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If you haven’t made your Mother’s Day plans yet, this mom says DO IT. You don’t have to break the bank to pull off a lovely day. A macaroni necklace and a drawing that says “I love my mom” ranks up there with diamonds and fine art. Here’s a list of Mother’s Day events at wineries, followed by some other Sonoma County Mother’s Day deals: [Read more →]

Landmark Winery offers  live music by the Jon Popenoe Blues Revue this Saturday. If the weather is nice bring a picnic for the lawn and play a game a bocce ball after the music. Kids welcome. [Read more →]

OK, I know this sounds like a misdemeanor, but anyone with kids in Sonoma County that has out of town friends or relatives has gone wine tasting with kids in tow. And it’s not bad. Many Sonoma wineries are great for picnicking, and many offer something kid friendly, even if it’s just a cork for a teething baby to chew on.

Here are a few tips for a kid and adult pleasing wine tasting tour:

• Bring food, a bottle of water or juice, a blanket or two, diapers and diaper wipes (enough diaper wipes that the kids can share with the adults), band-aids, a Shout stain stick (that’s for the adults), and everything that you could possibly need on an all day jaunt with kids. Don’t skimp: you have a car, and with kids even wine-tasting is an full-out expedition.
• Bring a designated driver. Really. Those sips add up. Pregnant women make great, if resentful, designated drivers.
• Unless you’re paying the designated driver, don’t make them watch the kids all the time. Take turns staying outside with the kids, initiating games, changing diapers, etc.
• Large, low tables full of olive oil and vinegar are dangerous. Avoid these at all costs. Those bottles can go down like dominoes. If you hear a glassy “clink” followed by a soft “uh-oh”, dive with your arms fully outspread for the nearest display table. If vinegar breaks, mop it up, volunteer to buy it, and be appropriately grateful if you are told that the sympathetic, kid-free wine tasters have already taken up a collection to pay for the broken (and pungent) vinegar disaster. Trust me on this.
• Chose wineries that offer something to occupy kids—even if it’s just a broad lawn to run on. To help with that, here are some  kid friendly Sonoma County wineries, organized by town to make planning your wine tasting tour a little easier:

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I’m a cheap date…a glass of red wine, a little bite to eat, and great view and I’m happy. And with all the wineries that are celebrating Valentines’ Day in one way or another, there  are plenty of wine/view combos to get my romantic heart racing. But I lean towards the quirky as well, so I must admit Bella Vineyards $10 “Zin City” fete sounds like a winner. Mini-chocolate cupcakes, tastes of 5 different wines, barrel samples, and—wait for it—a singing Elvis who will perform faux wedding ceremonies in the candlelit Bella Wine caves. But if Elvis scares you (and you know who you are) there are lots of other fun-sounding winery celebrations going on. Here’s a list: [Read more →]

This isn’t especially cheap, but it’s not bad, and kind of romantic for a date night (a delayed Valentines Day celebration, perhaps?)  You get a glass of wine in the tasting room and a movie in the aging caves for $20 per person. Wear a sweater. [Read more →]

Call me a romantic, but there’s is something about a roaring fireplace on a rainy day…add in a splash of wine, and you’re not enduring a rainy day, you’re celebrating it.  Here are a few wineries with fireplaces:

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Landmark Winery offers  live music by Michele Saga  this Saturday. If the weather is wet, enjoy a glass of wine and music by the fireplace. If the weather is nice bring a picnic for the lawn and play a game a bocce ball after the music. Kids welcome. [Read more →]

Landmark Winery offers  live music by Jason Bodlovich  this Saturday. If the weather is wet, enjoy a glass of wine and guitarist and composer Bodlovich’s music by the fireplace; if the weather is nice bring a picnic for the lawn and play a game a bocce ball after the music. Kids welcome. [Read more →]

Tree lightings, Santa sightings, lights, carols, crafts fairs…it’s that time of year again in Sonoma County.

If you’re in Sebastopol, Santa Rosa, Sonoma, Windsor, Healdsburg, Cloverdale, Rohnert Park, Cotati, Petaluma, Bodega, Occidental, Guerneville, Kenwood, Glen Ellen, Forestville,  Monte Rio, or Geyserville, odds are good there are some sort of holiday festivities nearby.And even the Grinchiest can’t complain when the celebration is free or nearly free.

The events start about now (I know, I know, I think they should wait until the Thanksgiving leftovers are running low, too) and run through Christmas.

I’ve started a list by date of all the free or cheap Sonoma County Holiday Events (you’ll find it to your left, click on Holiday Events 2009). It will be updated continually, so check back frequently. And if you know of anything I’ve missed, email me: lisa ( at ) sonomaonthecheap.com