Time to shed this grizzly winter of ours, yes? Oh wait, no. It has not been a glacial winter. Not at all. It has, in fact, been downright balmy this winter season of ours, full of shorts, sun, and getting high at your neighborhood park. While that doesn't exactly predict the best fall harvest season for our artisanal brethren up north, it does mean that we are more than ready for spring. And with that, you should consider checking out Passport to Dry Creek Valley. more ›

Aren't there enough wineries in Northern California? Do we really need another? Especially when it could mean the death of a redwood forest? As the LA Times reported in August, Codorniu’s Artesa Napa Winery and Premier Pacific Vineyards plan to build two new wineries in Annapolis will "clear-cut over 1,900 acres of these redwoods." In addition to killing off a forest in the process of replenishing itself (the area was hit hard by the logging industry), it would also be built on the burial grounds of the Kashia Pomo tribe (where they still live and worship) and possibly harm the Gualala River, "home to endangered salmon and other at-risk wildlife." more ›

Bay City News reports this morning that friends and family of Don Casper, the prominent San Francisco attorney who was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in Sonoma County earlier this month, are now offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the driver's arrest. more ›

This driver of this pick-up truck, according to authorities, is responsible for the hit-run death of noted San Francisco attorney Donald Casper, who died over the weekend. Casper, 63, was jogging eastbound along the south edge of River Road just west of Wilshire Drive when he was hit by the vehicle. SF Chronicle notes: The photo of the truck was taken by a surveillance camera at Korbel Champagne Cellars on River Road moments before the crash...The vehicle was passing Korbel at the time and was not coming from the winery." more ›

Three women, ages 37, 77 and 34, have disappeared since January 10. The locations are "approximately 60 miles apart if you take Highway 1 straight up from Pt. Reyes to Calzadero." Sleuth Beth Spotswood has a theory that this might be the work of a serial killer. Which, of course, we hope isn't the case. more ›

The trio still standing on Bravo's Top Chef comprises The Brothers Voltaggio (brusque, tattooed, envelope-pushing Michael and staid, straight-laced, classically trained Bryan) and beardy Kevin from Atlanta, who has proven that simple food with Southern influences can compete against more innovative, haute cuisine. Tonight they go head to head in one final, Healdsburg-based challenge, with Douglas Keane of Cyrus serving as guest judge. more ›

Here at right is the dumb, now dead kid who is responsible for the vehicular manslaughter of that family of four on their way home from a Thanksgiving vacation on Saturday. It turns out, like many teens, 19-year-old Steven Culbertson of Lake County had a previous crash on his record, and a DUI caused his license to be suspended two years back, when he was 17. Many commenters have noted that this case calls to question things like installing parental speed controls in cars, and whether teens, regardless of their status as adults at age 18, should even be allowed to drive cars. Obviously, this is just a sad, sad situation, and a tragedy, and short of shackling all rebellious teens in basements we're not sure that there is a broad, generalized solution that would have avoided this. But yes, perhaps this particular nineteen-year-old was not yet enough of a grown-up to have his own car -- and that intersection at Hwy 37 and Lakeville Hwy probably needs to be re-engineered. more ›

Because no holiday weekend would be complete without a spate of tragedies on the local news, we'll start with this one, which is awful: a family of four, on their way home from a Thanksgiving vacation in Maui, were all killed instantly when a MINI Cooper traveling 100 mph on Lakeville Highway broadsided their minivan. The Maloney family's minivan was at the intersection of Hwy 37 and Lakeville Hwy, traveling home to Sonoma from SFO, when they were hit. The 19-year-old MINI Cooper driver is in serious condition died in the hospital on Sunday. Several other cars were involved in the accident but passengers only sustained minor injuries. Anyway, sorry again for the early Monday morning blues. more ›

For the final couple of episodes, the cast of Bravo's ever so popular chef showdown relocated from Sin City to our neck of the woods, staying at the Le Mars Hotel in Healdsburg and eating at Brix in St. Helena. Cyrus was closed a week ago Thursday to accommodate the contestants along with Padma and Tom, and presumably Andy Cohen, Gail and that priggish British dude as well. more ›

Former Water Operations Supervisor for the City of Sonoma, Randall Cover, plead guilty in federal court today in San Francisco. For what? Glad you asked. He pleaded guilty to five counts of "using the mail to engage in a fraud scheme to deprive the people of the City of Sonoma to their right to honest services." According to the FBI's San Francisco site, "Cover admitted to personally receiving financial payments from a Parts Vendor with whom he had arranged contracts for the City of Sonoma." Randall received anywhere from a little under 40 "checks totaling nearly $150,000 and $1,500 in cash ... between 2002 and 2007." To which we say:, we know Ed Jew. Former Water Operations Supervisor of Sonoma, you're no Ed Jew. Anyway, Randall is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court in San Francisco on August. He faces a possible maximum sentence of 20 years and a fine of $250,000. more ›

News of Sonoma County’s “Really Goode Job” first hit SFGate on April 28. Since then, hopefuls coveting the $10,000/month, half-year gig for Murphy-Goode have been applying online and uploading videos for consideration for the position. While most of the applicants are from out of state, one of the very few (thus far) Bay Area applicants is SFist contributor Deborah N . While we are, of course, ecstatic of the idea of one of our own winning the grand prize, (yet sad and depressed at the thought of her moving to an albeit free and glamorous house in Healdsburg for six month), we are curious about Deborah’s motivation for applying for the position. (Aside from the fact that we want an SFister to land this oddly, at least according to many MSM outlets, newsworthy job) more ›

Rancho Cotati High School and Cross & Crown Lutheran School for kindergarteners and preschoolers in Rohnert Park were shutdown today after a gun scare sent parents, school officials, and teachers into a frenzy. (Students, of course, think it's awesome, because anything that gets you out of school is rad.) According to reports, "A Sonoma County emergency dispatcher received a call at 9:19 a.m. reporting an armed student inside the school at 5450 Snyder Lane." So far no gun or disgruntled student has been found. A school employee at an apartment complex across the street said "some parents had gathered at the edge of the campus and were awaiting an update on the situation." more ›

Two small earthquakes struck the Bay Area over the weekend. First, a 3.5-magnitude quake centered 10 miles north of downtown San Jose rattled Sunday morning at 7:47 a.m. Then, a 2.1 tremor hit Sonoma an hour or so earlier that morning. No damages, no aftershocks, no injuries. Boring. It's been ages since we felt a good shock here in the Bay Area, yes? more ›

Hey, you! You with the hole in your heart and frown on your face. The Sonoma County Animal Shelter is offering over 150 bundles of feline joy (both cats and kittens, but the not-as-pupular-but-just-as-great adult cats really need homes) on sale today for $30 each. According to CBS 5, the precious fluff faces "may be purchased in Santa Rosa at the Sonoma County Animal Shelter, Western Farm Center or Animal Farm; in Windsor at B&G Pets; and in Rohnert Park at 49er Pets." And the cost covers leukemia testing, vaccinations, spray or neuter surgery, microchip, identification tag, and travel box, and years and years of sheer happiness. And for those of you vile excuses for human beings who insist on using a professional breeder for no discernible reason, this really is the best and cheapest way to do it. Adopt two or three today! (CBS 5) more ›

If you've noticed over the past couple of days, it's smells a bit smoky, a bit ashy in Baghdad by the Bay. It seems, according to CBS 5, Northern California is suffering from about 950 wildfire right now.The top half of the state is, in essence, on fire. Yikes! So far, Carmel Valley residents have been forced from their homes due to the massive blaze in the Los Padres National Forest over in Monterey County, which is the largest blaze yet. more ›

Last night's five-alarm wildfire in the San Bruno Mountains, which threatened homes in South San Francisco, has been 75 percent as of this morning. The crisp weather and fog -- which has mercifully killed this past weekend's vile heatwave -- has helped firefighters attack the blaze successfully. more ›

No! more ›