Lisa Carlsson with Euphoria Retreats brings people around the world to find wellness- and she even made us take some calming breaths before we started the podcast. Then she tells us about how she approaches wellness and health and brings wellness and adventure to travelers in Sonoma Valley and beyond. She also spends time answering YOUR questions during WE GET QUESTIONS where she helps us with: Hello. Friends are planning an event in Sonoma for Sept 28, 2024 and asked me to research if that’s a ...
Dec 29, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 66
Ceja Vineyards makes high-end wines from world-class vineyards, but Amelia Ceja is remarkably approachable in her turn on the Sonoma Spiel podcast. She talks her journey from a young immigrant to America in 1967, following her father who worked in the fields, to her education at UC San Diego, to starting a Latino family-owned winery with her husband Pedro and his brother Armando and his wife Martha. Now a grandmother, and with her children in the business, Amelia talks about the tasting experien...
Dec 13, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Season 1Ep. 65
Margo Lowe moved her jewelry store from Berkeley (just outside the gates of Cal - Go Bears!) to Sonoma (just across from the Plaza - Go Dragons!) On a wide-ranging podcast she talks about her journey from Pittsburgh (good bagels) to Berkeley (neighbor to Alice Waters' Chez Panisse) and then to Sonoma. Then she takes on answering YOUR Sonoma Valley questions during "We Get Questions." This week she answers: 1) We are from Michigan, visiting our son who is stationed at Travis Air Force Base, and w...
Dec 06, 2023•45 min•Season 1Ep. 64
This week on the Sonoma Spiel we are looking back at some of the best of "We Get Questions" where we make our guests answer the questions we get from visitors. Featured guests include Michelle Lacy from Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau and Mark Bodenhamer of the Chamber of Commerce, Chef Lauren Kershner from Songbird Parlour, and Laura McGilley of the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance and Bart Hansen of Dane Cellars. The know stuff, and they are ready to share it with you! Every week ou...
Nov 28, 2023•28 min•Season 1Ep. 63
We've got goldengroves unleaving , as fall is here and the vines are changing colors and winter is coming and the holidays beckon. Luckily to help us navigate the change and talk about Sonoma Valley is Ryan Lely, the creative force and eye behind Pangloss Cellars and Repris Wines. He also knows about the secret winery, that is hiding - in plain sight mind you- at Pangloss. Ryan talks about how to create a unified look for a winery, photography and some of his favorite places in Sonoma Valley, so...
Nov 13, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 62
Kelly Bass Seibel from Sonoma County Tourism joins the Sonoma Spiel podcast to talk about the great and wonderful world that exists beyond the borders of Sonoma Valley, and disavows us of the notion that there be dragons there. Actually, there's a river, some beaches and a place called Rohnert Park. Kelly got her start in tourism via a circuitous route, but her start in Sonoma began with Sea Ranch and then a degree from Sonoma State University (Go Seawolves!) While we hear about her family drive...
Nov 07, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 61
Kaleigh Rhoades came to Sonoma's Charlie's Acres from San Diego via a stint at UC-Berkeley (Go Bears!), an orangutan rescue in Borneo and a chimpanzee sanctuary in Oregon. The mission at Charlie's Acres is two-fold: save farm animals as a sanctuary, and introduce plant-based alternatives to the more traditional American diet. But in an approachable way. "It's not a bunch of vegans yelling at you," says Kaleigh. "We have fun picnics and tours and education, including local wines. It can be a luxu...
Oct 30, 2023•47 min•Season 1Ep. 60
Rob Lorenz was going to be a sports journalist, but covering Atascadero high school sports as the writer, editor and photographer pushed him to slingin' juice, selling wine. A native of San Jose, he knows the way to Sonoma and how to find good wine. At Talisman wines we helps wine tasters find excellent wines ("all Pinot Noir, all the time") that show their pride of place, whether from the Russian River Valley, Sonoma Valley's Carneros region and even into Napa Valley. In addition to discovering...
Oct 23, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 59
It's not often we get to talk to a mayor, a commissioner of a football league, a political organizer and a bilingual math teacher. But when we sat with Sandra Lowe, mayor of Sonoma, we got all of that in one package. She came to the Sonoma Spiel podcast to talk about her journey from LA math teacher (via Cal - Go Bears!) to Sonoma Valley High bilingual algebra specialist (Vamos los Dragons!) to teacher organizer and mayor of Sonoma. In addition to talking the ins and outs of ballot initiatives i...
Oct 17, 2023•51 min•Season 1Ep. 58
Nicole Whitaker started out doing cold calls for AT&T back when customers leased their cell phones, and Erin McVicar has been in the wine and hospitality business around Sonoma Valley. They both are now at the Lodge at Sonoma, a recently renovated resort within biking distance of the Sonoma Plaza. They stopped by to chat about the return of Martini Madness (huzzah!), the unique food experiences at The Lodge, and all the wellness options available at the spa. Then they dish on the famous VW M...
Oct 09, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 57
Brad Day knows a thing or two about getting outside in California. For almost two decades, Brad and his wife Holly have helped locals find the right trails for hiking and biking and the best lakes for kayaking and camping. Weekend Sherpa, an award-winning website, email newsletter and a podcast, details great places to get outside in Northern California. Brad stopped by, fresh from the trails it seems, to talk about his favorite hikes in Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties, as well as what it was li...
Oct 02, 2023•47 min•Season 1Ep. 56
Chef Lauren Kershner was born in Wisconsin, raised in Arizona and then moved to Mendocino before working in Napa and settling in Sonoma... and along the way she picked up how to cook, how to make kombucha and most importantly, and how to give back to her community. She stops by the Sonoma Spiel podcast to talk about what she's cooking, events she is putting on, olive oil she uses from a local orchard, and how she got started making Valley of the Moon Kombucha. And it wouldn't be the Sonoma Spiel...
Sep 25, 2023•36 min•Season 1Ep. 55
Everyone talks about Sonoma Plaza's history, but no one does anything about it. Until now. Jim Silverman, retired librarian (he got kicked out of library school a few times first!) and man with a plan, has launched www.SonomaPlazaHistory.com as a way for visitors to experience the unique stories of the jewel of Sonoma County: the eight-acre Sonoma Plaza. A few things he mentions includes the fact that the Plaza originally was a dusty, muddy square in the middle of town and it took time and lots ...
Sep 19, 2023•35 min•Season 1Ep. 54
Howard Sapper didn't mean to start an award-winning electric scooter tour company. But somewhere along the way from Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh to a career as a musical community organizer, concert promoter, record label owner and early player in the New Age Music scene, he found himself with three-wheeled electric trikes that were perfect for giving tours in Sonoma Valley. Howard stops by to regale us with stories from his life and how he enjoys being a part of the Sonoma Valley community and s...
Sep 05, 2023•48 min•Season 1Ep. 53
Allison Coats knows a thing or two about the arts in Sonoma, as she represents some of the Valley's premier arts institutions. She stops by to talk about what's happening at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, diRosa Center for Contemporary Art, wineries like Muscardini Cellars and all the live music venues like Hopmonk Sonoma and B&V Whiskey Bar & Grille. But she's not just an expert on arts events, she can also answer YOUR questions. This Sonoma native is uniquely qualified to help out du...
Aug 28, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 52
Two guests, one good time: we're talking the 2023 winegrape harvest and the upcoming Valley of the Moon Vintage Festival with Laura McGilley of the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance and Bart Hansen of Dane Cellars (and the Winemakers podcast). We figure out what a "cellar rat" is, how crush is the fun but busy time in California's wine country, and some insight into the cultural importance of a salami toss. Then Laura confesses that Tiger the pig couldn't make it to the fair to be au...
Aug 21, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 51
"Dead Spread," the new book from local author Bethany Browning , is set in a small wine country town of Prosperity, where the mayor (Preston Brix) was recently found deceased by a local tarot reader (Carrie Detwiler) who has a pet raven (Waggery) and a few secrets as well. Sonoma serves as a key inspiration in the book, from the stone city hall in the middle of the Plaza to the controversial duck pond to even a local character who dresses up in historical regalia and then regales tourists with t...
Aug 14, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 50
A little bit west of Sonoma lies the town of Petaluma, and a little bit west of Petaluma is the enchanted farm at McEvoy Ranch , where some of the world's best Olive Oil comes from. Sam and Kym give us the low down on how to taste olive oil (hint: aerate it in your mouth), what it takes to get flavors into olive oil the quality way and how visitors can learn about how olives are grown, harvested and pressed into oil. Only, don't say it's a press. "We don't press anything anymore. We have both ol...
Aug 01, 2023•59 min•Season 1Ep. 49
World-class musicians Eric Zivian (fortepiano) and Nick Reeves (cellist) from the Valley of the Moon Music Festival stop by the Sonoma Spiel podcast to talk classical music, performing outdoors and why people should come watch them perform on instruments built from the actual period when the music was composed. Then Nick Reeves just happens to have a cello with him and he shows his skills, live from Studio 2 at KSVY in Sonoma Valley. More info on the Valley of the Moon Music Festival is at https...
Jul 25, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 48
He says he was the king of the third-tier market, but George Webber made a grand entrance during his first appearance on stage as he lept over a small fence on the stage, knocking down the whole set, and throw out a quip that brought the house down. This small introduction to performing and theater for Webber has grown into a lifelong passion, where he brings theatrical methods to introduce audiences to the stories of Sonoma's history, from Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens), Joaquin Murrieta, General ...
Jul 17, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 47
This week on the Sonoma Spiel: Amy & Fred Groth from Prohibition Spirits stop by to talk summer cocktails and how to rely on fresh ingredients to provide great flavors. With 40 different distilled spirits in their tasting room just off the Sonoma Plaza, the tasting experience is educational about the processes in how the spirits are made as well as how to best use them. It's Sonoma Valley's top podcast and you find it wherever you find fine podcasts, including: Apple: https://podcasts.apple....
Jul 03, 2023•52 min•Season 1Ep. 46
Highway 12 in California runs from the vineyard-studded hills of Calaveras County all the way to the vineyard-covered hills of Sonoma County, passing through the vineyards of Napa, Solano, Sacramento and Joaquin counties as well. Just as Highway 12 wends through the best parts of Northern California, so too does our conversation with Paul Giusto meander over topics of grape growing, wine making, why the Weber charcoal grill is the right answer for people who really know how to grill in the backy...
Jun 26, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 45
Jana Wang wants you to put that plastic bottle down. And reconsider your approach to consumer packaged goods by just refilling that perfectly good, reusable bottle for your soap, shampoo and detergents. Inspired by a friend's shop in Sacramento, Wang decided to open "Refill Madness" in the city of Sonoma to show that you don't need to embrace a throwaway mentality when you want to be clean. A Sonoma native, Wang traveled extensively in Asia during a stint teaching English in Taiwan. During our w...
Jun 19, 2023•52 min•Season 1Ep. 44
Film maker George Dondero had the audacity to not only shoot an independent film in Sonoma, but he dared question the orthodoxy that it's "always a lovely day in Sonoma." His new movie, "War of the Wills" was filmed in Sonoma, Petaluma and Windsor and centers on the struggle between a father and a son battling over an inheritance of money and house. The catch? They have to live in the same house for a month and not leave. And they have strong feelings of dislike towards each other. Sonoma County...
Jun 12, 2023•38 min•Season 1Ep. 43
Amy Miller started doing theater in Cincinnati, Ohio and found her way to Sonoma Valley via New York, New York then Naples, Florida dinner theater and with an interesting trip to Mexico with two recreational vehicles full of Broadway performers. We hear about their upcoming summer season of "Broadway Under the Stars" that features a music revue of the best of the 60s to the 80s, plus a full presentation of The Full Monty. And it's not just a performance - it's a full evening of food, wine and en...
Jun 05, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 42
Jill Gregory of Sonoma Raceway says the 12-turns of the famed Sonoma Valley road track make it a "high consequence race track," where you can "get into the wall pretty quickly." Jill sat down with us to talk Nascar, Ferrari Challenge, drag racing your Camry against a cop, electric car racing and even go-karts. Then she gives us the overview of the Toyota/Save Mart 350 and why "everyone circles this weekend on their race calendar." What makes it unique? Wine country, good food and amazing weather...
May 30, 2023•45 min•Season 1Ep. 41
Every ten to fifteen years or so, pundits and wags write the obituary for San Francisco. Ink gets spilled, think pieces get thunked and opinions opined about the "cool, gray city of love," but none of these ever encapsulate the reality that San Francisco, like the mythical phoenix that flies on the city flag, is a city constantly in the process of rebirth and ascension. Joe D'Alessandro, President & CEO of SF Travel, talks about San Francisco, the City that Knows How, and what's happening in...
May 22, 2023•34 min•Season 1Ep. 40
Jenne Wicht was on track to go to law school but instead thought it would be better to start an interior design business in the middle of a major recession that greatly impacted the housing and office sectors. Her parents were so pleased. She now has an interior design business, a retail shop and small vacation rentals (the JAK W Casitas) that showcase smart, sustainable design. Jenne talks what makes for good design that lasts, what defines the "Sonoma look" versus other places, and then good p...
May 15, 2023•46 min•Season 1Ep. 39
Jacob Yarrow and Andy Shepherd of the Green Music Center at Sonoma State University tell us about the upcoming season of concerts at the world-class concert venue, describe the best strategies for enjoying a picnic out on the concert lawn as well as a program for families with their movies under the stars program. They then help us answer some important questions like, "Is Conan O'Brien in Sonoma today?" and "Can I buy a bottle of wine at a winery?" Concerts coming up include Nickel Creek, Los H...
May 08, 2023•49 min•Season 1Ep. 38
This week on the Sonoma Spiel we discuss competitive gardening, how to properly do the Sonoma Tuesday Night Party/Farmers Market (bring a blanket, a bottle opener and a bag for the food) and the odd affinity for corn dogs that somehow lives eternal among Sonomans at the market. Then Mark Bodenhamer of the Sonoma Valley Chamber advises not trying to horn in on the Friday bocce people, because they don't mess around, and Michelle Lacy tells us about her fave events for a Sonoma summer. Then we ans...
May 04, 2023•55 min•Season 1Ep. 37
