The Drive » Go north on
Hwy 121 and follow it for 3 miles
as it bears east. Turn south on
Burndale Rd. Homewood winery
is on your left, at the flagpole.
2 Homewood &
Gundlach-Bundschu
Wineries
A stripy rooster named
Steve chases dogs in the
parking lot of Homewood
(%707-996-6353; http://www.
homewoodwinery.com; 23120
Burndale Rd at Hwy 121/12;
tastings free, bottles $18-32;
h10am-4pm;^ #), a down-
home winery whose
motto sums it up: ‘Da
redder, da better.’ The
tasting room is a garage,
and the winemaker
crafts standout ports and
Rhône-style grenache,
mourvèdre and syrah.
Ask about ‘vertical
tastings,’ and sample
wines from the same
vineyards but different
years. From Homewood,
go north on Burndale Rd,
jog left briefly onto Napa
Rd and then right onto
Denmark St.
One of Sonoma
Valley’s oldest and
prettiest wineries,
Gundlach-Bundschu
(%707-938-5277; http://www.
gunbun.com; 2000 Denmark
St; tastings $10, bottles$22-40; (^) h11am-4:30pm)
looks like a storybook
castle. Founded in 1858
by Bavarian immigrant
Jacob Gundlach, it’s now
at the cutting edge of
sustainability. Signature
wines are rieslings and
gewürztraminers, but
‘Gun-Bun’ was the first
American winery to
produce 100% merlot.
Tours of the 2000-barrel
cave ($20) are available
by reservation. Down a
winding lane and with
a small lake, it’s also
pleasant for picnicking
and hiking.
The Drive » Follow Denmark
St back to Napa Rd, and go
west to Hwy 12. Drive Hwy 12/
Broadway north a quarter mile
to Traintown.
3 Traintown
If you’re traveling with
young children, make
a beeline to Traintown
(%707-938-3912; http://www.
traintown.com; 20264
Broadway; (^) h10am-5pm daily
summer, Fri-Sun only mid-
Sep–late May). A miniature
steam engine makes
20-minute loops ($5.25),
and there are vintage
amusement-park rides
($2.75 per ride), including
a carousel and a Ferris
wheel.
The Drive » Drive north on
Hwy 12/Broadway about one
mile.
4 Sonoma
Kick back for a few hours
in Sonoma’s town square,
with tree-lined paths and
a playground, surrounded
by shops, restaurants and
tasting rooms. Comprising
multiple sites, the
Sonoma State Historic
Park (%707-938-1519; http://www.
parks.ca.gov; adult/child $3/2;
h10am-5pm Tue-Sun) is a
must-see for California
history buffs. The Mission
San Francisco Solano de
Sonoma (E Spain St), at the
plaza’s northeast corner,
was built in 1823, in part
to forestall the Russian
coastal colony at Fort Ross
from moving inland. The
mission was the 21st and
final California mission,
and the only one built
during the Mexican period
(the rest were founded by
the Spanish). The not-to-
be-missed chapel dates
from 1841.
The adobe Sonoma
Barracks (E Spain St;
hdaily) was built by
Vallejo between 1836 and
1840 to house Mexican
TRIP HIGHLIGHT
5
Napa Valley
For upscale
wineries, spa resorts and
top notch restaurants,
Hwy 12/121 is the main
connector between
the Napa and Sonoma
Valleys.
7
Russian
River & the
Bohemian Highway
From Kenwood, go
west on Hwy 12 for
summertime river dips,
delightful wineries and
rambles in redwood
forest or pristine Pacific
beach.
LINK
YOUR
TRIP
NORTHERN.CALIFORNIA.
6
.SONOMA VALLEY