Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, located in Asti just south of Cloverdale, stands in a serene landscape of vineyards and mountains. The church was built in 1960 by the agricultural co-op known as the Italian Swiss Colony that produced old world wines. In keeping with the spirit of the colony, wine barrel staves were used to construct the roof and interior wood workings of the church. Its exterior was designed to echo the shape of a wine barrel.
About a dozen of us Urban Sketchers gathered in Healdsburg’s square yesterday to sketch the beautiful plaza. The weather was a perfect 80° with only a slight breeze. An Earth Day celebration filled the grassy area, providing music, atmosphere, and additional drawing opportunities. I chose to sketch the plaza’s iconic clock tower on the northwest corner of the plaza. Later in the afternoon, we rejoined at Healdsburg’s Center for the Arts to share our sketches, techniques, and the day’s experiences. Thanks to all who attended!
My Sunday Column “Sense of Place” usually runs at the bottom of the Towns section every other Sunday, but today my work was printed in the “Vignette” section at the top of the page. Today’s story is about Robert Rue Vineyards located in the town of Fulton. Bob and Carlene Rue, the winery owners, are some of the nicest people I’ve meet and make some great wines too.
Here is the text (I know it’s a bit hard to read the newspaper from my scan):
South of Fulton and down an old country road, a row of plum trees call attention to Robert Rue Winery. Bob and Carlene Rue purchased this 10-acre, 100 year old vineyard in 1973, and over the years have sold their grapes to many well known local wineries. The vineyard is a field-blend of predominantly Zinfandel, interplanted with Petite Sirah, Carignane, and Alicante Bouschet grapes.
In 2001, Bob and Carlene’s long held dream of producing their own wine became a reality. With the help of winemaker Dan Barwick, and before him, winemaker Carol Shelton, the wine blended from Rue vines has garnered many awards. The first vintage was produced at a custom crush facility and the finished wine stored in their garage. In 2010 the Rue family built a new facility on their property to accommodate an expanding production of almost 1,000 cases per year.
The “Little Free Library” movement has arrived in Sonoma County. Currently, there are two libraries located in the town of Sonoma and one in Cotati. The Little Free Library is a worldwide nonprofit organization that offers free books housed in small containers to members of the local community. It was founded in Hudson, Wisconsin by Todd Bol.
Kathy O’Neill of Sonoma built her Little Free Library out of reused materials and dedicated it to Maurice Sendak, author of one of my favorite childhood library books.” The sign encourages passers-by to take a book. Return a book. And a bench offers visitors a seat while browsing.
Anyone can create their own library box, which is usually about the size of a doll house, or purchase one from the Little Free Library website. Once registered, the libraries are assigned a number and owners are sent a sign that reads “Little Free Library.”
Locations of all the Little Free Libraries around the world are listed on this Google map.
Back in 1964 when the Bacigalupi family planted six acres of Chardonnay on their property, many people thought it was a mistake since the conventional wisdom of the time was to plant prunes, a much more lucrative fruit. But the Bacigalupis gained widespread recognition as growers in 1976 when Château Montelena’s 1973 Chardonnay (made with 40% Bacigalupi fruit) won the famed Judgment of Paris tasting over many highly acclaimed French wines. This single event helped to change the world’s perception of California wines.
This watercolor sketch shows the Paris Tasting Block of Chardonnay on the Bacigalupi ranch in Healdsburg as it exists today. The family plans to keep the vineyard as long as it’s producing grapes.
One of my favorite places for coffee is the Flying Goat in Healdsburg. They have great, freshly roasted coffee, engaging art on the walls, and an overall nice coffee house feel. I’ve been coming here for years to sketch out ideas, think, write, and meet up with friends. Surprisingly though, this is the first time I’ve sketched the place from the inside.
While driving along West Side Road just outside of Healdsburg today, I noticed all the grape vines in the vineyards have been pruned. The vine’s thick, black trucks are all that remain, contrasting against a sea of yellow mustard. The weather was unseasonably warm so I parked roadside and sketched this scene while sitting under a tree.
