Category Archives: Blog

On Friday morning June drove up Hwy 128 past Cloverdale to the last little patch of Sonoma County before Mendocino which is where our very own Mike Pendleton plies his trade. “I parked, Mike picked me up in his 4-wheeler and we zipped up into the vineyard to taste some grapes,” said June, “Cab Sauvignon,…

I’m a peanut butter nut -- All I want when I get home is that tasty, salty rhizome. PBJ for lunch, A cookie with my tea; Smooth and creamy, Coarse ‘n’ crunchy, Peanuts do it all for me.     Recipe: ¾ cup extra Crunchy Peanut Butter ½ stick Crisco Baking Sticks butter flavored All…

In some hands the opening of a bottle of wine can vie with the Japanese Tea Ceremony for most arcane beverage ritual, in others it can be as perfunctory as twisting off a screw-cap—of course, neither protocol is indicative of the quality of the wine in the bottle.  Few of us when we get home…

June’s adventures in cookie-land continue with a scrumptious new offering which would go fantastically well with the 2013 Eric Ross “Silver Image” Viognier… or, for that matter, a piping hot cup of PG Tips!     1 stick lightly salted butter 1 ½ Tbsp corn syrup 1 C raw sugar ¾ C rolled oats 1/3…

OK  First cookie blog……..Here’s the recipe Ingredients: ½ stick unsalted butter ½ cup shortening ½ cup packed light brown sugar 1 egg, beaten 2 cups all-purpose flour ¼ tsp baking powder ¼ cup macadamia nuts 4 Tbsp milk Variation: Substitute ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder for ¼ cup of the flour. Preheat oven to 350 F.…

Frequently asked questions while tasting wine at Locals.   Would you pour us your favorite wine?  (does not matter because it likely won’t be theirs) Are you Australian? (This of Richard, who is clearly British) How much does it cost to taste and how many tastes do we get? (It’s free so go crazy but…

Mike Pendleton was in the room pouring this weekend—he had just returned from a family trip to France and Italy, “I mainly stuck with all the house wines.  I mean they were excellent and for the cost—cheaper than a Coke.  Very balanced, very food friendly.” Now it’s back to business at his Alexander Valley vineyards,…

Each day that we work at Locals we’re reminded of how spectacular the view through the tasting room window is no matter the weather, season, time of year or day. Whenever we have people in for a tasting they are invariably  in awe of the view and depending on the season, we say “wait 5 minutes, it…

Usually it’s Susan Arbios who delivers Arbios/Praxis Cellars Tasting Room order but this Tuesday Bill dropped by with their 14 cases. It always provides a nice opportunity to catch up with each of our boutique proprietors who--as you all know, in their capacities as farmers, winemakers, and business owners—find themselves driving tractors, forklifts, and delivery…

I have decided to take on a challenge..... A little homage to the “Julie & Julia” book. Besides my passion for wine, I have had a passion for baking. Ever since I can remember I have wanted to be a pastry chef. When I was 11 years old I used to bake cakes and sell…

Do you like to watch, or do you prefer the real thing?  Somm,  the popular wine tasting documentary,  has been out since 2012 and follows a group of four hopefuls studying for “the hardest test you’ve never heard of” -- their Master Sommelier certification.  In history only 230 people have passed this test (even if…

Pendleton Dry Creek Viognier does just that with its voluptuous summer-time in a bottle mystique, boasting floral and tropical fruit aromas. The gold standard of a beautifully balanced  Viognier, elegant and refreshing. I strongly encourage you to stop by the shop and taste this Viognier that promises to deliver.

Each summer morning we dutifully refill our pair of water bowls by the front door to quench the thirsts of our panting North County canines out for their daily constitutional. Why not bring Beau, Bella, Bailey, Buster, Bear, or Boomer next time you come up to Geyserville?  Locals loves our furry friends--bring them in with…

What’s better than curling up with a good book and a glass of wine?  How about having a sofa, a kitchen, walls, and a secure roof over them all. Locals now has a couple of shelves of donated books on sale for $5 each--the proceeds of which go to North Sonoma County Services (northsonomacountyservices.com), an…

Pendleton Wines  2013 Alexander Valley wins First Place in the blind tasting at the 10th annual “Affairs of the Vine Cab” Shootout in Reno.  

Many times I get asked about the term Bottle Shock” and its impact on wines. It in its benign form bottle shock refers to the confused state when wine is removed from barrel to bottle and usually gets a last adjustment prior to cork placement. This adjustment can include SO2 (sulfite) and or a last…

Recently a number of you have asked me what effect the warmer than usual weather will have on this season's harvest. It's a great question and for answers I went right to the source: our growers and winemakers. Again I am reminded of the great relationship that exist between Locals and the wineries. Our wineries…

“Pétillant Naturel” wines were apparently quite the in thing this year among wine nerds. Pet Nats as they are over-cutlely coined are low alcohol wines—usually whites or rosés—frequently fermented only by the yeasts that are naturally present on the skins, then bottled as soon as or even before that process is complete, usually with a…

Grape truck pulling through the 128/Geyserville Ave intersection (right outside Locals) Geyserville is buzzing with harvest traffic.  This is by far the busiest time of the year in the wineries--the fruit is picked, transported to the winery and "crush" begins.  Here are some simplified steps involved in the process: Red Wines First, pick the grapes…