Under proposed changes, only Clos de la Tech would qualify as a "scenic winery" and get to boost its production. Neighbors and environmentalists are fermenting.

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Vinegar Red Wine Aged 5l

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For many years the Mountain Winery has hosted a summer season of shows at the small venue perched atop the hills in Saratoga with a fabulous view of Santa Clara Valley.

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When many people visit California to tour wineries, they head for Napa Valley on the weekend and sit in traffic jams for hours on route 29. Realizing that everyone in the slowly moving train may not be totally sober, the visitors think about how much they would like to be someplace else. A little known fact is that there are back roads into virtually every wine region in California that offer stunning vistas, gorgeous greenery and constantly changing scenes around every curve.

Backroads of the California Wine Country is a great resource for those inexperienced visitors. Otherwise, these well-meaning travelers will miss the best of what the wine country has to offer: Scintillating scenery!

The photographs do a great job of picking up on the amazing sights. Here are a few of my favorites:

p. 6 -- The moon rises over vineyards in Napa County's Carneros region

p. 11 -- A dramatic sunset over Napa Valley wine country

p. 13 -- Cirrus clouds float above the hills of the Redwood Valley of Mendocino County

pp. 18-19 -- The early morning sky glows orange in the hills above Ukiah

p. 22 -- Orr Springs Road twists and turns through some of the most pristine and dramatic landscapes in wine country

p. 30 -- This lovely tree-lined drive leads to Fetzer Vineyards, a wholly organic winery and the sixth-largest premium wine producer in the country

p. 31 -- The warm valleys around Hopland offer an ideal climate for growing grapes as well as apples and pears

p. 34 -- Mount Konocti, illuminated by the setting sun, looms large above this Lake County vineyard

p. 35 -- Peaceful at sunrise, Clear Lake State Park

p. 35 -- The vibrant flower gardens of Tulip Hill Winery

p. 38 -- A distant moon sets beyond a winter vineyard in the Valley of the Moon

pp. 42-43 -- Vineyards stretch across the Alexander Valley in northern Sonoma County

p. 47 -- Downtown Geyserville is lined with charming buildings

p. 83 -- A rainbow forms

p. 90 -- Hot air ballooning

p. 94 -- Winery at Groth Vineyards

p. 99 -- Grape vines and mustard plants

Nice work, Mr. Crabbe!

The text is equally inspired with a nice mix of California history, wine background, local features, and suggestions for activities you can enjoy. The text is also well endowed with maps to show you the directions of the backroads that you are being encouraged to pursue.

Here are some of the unexpected materials:

p. 24 -- Seabiscuit's home in Willits

p. 36 -- Organic farming methods

p. 45 -- Cyrus Alexander's founding of the Alexander Valley

p. 61 -- Jack London in the Sonoma Valley

p. 89 -- The soil of Rutherford

p. 108 -- Apple Hill, east of Placerville

p. 117 -- The Gold Rush

p. 125 -- Covered bridges

p. 133 -- Steinbeck's world

Here are the areas covered:

The Redwood Valley in Mendocino County
Anderson Valley
Hopland and the McDowell Valley
Lake County
Alexander Valley
Dry Creek Valley
The Russian River Valley
Green Valley
Valley of the Moon
Sonoma Valley
Northern Napa Valley
St. Helena
Eastern Napa Valley
Yountville
Oakville
Mount Veeder
Town of Napa
Wooden Valley
Los Carneros
El Dorado County
Shenandoah Valley
Calaveras County
Santa Cruz Mountains
Carmel Valley
Salinas Valley
San Juan Bautista
Paso Robles
Edna Valley
Santa Barbara County
Santa Ynez Valley

Nice work, Ms. Misuraca!

Don't miss this gorgeous volume. It'll transform your life if you follow its advice.

Customer Review: Excellent Value

I lived in the Bay Area for several years and to be honest, the Wine Country is not really my cup of tea. However, the images in this book by Gary Crabbe are amazing and makes me feel as if I were there and enjoying myself. It takes a truly dedicated photographer to make such a wonderful collection of images of Wine Country. Many photographers have published photos of the Wine Country but these are some of the best photos I've seen from there.

The text by Karen Misuraca is well-written as well. It's informative going over a touch of history without over doing it and takes you on a literary road trip through the heart of the Wine Country. The photos and text compliment each other well and the book has a fair amount of both. In 160 pages, it's packed with meat as it works both as a photo book and travel guide.

If you'd like a personally signed copy, Mr. Crabbe is selling them through his website as well.

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This gourmet collection features discs of luscious dark chocolate of increasingly rich cocoa intensities, and made to compliment a specific varietal.

We've selected three different cocoa intensities for you in our collection to compliment varietals such as Cabernet, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Zinfandel.

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"The ultimate lesbian love novel."-The Lesbian News

"A masterpiece of lesbian love."-The Sacramento Star

The intimacy of a cabin at Lake Tahoe provides the combustible setting that brings Diana Holland and Lane Christianson together in this passionate novel of first discovery. Candid in its eroticism, intensely romantic, and remarkably beautiful, Curious Wine is a love story that will remain in your memory.

Katherine Forrest is the author of 12 books, including the groundbreaking science-fiction novel Daughters of a Coral Dawn and the enduringly popular Kate Delafield Mysteries. She lives in San Francisco.

This is the first lesbian romance that I've read, and I enjoyed it. The book can't help being a bit outdated given when it was published and the time period it's set in. The characters were well developed, and the romance was sweet. I felt a bit let down at the end, since once they left the cabin the remaining characters were completely neglected (we never even found out for sure if Liz took her husband back). I also wondered about the ease of Diana's outing, in that the only person addressed was her dad. Having never come out to anyone, obviously I can't attest to the accuracy of it, but I thought his reaction was sweet and sincere. I don't much care for the "bodice ripper" style in general, and the whole interaction with Chick felt a bit that way -- kind of unnecessary, and I could really have done without the detail in the aftermath (I doubt young women today would know what a good deal of the terms are referring to). It was slow going in the beginning, but picked up about 1/2 through, then did tend to turn a bit trashy, but I like trashy romance novels, so that worked for me. Anyway, I don't have much to say that hasn't been said already, but a heterosexual's viewpoint can't hurt, right? I doubt this will be the only dip into this genre I take, but I think I'll stick with books written within the last 10 years or so, just so that I'll be able to follow along a bit better. I was only a few years old in the time this book was set in, so I'm probably missing a bit of it.

Customer Review: One of the first lesbian novels I read and still one of the best!

Excellent novel. You will not be dissappointed. It might be too predictable for some, but I had a great deal of fun reading it. I could not put it down.

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This delicious cognac white wine vinegar from France beautifully dresses spinach salads or can be used to deglaze pan juices from giblets and game. Pairs well with oysters.

Each bottle contains 8.45 fl. oz. of Cognac Flavored White Wine Vinegar by Hediard from France.

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Aged White Wine Vinegar with Tarragon by Martin Pouret is produced and bottled in Orleans, France in the traditional "slow process" since 1797. This method has been handed down from father to son for generations. The Martin Pouret firm buys its wines directly from the greatest vineyards as it takes a great wine to produce a great vinegar. Then begins the slow transformation of the wine into vinegar according to the unchanging rules that only Jean-Fracois Martin still applies. It is this which make the Martin Pouret vinegars so special.

The wines will slowly metamorphose for three weeks in 220 litre barrels called "vaisseaux" at the constant temperature of 28 degrees, sheltered from the light. The vinegar thus obtained will be left to mature for six months in oak tuns in order to refine its aroma and bouquet. Before bottling, the herbs, in this case fresh tarragon, are added for additional nuance of flavor.

Each bottle contains approximately 17.6 fluid ounces (500ml) of Martin Pouret Aged White Wine Vinegar With Tarragon iimported from France. Contains sulfites. 7% acidic.

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Customer Review: Great Primer to Italian Wines

There are some great reviews here of this book. The only thing I can add as someone who loves Italian wine is Matt Kramer does a great job with the big job he has given himself and tells you as much in his introduction. I thought the first 3 chapters were excellent with the philosophy of being Italian. Each chapter simply covers the basics of Northern Italy's wine giving you producers who are good at that particuliar wine. I would recommend this book as a primer for the real beginner. God read.

Customer Review: Wonderful book.

This is a wonderful book.

I was already familiar with many Italian wines, but my knowledge and experience with them was scattered.
This book put so many things into perspective for me.
I went to Italy for the first time last September and now reading this book, I can look back and better understand and appreciate what I saw then.
The organization of the book is outstanding. The book has identified several wines of interest which I have now tried with great enjoyment.
Kramer's writing style is not only informative, but he can turn a phrase and I found my self smiling at several points and then found myself looking for the next clever piece of writing.
This book has also triggered a desire to learn more about Italian wines and I have started reading the Joe Bastianich book as a follow up.
This book is a home run.

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A fine wine, hand selected fruits of the season, and fine cheeses will certainly charm those on your gift list.

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