Umbria and Sonoma – Sagrantino, Food, and Motorcycles
Sagrantino, a wine native to Umbria, now being grown in Sonoma, and bottled under the name “Sonoacaia” (pronounced So-No-Kī-yah) by Dysfunctional Family Winery
Summer in Sonoma – Farming, Summerfest, and Rodeo
After religiously posting every month for several years, it's been nearly five months since I last posted. Below are some brief stories about farming, the Sonoma Int'l Film Festival Summerfest, and a local Rodeo. In the next few Sundays, we'll look at Sagrantino...
Sonoma – wine tasting, film, food, horses, chickens, and fun
This is where I try to convince you to be entertained for a few minutes with little bits of fun from Sonoma - Blind Tasting: 2013 Napa Valley Cabernets and 2020 Sauvignon Blancs from 5 Countries [gallery...
1) Hydeout Sonoma announces new partner, 2) motorcycling through Baja Mexico’s wine country
Hydeout Sonoma announces new partner, visiting Baja Mexico’s Guadalupe Valley wine country by motorcycle…
Rain in Sonoma, finally…
Give thanks for the rain in your life which waters the flowers of your soul. Join us as we tour our way around Sonoma County and celebrate the arrival, finally, of the long awaited rains. And at the bottom of this post, tell us your stories of how you've enjoyed the...
Harvest in Sonoma Valley, from Vineyard to Winery, the 2021 season
For Hydeout Sonoma and Dysfunctional Family Winery, it's another wine harvest in the books. Vintage number twenty-three for me. Here is a quick pictorial essay of the entire 2021 season. Click on these live-action videos to get the real feel of the moment: Picking...
Legacy of Zinfandel – a wine tasting at Don Sebastiani’s home cellar, and other Sonoma Valley events
Old vine Zinfandel tasting in Sonoma, barrel tasting in the winery, Sonoma film festival, Jack London
Spring sale – 40% off Dysfunctional Family Winery rosé
Sale on Sonoma rosé
Fun topics from Sonoma’s Dysfunctional Family Winery
Customers support our on-line launch... Quick shop link: Dysfunctional wine Discount code at check out: "Hydeout" Sonoma International Film Festival captures a Methuselah [gallery columns="2"...
Dysfunctional Family Winery Launches Online
The launch of Dysfunctional Family Winery: Exclusively for our blog post readers, in time for the winter holidays, Dysfunctional Family Winery announces the launch of our online presence - providing our blog subscribers with the first opportunity to purchase our...
Sonoma 2020 grape harvest finally winds down as red flag weather warnings continue…
Another grape harvest in the books. 22 vintages for me. And what a vintage 2020 has been. The winery established a 'no visitor' employees-only policy, so no client visits this season. We've all been functioning as a tight pod. And hanging over the entire harvest were...
The smoky grape harvest of Sonoma 2020
A smoky harvest like no other... Pandemic, wildfires, smoke, and riots. And who can forget the electromagnetic solar pulse that destroyed the electrical grid! While all this mayhem has been going on, the Sonoma wine industry has been grappling with a grape harvest...
Wine label press check, Dysfunctional Family chickens, egg frittata, fresh tacos and recipes, sourdough, art, NorCal fires, and walnut slabs…
A good photo essay of a wine label press check.
Iconic Sebastiani vineyards returning to glory…
Hydeout Sonoma was selected by one of the arms of the historic Sebastiani wine family to return two iconic vineyards to their former glory. But it almost takes a secret Sonoma decoder ring to explain the vaunted family history, players, vineyards, and wines.
Dysfunctional Family Winery: Shelter in Place Delivery
What can a winemaker do to ease the shelter in place burden? Hand deliver wine, of course. Members of our growing 'Dysfunctional Family' wine community receive their bottles of wine, sometimes in a direct handoff, sometimes over the fence. This was in early April 2020...
Sonoma Farm Life (in the time of Corona Virus)
Farm life in Sonoma
Organic vs. Conventional Farming
Organic grape and wine farming: Thanks to the support from all of our Hydeout Sonoma vineyard clients, we are a 100% organic farming operation. As this debate continues, I invite you to take an in-depth look at the differences between conventional and organic. Let's...
Dysfunctional Family Chickens
Here at the Hydeout, we have many projects going on around the property.The latest addition being a chicken coop! Many friends in Sonoma have backyard chicken coops and we thought it would be great to join in on the fun. Raising chickens on property is part of a...