This picture is of my BFF Patty (aka Bitchin’ in the Kitchen). She may not exactly be sober. I have to admit that it is a rare occasion that I walk out of Locals with my sobriety in check. Thank goodness that my favorite restaurant and pizza place in Sonoma County is right next door!
Locals, located in the small town of Geyserville, is a tasting room that pours (for free) wines from 10 different and small boutique wineries. As of this posting, they have about 70 different wines and styles on the list. The staff is knowledgeable, friendly, and with a wine list that large there is sure to be a wine (or 3) that you fall in love with!
I discovered Locals in 2012 as a result of my friend Kate stumbling across it. Since her fortuitous discovery, I have been taking non-locals to Locals for 8 years. In fact, when I lived in the UK, I made sure that Locals was on my list of places to visit whenever I came home. It is always on my list of places people have to visit when in the area. And, you never know what event they may just happen to have on. On one of my visits the wine maker Eric Ross was there pouring and talking about his wines.
One of my favorite things about locals is how it can really become an experience that helps you learn about your palate. Do you know you like Pinot Noir, but you’re not sure what kind? They will have many Pinots that you can try side by side from different regions and wine makers to help you determine just what you like in a Pinot. Do you know you like “white wine”, but your not sure which white wines you actually like? Was it Chardonnay, or Sauvignon Blan, or Pinot Gris. You can try one of each of those and see which white is actually the white you don’t like. Given that the tasting is free and that the options are pretty limitless, I truly can’t see why anyone wanting to learn about California and especially Russian River wines wouldn’t insist on a visit!
