Discover white, red, rosé …. and rainbow-tinged wine of gay-popular Sonoma County. From San Francisco drive over the Golden Gate Bridge and an hour through beautiful rolling hills to a darling little town called Healdsburg, a former farming village and the most charming of many lovely towns in the County.

As recently as 15 years ago, there wasn’t much to speak of around these parts but then the Hotel Healdsburg opened in 2001 and world-famous chef Charlie Palmer came to town; soon two Michelin stars followed, transforming this one-horse town into a two-Tesla vacation haven with fantastic wineries.

It’s but one hamlet in a county of charming inns, farm fresh food, boutique shops, plenty of wineries and a surprising number of LGBT residents, winemakers, chefs and business owners, without the tourist crowds of neighboring Napa.

If you plan a trip, here are five things not to miss, especially the number-one time for gay people to visit next year.

1. Hotel Les Mars: Healdsburg is centered around a main town square, while all around it you’ll find restaurants, bookstores, artisan crafts makers, boutique shops, and hotels. The Hotel Les Mars is the best hotel around, a Relais & Chateaux French maison-style hotel with ornate rooms full of dark wood armoires, antiques, 17th-century art, and shelves of tattered books along with a new restaurant, Chalkboard, a hip, rustic chic dining room that was once the Michelin-starred Cyprus.

2. SHED: In this progressive, sun-drenched, farm-to-table lunch spot next to Hotel Les Mars, market, and green space, the owners are lifelong farmers who’ve blended their philosophies on fresh produce with the simplistic virtues of California cooking. SHED has its own garden and also sources fruits and vegetables from the farmer’s market across the street. It’s among the most innovative and artful lunch counters in the state with nice options.

3. Hamel Family Wines: South of Healdsburg you’ll find another Sonoma Country gem. Hamel Family Wines is an elegant, modern vineyard offering winetasting of their mostly Bordeaux varietals paired with locally sourced foods. It’s only been open for a few years but it’s already known for high-quality wine production, passionate winemaking and a decidedly warm welcome to LGBT visitors.Continue reading “Gay Wine: 5 Things Not To Miss In Sonoma”