Today went totally off the rails in the best way, but it is probably for the best that I'm going back to Iowa on Monday, since I'm going to need some serious detox. I woke up in Healdsburg feeling better than I deserved to feel, and I managed to shower and make myself look presentable before meeting Shedletsky and Tina (aka Bride of Shedletsky) downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast was somewhat lackluster, but that was probably because we were inadvertently comparing it to last night (Tina said, 'Last night I felt like I was living in the Capitol [from the Hunger Games], and this morning I remember that I'm human'). Also, we weren't really hungry, since last night's feast was epic.
But we rallied and went into Healdsburg, with the intent of doing one lowkey tasting and then having lunch so that I could get on the road by 2ish (the Shedletskys were staying another night and so didn't have my constraints). We went to Seghesio first, partially because it was open earlier than the rest of them, and partially because I've had their zinfandel many times and really like it. The tasting there was great, and all the wines were delightful, and it was as lowkey as I had expected the morning to go...
But then we went to the town square, walked around, still weren't hungry, and so decided to go to another tasting room before having lunch. This was the best and worst decision ever. We went to Banshee, partially based on the name and partially because the tasting room looked super fun and hipstery. When we walked in, we were the only people there, and that stayed true for 2+ hours...and we drank that entire time. Brandon (my new bestie; also, if you're not getting the message, #protip: always befriend the bartender, although technically Brandon is in sales) was running the tasting room, and he hung out with us and ended up drinking everything with us, which was so awesome.
Also awesome - the tasting was supposed to be six wines, and I think he poured us 12-14 each (including a couple of rare ones that he poured with the Coravin system to avoid pulling the cork). And I really loved all of them, but there were some particularly great pinots, as well as a very lovely cab franc. And we sat around on the couches and talked about wine and food and Healdsburg and life, and generally had the best possible time. I also bought four bottles of wine; #sorrynotsorry.
At the end, one of his coworkers (apparently known as Handsome Zach) showed up, and so Brandon left the tasting room in that guy's hands and came with us to have a late lunch at the brewery/burger place down the street, which was super delish (avocado burger on a gluten free bun + garlic fries made me happy). Then we all parted ways, and Shedletsky, Tina and I took a nap in their bed (lol). But Brandon ended up coming over to Madrona and having an early drink with us - we had spoken glowingly about the eggnog, so he had a glass with us, and it was all totally lovely.
And that was the end of my adventure in Healdsburg. Sadly, I wasn't able to get back to the city in time for my original Friday night plan (gay men's choir!), but I at least got back here so that I could sleep in my own bed (as was the other part of the original Friday night plan) rather than sleeping with the Shedletskys (which also would have been fun, but perhaps not advisable). So now that I'm safe and sort of rehydrated, I'm going to crawl into bed and hope that sleep starts the detox process - goodnight!
But we rallied and went into Healdsburg, with the intent of doing one lowkey tasting and then having lunch so that I could get on the road by 2ish (the Shedletskys were staying another night and so didn't have my constraints). We went to Seghesio first, partially because it was open earlier than the rest of them, and partially because I've had their zinfandel many times and really like it. The tasting there was great, and all the wines were delightful, and it was as lowkey as I had expected the morning to go...
But then we went to the town square, walked around, still weren't hungry, and so decided to go to another tasting room before having lunch. This was the best and worst decision ever. We went to Banshee, partially based on the name and partially because the tasting room looked super fun and hipstery. When we walked in, we were the only people there, and that stayed true for 2+ hours...and we drank that entire time. Brandon (my new bestie; also, if you're not getting the message, #protip: always befriend the bartender, although technically Brandon is in sales) was running the tasting room, and he hung out with us and ended up drinking everything with us, which was so awesome.
Also awesome - the tasting was supposed to be six wines, and I think he poured us 12-14 each (including a couple of rare ones that he poured with the Coravin system to avoid pulling the cork). And I really loved all of them, but there were some particularly great pinots, as well as a very lovely cab franc. And we sat around on the couches and talked about wine and food and Healdsburg and life, and generally had the best possible time. I also bought four bottles of wine; #sorrynotsorry.
At the end, one of his coworkers (apparently known as Handsome Zach) showed up, and so Brandon left the tasting room in that guy's hands and came with us to have a late lunch at the brewery/burger place down the street, which was super delish (avocado burger on a gluten free bun + garlic fries made me happy). Then we all parted ways, and Shedletsky, Tina and I took a nap in their bed (lol). But Brandon ended up coming over to Madrona and having an early drink with us - we had spoken glowingly about the eggnog, so he had a glass with us, and it was all totally lovely.
And that was the end of my adventure in Healdsburg. Sadly, I wasn't able to get back to the city in time for my original Friday night plan (gay men's choir!), but I at least got back here so that I could sleep in my own bed (as was the other part of the original Friday night plan) rather than sleeping with the Shedletskys (which also would have been fun, but perhaps not advisable). So now that I'm safe and sort of rehydrated, I'm going to crawl into bed and hope that sleep starts the detox process - goodnight!
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