I woke up and it was my birthday! Yay, the capstone day of our long weekend! We were still in the dreamy Singlethread hotel and looking forward to our Japanese breakfast. Part of what drew me to Singlethread was the incredible amenities and special touches throughout the stay. Breakfast had been highly praised. SMS and I wanted a throwback to our ryokan days in Japan so we ordered the Japanese set.
Exquisite fruit cup!
There was so much food! Little dishes abounded, including rolled up egg (tomago), several sashimi, rice, fruit, pickled veggies, and yuba. Yuba is Japanese for “tofu skin,” which sounds way worse I think!
Pliny the Elder and me, reflected in SMS’ lovestruck eyes 🙂
After breakfast, we hung out on the rooftop and sealed our Northern California-ness by splitting a bottle of Pliny the Elder. It’s a double/imperial IPA beer made in limited batches with stern admonitions to drink it fresh! We had heard of people lining up for it so we decided to sample it since it was so easily available to us. It was quite hoppy with a slight juniper taste. I would drink it again if I ever saw it again on a beer menu, but I wouldn’t stand in line for hours for it.
Single thread rooftop on a spectacular day!
After checkout at 11 a.m. (we stayed as long as we could!), we drove to Calistoga to pass some time before our appointment at Medlock-Ames. Spoiler alert: Medlock-Ames is my new favorite winery!
It was a gorgeous day and a fun day for a drive. We passed the largest fire damage that we saw on our trip just North of Calistoga. The fire had burned both sides of the roads, although it looked like the vineyard on one side had been spared. We grabbed a panini in Calistoga before heading over to the vineyard.
Audra gave us a fantastic tour and I can’t wait to go back. While the wines are delicious and the tasting pours quite generous, I mainly want to go back so I can pick some vegetables in their organic garden later this Summer!
After wine tasting, we drove to Napa and had dinner in Oxbow Market. We wanted to stop by the CIA but it was closed. We headed home, where I had a near panic-moment when I thought I had left my purse at the restaurant. Fortunately, it was hidden in the car. Phew!
And that was my birthday weekend! It was an incredible trip and very special. No particular reason why this birthday was such a blow-out, but it was so much fun!
I decided I wanted to go to Healdsburg for my birthday after a too-short day trip there a couple of months ago. When planning our Healdsburg vacation, SMS sent me a text saying, “Hey, if you haven’t made plans, check out Singlethread.” Well, I did. I wondered who had hacked into my husband’s phone since the luxury level of the place is sky-high with a price tag to match but after reading about the Japanese influenced American hospitality, I was hooked. I booked a single night room-dinner reservation for 1 April, Birthday Eve!
The entire experience was amazing. I’ve linked to an article that goes into exhaustive detail about the restaurant and inn. We were lucky enough to be upgraded to the suite since no one had booked it for that night. Yay, so lucky! The room was absolutely gorgeous and filled with incredible amenities. The spirit behind the inn is from Japanese: omotenashi, the “spirit of selfless hospitality, anticipating needs without having to be asked” per Kyle Connaughton. I got this quote from the article as we weren’t quite at the level of hangin’ with Kyle for the evening.
Serenity now
Some of my favorite highlights of the room include the gorgeous, minimalist design; the subdue color palate, heavy on the gray; the in-room wine and Pliny the Elder beer, which allowed us to have a true NorCal drinking experience; the homemade ice cream; the homemade candy bar; the super-deep bath with a huge scoop of bath salts; the Aesop toiletries; and the Toto toilet!
Rooftop mobile garden box
After lounging about the room and trying to maintain the delicate balance of snacking without ruining our appetites for dinner, we headed to the roof around 5:30. They weren’t staffed to have all the diners start their experience up there but we were allowed since we were hotel guests. Again, the weather was gorgeous and SMS and I wandered around the rooftop, mobile gardens.
In the greenhouse- Don’t throw stones!
At 6, we headed down to dinner. We had a welcome drink from Brent via the “culinary window” that allows arriving guests to see into the kitchen. Then we were seated in this nice corner table with a wrap-around wall bench which means we both got to sit on the bench rather than one bench, one chair.
Early Spring in Sonoma. Yes, please!
The food was, surprise, amazing! The meal starts with an incredibly elaborate appetizer course, which I think would be called Sakizuke/Zensai in Japanese. A beautiful multi-leveled stone platter is covered in moss and seasonal flowers. Set upon and within the moss are several small appetizer dishes (1-3 bites) on assorted ceramic dishes. On the menu, this is identified by the unifying theme of “Early Spring in Sonoma.” The dishes included a cauliflower panna cota, a shot-size chawanmushi (savory egg custard), a light miso soup, rice, baby barracuda, pickled veggies, greens in miso dressing, steamed and marinated kohlrabi, a perfect scallop, unagi (eel) on greens. It was an over-abundance of perfectly crafted, delicious distillations of culinary delights! Keep in mind, this is just the first course and I’m fairly certain I missed a dish or two!
[In fact, the next day, our breakfast waitress mentioned that during a recent fund-raiser with several visiting Japanese chefs, the chefs commented that the first course seemed the most “American” because of the quantity of dishes. Whether that’s a compliment or complaint, I found the first course to be fantastic!]
I kid you not when I say that every dish was amazing. The diner doesn’t actually get the menu until the very end so the composition and number of courses were a surprise. I didn’t take many pictures after the first course because I just wanted to savor the sensory experience unadultured, rather than through my phone.
The yellowtail was delicious with brûlée miso. Umami was definitely a feature of most dishes. The Dungeness crab dish was similar to a deconstructed crab bisque, which is still a completely inadequate explanation. It was an explosion of savory, rich crab…hmmm, I feel like my descriptions are just getting worse and worse. I’ll work on it. Trust me when I say it was awesome, rather than conjuring up an outtake from SpongeBob.
The king salmon was an exquisite cut of salmon with a fattiness similar to the best cut of toro. Of course, it tasted like salmon but it was so rich! The poached fois gras was so delicious, I didn’t even feel badly about eating it. Ok, maybe a little bit.
I don’t remember the black cod quite as well, but keep in mind that we are several courses in combined with an excellent wine pairing. But don’t worry, my memory isn’t completely faded because the lamb dish made quite an impression. The saddle cut had perfect marbled lamb. I am running out of superlatives and this dish definitely deserved one!
Pecan Ice Cream
The Sonoma grains was good, but we were running out of steam. We ate most, but not all of it as it was rather hearty and dessert was coming! The sherbet was a nice palate cleanser and the pecan ice cream was perfect. The ice cream was my favorite although we did enjoy the one bite dessert finishers to finish the meal.
On the menu photo above, you’ll notice that the wine pairings are listed. SMS had ordered the non-alcoholic pairing so he had that on his menu. We each drank most of our individual pairing but usually shared a sip or two with each other. SMS’ pairing had some fairly experimental drinks meant to complement the dishes such as a dashi-based and whey-based drink for two of the courses. It was very cool but both SMS and I thought the pairing would be exclusively mocktail-focused.
The whole experience was exquisite. I felt so happy and lucky to be with SMS in such a perfect environment with an exceptional menu. It was definitely extravagant but so incredibly memorable. Thanks for the find, SMS!!!
Sunday was my birthday…April Fool’s! Ok, ok it wasn’t but the whole weekend felt like such a treat! On Sunday, we woke up and went to Shed for Americano and pastries. We shared two of the breakfast toasts. The more impressive one, to me, was the ricotta, marmalade and pistachio duqqa. It was on a crusty piece of toast- quite delicious. The other toast was a very grainy, thinner piece of bread with egg salad.
So, our lodging and dinner for Sunday night was a super-extravagant splurge at Singlethread. As a result, we wanted to check-in exactly at 3 so that we could maximize our time there. So, we decided to stay local and skip any wine tasting that day. Instead, we headed to Foothill Regional Park for a hike. There was a small day-fee parking lot but there is a ton of free street parking.
We did an approximately 3 mile loop consisting of the Westside, Oakwood, Alta Vista and Three Lakes Trail. The views were really pretty and it was another gorgeous day. One of the pourers at Preston said he wasn’t impressed with the views since it essentially just overlooks the town of Windor but I thought it was really pretty!
Our sunhats are not helping our noses!
On the way down from Alta Vista, I took my third slip of the day. Despite the fact that we usually like to hike, I had only packed flat-bottom, no-traction sneakers. Unfortunately, my iPhone was in my hand and I ever-so-gently smashed the face of it into a rock. Le boo. It still works but it there are several impressive stellate cracks on the face.
After our hike, we stopped for lunch at Estrella’s market/taqueria because I saw an outside grilling station. We both ordered the pollo asada and it was an excellent choice!
SMS and I went back into town and tasted wine at the Meuller tasting room to pass some time before check-in. The owner’s name is actually Robert Mueller but woman working there did not pick up my lame political reference jokes or maybe she’s bored of hearing it.
I’m putting my Singlethread thoughts in another post because the place deserves it! We checked in as early as we could (3!). Our dinner reservations were at 6. The dinner was about 2 and 1/2 hours. It was completely fantastic. I wish I could go back every week!
After dinner, we headed straight to bed. I probably could have used a little walk to help digest after such a meal but sleeping in the comfy bed was the second-best idea!
What an amazing birthday weekend! SMS and I had an epic few days in Sonoma. We had so much fun together and I’m definitely sad it’s over. But rather than drown in my pinot-tinged tears, let me tell you about our trip!
Wisteria at Preston
We started on Saturday morning with an ambitiously scheduled 11 a.m. tour at Preston Farm and Winery. Yes, well, that didn’t happen. We stopped in Oakland for breakfast and even though we passed on the wait at the delicious looking Sequoia Diner, our drive there was a bit more of a detour than I realized. We went to the World Ground Coffeeshop, which was pretty cool.
I called Preston Farm and they told us not to worry, that they’d even refund the tour charge once we got there! Lucky us! Preston is in the Dry Creek appellation of Sonoma. I picked it after researching several Sonoma wineries. I liked the fact that there was a produce farm in addition to the winery. In addition, they grow Mourvèdre grapes, which I really like in red blends. They’re actually releasing a 100% Mourvèdre in a week so I might buy it off their website!
It’s not terribly difficult to get to although the last half mile is on a packed dirt road. The gardens are beautiful and it is an idyllic place to sit. There is a bocce ball court which, if I were to make a Mean Girls t-shirt for Preston, it would say, “On weekdays, we play bocce” since there were several (!) signs saying bocce was not to be played on weekends.
SMS and I each had a tasting. We tried two whites and four reds. We thought they were fine, but not mind-blowing. We bought the white blend “Madam Preston” since it was our favorite of the flight and the tasting fee was waived with a bottle purchase. Free wine!
The wine pourers were all really nice. We got several biking recs and a few other tasting room suggestions. One of the women enthusiastically endorsed our planned Monday tour at Medlock-Ames so we were excited about that!
View at Healdsburg Ridge Open Space Preserve
After Preston, we went to Healdsburg Ridge Open Space Preserve. We parked on a residential street near the trailhead and went on a two mile walk/hike. There were really pretty views of the valley and it was a nice way to spend some time on a gorgeous day!
Rockpile, the tasting room next to Rockpile, the construction site
After our hike, we went into Healdsburg. We stayed at America’s Best Value Inn, which was fine. It was clean and inexpensive, which was our goal for that night’s stay! We walked into town, which I thought would be easy. It was not. There’s a construction zone for a roundabout that the locals, if you bring it up, will immediately start to vent about how long it’s taking and how ridiculous the whole thing is. What was funny though is that there is a tasting room right on the developing roundabout called Rockville, which is very appropriate. I think the name precedes the construction site though.
We went to the Idlewild tasting room, which was recommended to us at Preston. The winery focuses on Piedmont, Italy wines. The flight, which we shared, featured 5 single varietals, 2 white/3 red. We also tried the Rosé, made from 47% Nebbiolo, 28% Barbera, and 25% Dolcetto. Most rosés are made from Pinot Noir grapes so this was an interesting variation. I got a full glass, which was definitely a great choice. We talked with the pourer Scott for awhile! He was very interesting and quite knowledgeable about the wine/restaurant scene. He is a somewhat recent transplant, having arrived from NYC about three years ago.
Flowers at Shed
While the wines were good (especially paired with an incredible cheese plate- Piedmont Sola and a buffalo Camembert), we decided not to buy any bottles. I think we were too lazy to carry them! We headed over to Shed, where we had a reservation. I had wanted to eat there since our last visit so I was really happy to go.
Cheese, Salumi, Pickles- Shed
At Shed, we split three plates, which was a lot of food (as pointed out by SMS before we ordered). I ordered the cheese/salumi plate and the ricotta-nettles dumplings. Both were very good. SMS ordered the savory toast, which was excellent. The toast was pretty heavy since there was a lot of butter soaking the bread, topped by pesto and other toppings. I never thought I would say there was too much better on toast but this one was slightly toeing the line.
After a great dinner, we headed back to the hotel. It was time for bed in anticipation of Sonoma Sunday!
Oh, Indiana Jones. You are so noble in making sure that worldly treasures are accessible to all. SMS and I decided to take advantage of a nearby museum by taking the train into SF and visiting SFMOMA.
After a breakfast at home, we took the “bullet” train into the city. While nowhere near as fast a Shinkansen, it is definitely on par time-wise with driving into the city since there is usually traffic. We took a wrong turn or two and ended up seeing a police footchase, with rapid backup support from four police cars that were driving crazily. We eventually made it back to the downtown but that experience, combined with the rest of SF we saw that day, made us feel that San Francisco has become really gritty. While there are plenty of nice places a person can visit, the overall feel for me is a city with a lot of people in hard circumstances that are out in the street, disconnected from the massive wealth that’s flooded the city over the last 15 years.
So, one of the nice places is SFMOMA. We walked in and since it’s a Blue Star museum, we got in for free. Yeah! We walked through all 7 floors. There were some really nice works and some that made me think the classic modern art grinch thought, “I could have done that.”
My favorite painting was in the German Art after 1960 exhibit- Gerhard Richter’s Abstraktes Bild (Abstract Picture), 1987. The picture doesn’t do it justice. Up close, the curves and transitions into completely different color palates were really amazing.
BUT, I will let SMS take you on an art tour- a carefully curated collection by SMS.
For Christmas 2017, my family decided to meet in a tropical location since the past two Christmases have been ski vacations. Since Zika is endemic in many tropical areas, Hawaii was one of the few Zika-free places we could go. Twist my rubber arm!
Diamond Head, Waikiki
My parents booked a house near Hanalei, Kauai which was awesome because the North Shore is my favorite part of the island. We were between Hanalei and the Na’pali Coast so it was a really awesome location. On the way, I had a several hour layover in Honolulu so I went to Waikiki. It was beautiful!
House Without a Key
Hale Passion, delicious!
I walked on the beach and stopped at The House Without a Key in the Halekulani Hotel. I had a few drinks while listening to Hawaiian music. It was so idyllic! I also have a new tropical drink favorite. Move over Pina Colada, meet Hale Passion (Rum, Passion Fruit, Almond, Coconut, Light Cream)!
Since 2011, I’ve used this list to help reflect back on the year. I really enjoy looking back while preparing to move forward. So…
1. What did you do in 2017 that you’d never done before?
European Delivery road trip vacation! I started a book club! Finished JPME-1 so now I’m a Navy War College Distance Learning graduate! Qualified for the Boston Marathon again but didn’t make the cut-off time for applications!
2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I have long-term projects that result in a few of the same answers below. I’m doing well professionally but need to continue to strive for bigger projects rather than “just” succeed on the day-to-day work of clinic and OR. I would also like to work on my Spanish, increase my musicality and establish a regular, non-race training exercise routine.
My favorite painting was in the German Art after 1960 exhibit- 
