Enjoying my last weekend in California

The view at Paradise Ridge

It's my last weekend in California...and all through the house, not a creature was stirring...not even a mouse...

 Just kidding. I didn't spend my last weekend in California before moving to Arizona with mice.  I spent it taking advantage of what California has to offer – which is breathtaking vineyards and great wine!

So before I go on, I guess I should fill you in in case you haven't read all my blog posts. I've accepted a new job. This time it's in Phoenix, and the job itself is a little different.  Instead of working for local news, I'll be working for a national entertainment news show called "The List."

Not only is it a new genre for me, but the show is also new. In fact, it's still in the concept phrase. How exciting is that?

Of course, if the show gets cancelled, I'll be out of job -- but I'll worry about that later. Right now I'm celebrating -- and I'm celebrating with Wine.

One of the bonuses of living in Sacramento is that Napa is only 45 minutes to an hour away, and the Santa Rosa wine area is only 1.5 hours. Both are amazing, but because this weekend was so gorgeous, I knew Napa would be packed with tourists and I wanted something a little more relaxing – and less expensive. Plus, I hadn’t been to Santa Rosa, yet.

It turned out to be worth the drive. The winery I checked out was Paradise Ridge, mainly because when I went on their website, I noticed they did a wine and cheese pairing for $20. That’s five tastings of wine and 5 different cheeses – yum!

Sitting on their patio, I sipped, tasted and relaxed while staring out over the vineyard. It was the perfect way to spend my last weekend in the state.



Wine and Cheese tasting at Paradise Ridge

Here’s what I got:

-- Sparkling Brut Cuvee paired with Parmigiana Reggiano topped with a fresh raspberry and a cilantro lime almond.

-- 2011 Chardonnay paired with Toma Italian Cheese served with chardonnay onion and a rosemary cashew. 

-- 2009 Estate Zinfandel paired with Valley Ford Old Style Fonina Cheese served with fig preserve and topped with a chipotle pecan nut.

-- 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon paired with Valley Ford Estero Gold Cheese served with Cabernet Sauvignon onion topped with dry Italian Salami

I also tried a red wine made in 2009 called The Posse which was incredible. If it wasn’t $54 a bottle and I wasn’t going to driving in 100 degree heat to Phoenix, I would have got it.

I’m still dreaming about it.

Obviously, it's not the the wine in the photo to the left. That's the brut which I did buy.