Wine Country Weekend: Sip and taste your way through Taste of Sonoma

The Taste of Sonoma, held each year at the bucolic MacMurray Estate Vineyards, is often the favorite event of the year for local foodies, who get to taste and drink so many delicious things from all over Sonoma County, all in one, beautiful location.

This year, organizers felt the event needed a little refreshing, so they nixed the Steel Chef Competition, which provided “Top Chef” style entertainment in the middle of the four appellation tasting tents.

But don’t worry, you can still sit down and rest your feet and palate. Instead of the competition, there will be a stream of chef’s demos paired with wine, starting at noon with the Moustache Baked Goods of Healdsburg, who will make French Macarons paired with J Vineyards and Winery Cuvee 20 Sparkling Wine.

The demos continue through the afternoon with well-known chefs across the county, including Crista Luedtke of Boon Eat + Drink in Guerneville, Jesse McQuarrie of Feast Catering in Santa Rosa, Jose Castaneda of The Paella Guy in Windsor and Mark Stark of Stark Reality Restaurants.

Here are some other tips on navigating this sprawling, and potentially exhausting, tasting event:

* Maureen Cottingham, executive director of the Sonoma Valley Vintners and Growers Alliance, suggests going to the website (sonomawinecountryweekend.com) and making a plan about where you want to go first. “Make a list, make a plan, taste a little, and then maybe go sit down at a Grape to Glass seminar, where there will be a lot of seating,” she said. “Taste a little more, and go to a chef’s demo.”

* Tyffani Sedgwick of Windsor advises narrowing down the field of wine and food. “It’s a good idea to either pick a varietal or an appellation you really want to explore, like rose or sauvignon blanc.”

* Look for chefs that you know will offer something special. “I want to try the creative things,” Sedgwick said. “I think Carrie Brown is one of the most creative, and it’s always fun to seek her out because she’s a trend-setter. John (Stewart) and Duskie (Estes) of Zazu always have something interesting and fun as well.”

*In addition, try to seek out a few restaurants that you’ve heard of but haven’t tried yet. That will give you an idea of what restaurants are worth visiting at a later date.

* Why not start out with some bubbles? In the Bubble Lounge, you can taste three sparkling wines from Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards and meet the Ferrer family. In addition to Feast Catering and El Dorado Kitchen of Sonoma, the Bubble Lounge will feature briny oysters from The Oyster Girls, who will be shucking throughout the day.

* “Get there early, before the traffic gets bad,” advised Sondra Bernstein of The Girl & The Fig. “And I would definitely look to see what is happening, event-wise. They’ve added some really cool wine tours, where the sommeliers take people around.” The Sommelier Star Tours cost $10, but the Wine Talk Seminars, Grape to Glass Experience and Kendall-Jackson “Pair with the Pros” are all free. Register ahead of time, or arrive early for limited walk-up seating.

* Ask other tasters what their favorite dish was. “You want to know what was great and where it was,” Bernstein said. “And make a beeline to try to get that.., It’s pretty typical that things run out.”

* Stay hydrated and pace yourself throughout the day, especially if you’re going to a dinner that night.

* Head first for the whites, along with the gazpacho and the cold soup shooters. Then move onto the fuller bodied reds and the heavier dishes.

* Deborah Walton of Canvas Ranch, a farmer who takes part in the Marketplace every year, suggests taking a break and wandering over to the Marketplace, where her fellow farmers and artisan food purveyors hang out. You can cleanse your palate with some iced tea, kombucha or fresh berries.

* “The other nice area is the Club Reserve Area behind the house,” Walton said. “You spend more money to get in, but you can sit down, it’s shaded, and there’s some lawn.” This year, the Club Reserve features three different chefs in rotation: Steve Rose of The Vineyards Inn in Kenwood, Jesse Mallgren of Madrona Manor in Healdsburg and Adolfo Veronese of Aventine Glen Ellen. Honorary Co-Chairs Jean-Charles Boisset of Buena Vista Winery/DeLoach Vineyards and Joe Anderson and Mary Dewane of Benovia Winery in Santa Rosa will be pouring wine in the Club Reserve from 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.

* Justin Wangler, executive chef of Jackson Family Wines, suggests taking notes and writing down what you like about certain wines. “There are wines you may be interested in, but you are tasting so much wine,” he said. “Take pictures on your phone, so you can remember it later.”

* Stephanie Friedman, director of consumer sales & marketing for Gary Farrell Winery, reminds guests that they can order any wine that they like. “Wineries cannot sell bottles on site but if you love a wine, fill out an order form,” she said. “The winery can ship it to you or hold it at the winery for pickup.”

* Tracey Shepos Cenami, chef with Jackson Family Wines, suggests registering for Kendall-Jackson’s “Pair with the Pros Wine & Food Pairing,” where winemakers will lead you through a wine tasting and the chefs pair the wines with three or four bites.

* Each appellation tent also includes five to 10 “Perfect Pairings,” with wineries paired up with specific chefs, so there is a little more thought put into what quaffs are served with the bites. Examples include Matanzas Creek Winery and Nick’s Cove in the Sonoma Valley tent, Migration and Applewood Inn in the Russian River Valley tent, Quivira Vineyards and Vignette Pizza in the Dry Creek Valley tent and Trione Vineyards and Peloton Catering in the Alexander Valley tent.

* Kate MacMurray, who grew up on the ranch with her famous father, the late actor Fred MacMurray, will be floating around the event all day, but you can definitely catch her early near the entrance, where she will be pouring welcome tastes of wine from the vintage MacMurray Estate Vineyards pick-up truck.

* Although the historic MacMurray ranch home is not open to the public, you can get close to it by registering for the Blind Tasting Challenge, which is held on the house’s porch.

* This year, the grill stations will be spread out between the four tasting tents, so don’t forget to stop by and watch the action. Seghesio Family Vineyards always has a great grilled dish to pair with their zinfandel.

* Close to the grill stations, there will also be special pop-ups with fun purveyors like The Green Grocer of Windsor and Bay Laurel Culinary of Petaluma.

* Carolyn Stark, executive director of the Sonoma County Vintners association, regrets having “overdressed” for the Taste last year.

“Dress comfortably,” she said. “And go slow.”

Staff writer Diane Peterson can be reached at 521-5287 or diane.peterson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @dianepete56.