Devour Summer! Blog July 1, 2010 by TR
The vernal equinox/ solstice has come and gone and summer has arrived here with a full-on sunny vengeance. After all that previous extended and tedious rain and cold, with no prelude or foreshadowing, summer suddenly is just purely and simply HERE. The Russian River stopped rising and raging and started meandering- the Summer Dam is almost in at Memorial Beach and rental canoes and kayaks are once again floating downriver dodging the flotilla of jolly and sometimes raucous (ahem) rafters and tubers. Outdoor music and movies are again on the Wine Road Event Calendar along with winery outdoor cooking celebrations. Vegetation is starting to become lush- the vines are leafy, bright green and vibrant as the burgeoning grapes head towards the incipient and inevitable harvest. Farmers’ Markets abound- like local favorite Healdsburg’s own which takes place on Saturday mornings and Tuesday evenings pairing up with the popular Healdsburg Free Concert Series on the Plaza. Windsor and Geyserville Markets follow suit with their seasonal market places. Ample opportunity for healthy eating and the capturing of small- town America abound.
All this local 
produce means that once again it is time to pair this Sonoma County bounty (a rhyme too tempting for me to resist- sorry) with our Wine Road member wines while resting at one of our Wine Road lodgings and enjoying all the fun restaurants, events and local More Fun Stuff that go on in July. Or, if you live here, just be sure that you get out and about to enjoy it- remember, summer will soon be just a memory- it seems to be the most ephemeral of the seasons even though it weighs in at regular weight.
I have a little cardboard sign on my desk that I got at the Taste of Sonoma Event at Fred MacMurray’s ranch two years ago- someone had discarded it and I grabbed it because it made me smile- it says: I DRINK LIKE A LOCAL. So add to that eating like a local. Summer–time eating makes you a true LOCAVORE—and probably a bit of a SLOW FOODIE PERSON. Locavore- a word recently and somewhat amusingly coined by joining “local”, meaning “close proximity”, with a contraction of “carnivore” which technically means “meat eater” but in this case refers back to the roots of that word that harken back to “devour” or “voracious” as in “consume with pleasure”. Pair that with drinking Wine Road wines, truly a local endeavor and practice. Mix with being a Slow Food Movement Person- quite an admirable aspiration for summer and think how marvelous we will all look this July devouring locally with pleasure:
Slow Food is a non-profit, eco-gastronomic member-supported organization that was founded in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world. To do that, Slow Food brings together pleasure and responsibility, and makes them inseparable.
Today, they have over 100,000 members in 132 countries.
Day is the traditional launch of the summer season that will end when Labor Day rolls around in September. Standing here, on the first day of June, it seems like the long, languid, lazy days of summer will last forever- but I know from experience that this summer will all too soon be a hazy memory. The weather has not been at all cooperative, with lots of rain last week including thunder and lightning last Friday with downed trees and a high, cold, murky Russian River right up until the weekend. But today, as we are all back at work, the sky is a glorious blue, the temperature warm and the daylight soft and luminous.
caves, tours- and all sorts of other cool stuff. We have videos up on our site as do many of our members- just click over to their web pages to see them and even before you arrive here you will be ready to roll. Don’t forget your Ticket to the Wine Road- the one or three day pass with over 60 participating wineries and 14 lodgings with special offers. I will help you plan around our big three annual events-I can assist with your special events- surprising your sweetheart/spouse with a getaway, a proposal at a winery, a birthday celebration, an anniversary dinner, a wedding, canoeing, ballooning, picnicking- well you get the idea. On our 
ning assistance, there is always I- call or email me and I will assist- your very own Wine Road concierge. I came to Healdsburg in 1982 to inn keep the Grape Leaf Inn and started working with Wine Road way back then- and even with all these years of working along and with Wine Road, I learn new things all the time. For example I never knew that HOLIDAY INN (1942) was filmed on location here with Astaire and Crosby in Monte Rio and at the circa 1906 Village Inn and Resort. (WHITE CHRISTMAS is the sequel to HOLIDAY INN- sure you are dying to point that out.) We are a vacation wonderland- memories will linger! I have been awarded a new title: Member & Guest Concierge and will work with our members and our guests to map out your best experience along the fabulous, magical Wine Road!