TheQueen

August 12-14 Anderson Valley

We stayed at the Anderson Valley Inn, a place out of time, tucked up on a shady hillside in Philo, CA.  Mein host, Bob, is a most genial innkeeper, and his wife Lydia and mother Clover are also good company.  The rooms are nicely done, and the grounds offer benches and nooks for sitting and relaxing.  The price is also right. If you’re looking for television, internet, and coffee in your room, this is not the place for you.  But, that said, there’s espresso and internet service just 5 miles down the road in Boonville, as well as good beer from the Boonville Brewery.  I like the amber ale, and B. likes the hoppy ale.   Dinner at the Highpockety Ox ("A Civilized Saloon"), accompanied by said beer, hit the spot on our first night. For more info on the Inn and the area, visit Anderson Valley Inn.

Bob recommended a couple of hikes, among them the Hendy Woods trail (posted separately) and a jaunt down to the shore at Elk.  He also recommended some wineries.  Top on his list is Esterlina, and of course Navarro is immensely popular.

So we walked (could hardly really call it hiking) in the mornings, returned to our room at the Inn to clean up, and then tasted in the afternoons.  The first day we started with Esterlina (call for an appointment) where we were instructed to tell them that Bob from the Anderson Valley Inn sent us.   We were treated to a personal tasting on the deck high above the Anderson Valley, pinot noir grapes flourishing in the vineyard below the deck.  The owner’s wife, Doris Sterling, poured for us, and she proved to be a font of knowledge. We really enjoyed her stories and she had the answers to all our questions. The Sterling family (Esterlina is the Latin for Sterling) has been growing grapes for several generations, and making wine here for 10 years.  The business employs the whole family.  One son does marketing, another the viticulture, and a third is the winemaker.  The wines were uniformly well made, and the setting was superb. The family also runs a Dry Creek winery, Everett Ridge, and owns a variety of vineyards.  For more info, see Esterlina Vineyards.

From there we descended the hill, where we made stops at Handley Cellars (looking for the gewurtztraminer I remembered from a long-ago dinner) and at Roederer for some bubbly.  Here our sommelier, Rett, promised to let us know how the estate pinot is shaping, once he concludes his experiment with multi-day decanting.

Next morning, we drove over to the coast to Elk.  Immediately we spotted the trail to the beach. As we strolled beach-ward, the fog began to roll in.  Whilst on the beach, two fellows wheeling a kayak on a bicycle-wheeled carrier offered us a hidden cave tour. We demurred; they unloaded the kayak and paddled off. Back on the bluff top, we elected to stroll through the town.  Elk? Greenwood? The signs all seemed to say Greenwood.  Mystery solved – we spotted a book in a local shop that told us this is the town with two names.  I wasn’t, however, curious enough to buy the book, so I still don’t know why the town has two names.

Back in the Anderson Valley, having enjoyed the drive on the Philo-Greenwood Road both ways, we stopped briefly at Navarro to taste and order Deep End Pinot futures, and then at Husch, where we much enjoyed that family winery’s offerings.

August 25, Yakima Valley, Rattlesnake Hills Wine Trail

Today we sampled wines at four wineries in the Rattlesnake Hills.  They were chosen by B, based on description in the wine trail brochure.

Hyatt Vineyards, high atop the ridge, is an impressive site with manicured grounds, a well-appointed tasting room and, from outside, views of both Mt. Rainier and Mt. Adams.  We were able to taste “house” and reserve wines side by side.  The reserve merlot is especially nice, although the house merlot also has its charms.  This was a nice tasting in a nice atmosphere, and the prices are astoundingly low.  Unfortunately the inter-state shipping laws are such that Hyatt does not ship to California.  You’d have to deal through a wine broker or online wine store.

Our next stop was Paradisos del Sol, a small winery with an eclectic list.  We tasted their list of six, beginning with a dry rose, proceeding to Lemberger reds and finally to a pair of sweet wines -- angelica and late harvest riesling.  Each of three pairs of wines was served with food matched to the wine – with recipes, too!  Our hostess Barbara, winemaker Paul’s wife and partner in the business, described each wine for us and entertained us with her commentary.  If all wineries ran their tasting rooms this way, they’d sell a lot more wine from their tasting rooms!

For our picnic spot, we selected Silver Lake, again high on the ridge. We again paired a “house” and reserve tasting.  The wines were good, the merlot being the best.  The tasting room staff was poorly trained; they didn’t give you vintage year when pouring (and it wasn’t published on the notes, either), despite being repeatedly asked, and didn’t have a lot of knowledge about winery operations or history.  Replies to questions were off hand and lacking detail.  This is a corporate outfit, and clearly not a lot of attention is going to the tasting room.  There is a café here, but it may only operate on weekend.  There were ads for a salmon dinner on Sunday’s between 1 and 4 p.m. We did picnic here on the grounds, where there is a small shaded terrace and any number of picnic tables with umbrellas to make shade.

Our last stop for the day was Portteus Vineyards, touted for specializing in red wines – and indeed, their tasting list included 16 different red wines.  One can taste the first eight for free, and the other eight could be tasted for a flat $5 fee, and some single wines from the list for $1 a taste: unless you were a case buyer, which meant you could taste the first 12 wines for free.  The list was all over the place; no way to pair “house” and reserve tastings. And the place was lively, with large groups of people coming and going all the time, and always too many people for the limited tasting facility.  I guess you could say the variety provides something for everyone, but we left feeling confused rather than satisfied.

September 26 - Cooking as Therapy

What's your stress response? Do you take a fast walk or a hard run? meditate? book a massage? I cook.

Son A left for Japan last Wednesday. His flight out of LA pulled out of the gate on time, and then waited ... and waited ... and waited. Upshot is that he missed his military flight to Japan. He ended up going in a day late on a commercial flight. He called when he arrived (that would be Friday morning our time), and I haven't heard a thing since. So, I'm cooking. In fact, I cooked the whole time he was here on leave, but what I cooked was pretty much up to A, so a lot of repeats and comfort food.

October 31, Still Cooking

While we haven't been doing many destination hikes this month, we have been keeping our feet in gear walking in the local hills and working out in the gym.  And I'm still on a cooking binge.

Wednesday, November 6 - Bottling Wine, Rabbits, and Recovery from the Weekend

Saturday last was the day for the three intrepid winemakers' annual bottling party.  This is the 2nd annual of these, and this year there is an apprentice -- next year there will be four winemakers!  The day starts early, and the first task is washing the wine bottles.  This is done with pressure hoses and the bottles are carefully sterilized.

November 25 - Vegan Highlights

We enjoyed a bountiful if non-traditional Thanksgiving, and did a spot or two of entertaining on the days following. Jo and Ja joined us for Thanksgiving dinner. Friends D & G and L joined us for Friday night's meal. And Saturday we hosted lunch for 10. I got to try a lot of new things.

Wednesday, February 20 - Back in the Kitchen

After 2-1/2 months on the road, I find that I don't always remember which switch to flip to turn on the lights, but I'm still OK with running the food processor! B and I have decided to enjoy more vegetarian meals. We shop at the Friday Farmer's Market and then put together our menus. This week we had Moosewood's Spinch and Ricotta Pie, sans crust, and very good Squash and Potato Enchiladas. Making enchiladas is always a production, but these are worth it. The following recipe from Didi Emmons' Vegetarian Planet, with my adaptations. I snapped a picture of the book with our handy new webcam.

I bought this cookbook at a Jamba Juice in Bakersfield on a swim meet trip. I read the salad dressing recipes and fell in love - especially with the Carmelized Balsamic Vinaigrette, although Miso Dressing runs a close second. It also has my very favorite potato soup, Potage Bon Femme.

Saturday, March 8 - Flowers and Vegetables

We went wildflower hunting in the Rademacher Hills yesterday, and found little more than phacelias and some small yellow flowers. It's early yet, but indications are that this will be an OK year, not great. In Death Valley the yellow flowers are blooming in some places, but the sometimes-luxurious bloom in the southern reaches of the valley are barren.

I've decided to keep my blogging-hand in by writing about what I cook. One thing about being retired -- I have time to try new recipes to my heart's content. We are trying to eat more vegetables and fruits and less meat, so I've been having fun with Moosewood cookbooks and Vegetable Love and my old faithful Vegetarian Planet. We shop at the small Friday Farmers Market and plan our menus around the fresh produce.

In the last couple of weeks, we've had some notable dishes, including Navajo Stew, Polenta-Stuffed Peppers, Pan-Asian Slaw, and Indian Potatoes from Moosewood's Simple Suppers. We also roasted some brussels sprouts (following the Vegetable Love recipe after failing miserably with directions from Mark Bittman), and made some lovely lemon curd from Vegetarian Planet to go on our strawberries. And of course I made yogurt to use in Wednesday night's whole-spice keema with cucumber raita from Indian Home Cooking -- along with parathas, a whole lot of rolling and rolling.

The Moosewood recipes truly are pretty simple. The only failing I find with this cookbook is its sometimes less-than-satisfactory measurements. How much would two medium sweet potatoes weigh? Your guess is as good as mine. The Navajo Stew, served with pitas and topped with yogurt, is nice and spicy. The polenta-stuffed peppers are prepared in the oven -- easy, easy. We used parmesan cheese rather than cheddar, and topped the dish with some of our homemade heirloom tomato sauce from the freezer. The Pan-Asian Slaw with its hot dressing is another keeper, and the Indian Potatoes are perhaps not quite spicy enough.

On the bill for this next week, in the vegetarian department: Potato, Greens & Goat Cheese Quesadillas, a Vegetarian Cassoulet, and a Rustic Cabbage Soup culled from the epicurious.com site, along with pasta with sun-dried tomatoes; an Asian Slaw recipe from an old Bon Appetit, a familiar favorite; Green Beans Au Gratin from the Silver Spoon.

Friday, March 14 - Flowers and Vegetables

Earlier this week we found a surprise near Onyx. Here, in a canyon off of Kelso Creek Road, the hills re painted with orange and blue and yellow. The air quality was terrible, but the colors were bright enough to shine through. We hiked across a field dotted with goatheads and many small flowers to the hillside resplendent with poppies.

The hillside was steep, but wading through the orange dotted-green and finding the occasional lupine or choreopsis provided plenty of opportuntities to rest while supposedly framing a shot.  We finally reached the top of the first ridge, only to discover that B had left our turkey-chutney loaf sandwiches in the truck. What a disappointment!  We made do with a Balance Bar.

After our walk, we drove up the Kern River, where the hillsides are also orange with poppies. And some hillsides here are blue, thick with these small flowers, or carpeted in white . And in the middle of all that white, we found this lovely, magenta owl's clover.

> And the vegetable scorecard:

 

Potato, Greens & Goat Cheese Quesadillas ok but not a keeper; a Vegetarian Cassoulet excellent and a definite keeper, although the carnivores in the household added some grilled mild Italian sausage to theirs; a Rustic Cabbage Soup, along with pasta with sun-dried tomatoes have been put off into this week; an Asian Slaw recipe from an old Bon Appetit became Pan-Asian Slaw from Moosewood Simple Suppers - a really good recipe; Green Beans Au Gratin from the Silver Spoon was OK but I think I prefer my green beans just plain.

As for this next week, I began today by making Tomato Herb Dressing from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home, and putting together a french curry (ha!) From Julia Child's Kitchen to use up the leftover leg of lamb we have on hand. I also have on the menu a Tunisian Fish Stew from New Recipes from Moosewood Restaurant. I vow to make the Cabbage Soup -- I'm hungry for it. I'm planning to make a Cashew Chicken from Indian Home Cooking, and an old favorite, Chicken Barbera, for Wednesday night. The pasta with sun-dried tomatoes is for tonight, and we plan to do Assyrian Rack of Lamb from Monday Night at Narsi's on Sunday.

And with our dinners we have eggplant, salad, spinch, broccoli, fennel (going to try braising it to go with the rack of lamb), and green beans.  We eat well.

 

Saturday, March 29 - Acres of Poppies and a Shopping Trip

Today on our way down south to shop, we decided to stop at the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve. The preserve's website says this is just about peak season. We arrived at 9 a.m. - sunny, very windy, and cold - and the poppies were still furled shut, protecting themselves from the wind.

And I discovered, as we exited the car, that I had forgotten my camera.  Horrors!  Luckily friend Ja had her camera, so you can thank her for these wonderful pictures. It proved too cold to do much walking around, so after lingering a while in the new visitor's center, we continued on our way to our shopping destinations.

 

We stopped by the Preserve again on our way home, in the early afternoon. It was still windy, but the poppies had loosened up and flooded the hillsides with patches of bright orange. It's a good year, although not a great one. But the preserve, with acres and acres and hillsides of poppies and coreopsis, never disappoints. We walked in the blustery afternoon to several viewpoints.  The air quality was pretty poor, but the flowers were wonderful. We called it quits when the wind strengthened and began to blow sand at us.

We drove home via state route 138, where the hills and fields are liberally decorated with yellow and orange and pastures are carpeted with goldfield. Along the way we passed a huge flock of sheep ... eating poppies!

Home once again, we unloaded the copious goodies (mostly food and wine) netted from the day's shopping.  We felt like successful hunter gatherers, stowing away the bounty of our bold forays into Trader Joe's and Costco.

Once everything was put away (my new freezer is full of lamb leg and lamb chops and lamb racks and pork loin), we turned to dinner.  Lentil soup from Vegetable Love and Sweet Potato Quesadillas from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home.  The soup is so-so, but the quesadillas are tremendous.  I made them with Ancho chile powder and pepper jack cheese, and skipped the cayenne.  Still spicy, and absolutely yummy with salsa and sour cream.