The Day Before President's Day

Our annual day trip to Healdsburg and Sebastopol

By Steven Yan

February 16^th, 2014

HEALDSBURG

Four years ago, I randomly picked a bottle of Unti Vineyards 2007 Syrah off of a shelf at Whole Foods in San Mateo. Unti has since become our favorite local vintner and we make an annual day trip to visit the winery for a tasting.

I also like Cajun food — it’s one of the few true American gastronomic creations. We stopped at Parish Cafe in Healdsburg for po’boys, gumbo, and fried okra. Nom.

unti vineyards

Unti is a small batch producer of Grenache, Sangiovese, and Syrah west of Healdsburg, California. On this trip, we picked up their last three bottles of 2008 Grenache, a lovely new release of 2012 Barbera, and of course, the Syrah.

It was a warm and sunny February afternoon in Healdsburg. We took Neska for a walk to explore the vineyard, which laid barren, waiting for the next growing season.

Play.

After visiting Unti, we decided to continue north along Dry Creek Road to Lake Sonoma to find a place for Neska to play. We found an amazing park with a large field near the Warm Springs National Fish Hatchery, where apparently there was a steelhead run going on.

I completed my BH obedience trial with Neska in February, but we still have a lot to work on with her. This is the first time I’ve captured Neska with my telephoto lens — she looks liked a deranged harbor seal when she’s in full sprint.

What are these photos about?

WILDFLOUR

You wouldn’t expect to find a world class bakery nestled along the lazy roads outside of Sebastopol, but that’s Wildflour Bakery. When we’re in the area, Cec and I love to stop by for freshly-baked scones and, in the summertime, explore the garden outside of the bakery. We picked up two delicious goat flats, a few mushroom and gruyere scones, a lavender and ginger scone, and a super seed round.