The Wine Travelers

Diavola Restaurant – The Little Restaurant that Could

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For the past four years, Dino Bugica has been running his little amazing Italian restaurant, Diavola Pizzeria & Salumeria, in the quiet town of Geyserville. When it first opened, few thought that this tiny town could support more than one upscale restaurant.

Sonoma Valley Wine Country has Four 100 year-old wineries to visit

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While the Napa Valley gets all the attention as far as popularity, few wine country travelers know that Sonoma County during the 1800’s was the star of California wine country. It all started in the Sonoma Valley wine country when the Buena Vista Winery was established in 1857.

In this first of two blog posts on Sonoma County’s oldest wineries, we focus on four wineries in the Sonoma Valley. Three of the four wineries are located in the town of Sonoma and the fourth just 10 miles away on Highway 12.

Gundlach Bundschu

We begin with Gundlach Bundschu founded in 1857 and today the oldest California winery that has been in continuous operation by the same family. The winery currently has sixth-generation family member Jim Bundschu at the helm. The tasting room is filled with amazing photos and wine bottles from Gundlach’s history. The staff at Gundlach is extremely knowledgeable and very welcoming. The winery certainly has that family feel to it. One added bonus: This is one of the best picnic wineries in all of California. There are three very different and beautiful areas one can choose from to sit and enjoy a picnic lunch. The tasting room is open daily 11 to 4:30.

Our favorite wines at Gundlach Bundschu: Tempranillo and the Gerwurztraminer

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Turtle Rock Willow Creek Cuvée rocks in Paso Robles

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Note: Since the writing of this article, Westberg and Turtle Rock are closed.

Rarely do I get overly excited about a wine, but in this case, I must write and rave about a wine I discovered while in Paso Robles a couple of weeks ago. Janelle and I were traveling the backroads of Paso Robles on the west side of Highway 101. We stumbled upon a winery by the name of Westberg Cellars. It is a very hidden winery and for whatever reason, the winery is not listed in the local wine guide produced by the Paso Robles Wine Alliance.

Don Burns of Turtle Rock Vineyards and Westberg Cellars

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Francis Ford Coppola & the WCG Bocce Tournament = Much Fun!

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It was a perfect day for our 7th Annual WCG Bocce Tournament held in GIt was a perfect day for our 7th Annual WCG Bocce Tournament held in Geyserville at the Francis Ford Coppola winery on May 26th. With four new beautiful, professional Bocce courts, the gourmet Rustic Café, and spectacular views of the Alexander Valley, we could not have asked for a better venue.