Wine Country Weekend

Who: VN Editorial Assistant Gabrielle Pope

What: A relaxing weekend in wine country

Where: Napa and Sonoma Counties, Calif.

When: August 21-22, 2010

Why: Sun, wine, and food! What, you need more?

The Scoop: In honor of my boyfriend, who was down from Canada for the weekend to celebrate his birthday, I threw financial caution to the wind (hello ramen for the entire month of September) and planned an amazing little escape up to wine country. Somehow we managed to plan our trip on a weekend that brought magically sunny weather to the Bay Area, so there wasn't much to "escape" from, but we were happy to nevertheless head up to beautiful Napa and Sonoma Counties.

Do you know what the best thing ever is? GPS navigation. We rented a car equipped with GPS, and I wouldn't shut up all weekend about how ingenious and low-stress it was to program in an address and then just sit back and let the automated voice (whom we fondly dubbed 'Sexy') guide us while we enjoyed the scenery. After a requisite stop at Rainbow Grocery to splurge (the first of many) on some Dr. Cow vegan cheeses to complement our wine, I programmed in our first location: Ubuntu, a "vegetables" restaurant in Napa with a plethora of vegan and veganizable offerings.

Image courtesy of ubuntunapa.com

Ubuntu specializes in creating small plates made with heirloom varieties of gorgeous fruits and vegetables, many of which are grown in Ubuntu's own organic and biodynamic garden. Its mission is to "bring to our customers a bounty of local biodynamically gardened produce handled with care and skill by talented artisans and chefs providing an unparalleled experience connecting our customers to the bounty of the earth." We ordered the freshest salad with three different varieties of tomatoes, two lettuces, and an avocado goddess dressing; marinated beets with eggplant and Meyer lemon blossom raisin paste; tangy artichoke grits with smoked corn husk and cilantro; and our favorite dish of fried chickpea clusters, Romesco stewed chickpeas, and arugula. The food was exquisite, and it was so refreshing to see tourists and locals alike getting excited about the vegetable masterpieces completely devoid of meat.

Creamy artickoke grits with heirloom vegetables

After more GPS-guided driving through beautiful Napa County and a stop at the The Hess Collection Vineyards for a sampling and to check out Donald Hess' impressive art collection, we headed for the The Gables Wine Country Inn in Santa Rosa. A Victorian mansion sitting on three acres of land including an inviting lavender garden, I'd chosen the Gables due to their willingness to prepare a vegan breakfast. The host couple at the inn were pretty much the nicest people in the world, our room was breathtaking, and the complementary wine tasting in a converted barn where we chatted with the other guests was a welcome touch. One omnivorous couple even admired, and then tasted, our vegan cheese.

Image courtesy of thegablesinn.com

Waking from a perfect sleep in our stately and eloquent room, I had breakfast on the brain. Our hosts pulled out all the stops with a full three courses complete with coffee and fresh orange juice. My first course was homemade toast with jam, which was followed by a Champagne glass filled with local fruit dusted with sugar before the star of the show: a savory potato casserole seasoned with fresh herbs and spices, featuring zucchini and peppers from the Inn's garden. Being accommodated as a vegan is always much appreciated despite the fact that I usually end up with a banana and dry toast, but in this case I was truly touched by the thoughtful and creative vegan menu, which fueled me long through more wine tastings and our journey back to the city.

Rainbow Rite

Who: VN Editorial Assistant Charlotte Gordon
What: Rainbow Grocery
Where: San Francisco
When: July 7, 2009
Why: To experience Rainbow Grocery for the first time and secure a place among my vegan peers.

The Scoop: Having heard the name “Rainbow” so many times in the office and not being able to associate it with anything, I figured that it surely was linked to some vegan rite of passage. The sense of camaraderie that followed its mention as stories were shared and foreign (to me) vegan food was discussed only fortified this assumption—I finally decided to make the life-changing trek to this grocery co-op.

I packed my provisions (gum and a bottle of kombucha) and hopped aboard the L train. I got off at Van Ness and ventured to the somewhat seedy side of town. Navigating my way through sidewalk construction, I finally walked under a freeway overpass and saw the green awning that read “Rainbow.” I had made it to the vegan oasis in the urban jungle, and boy, was it worth the trip!

Rainbow's wide selection of veggie cheese.

There were no awkward run-ins with the meat section because, well, there is no meat section! What the store does have are all the vegetarian specialty foods you could ever hope to cram into one place: dairy-free ice cream galore, a fine assortment of vegan cheeses, and massive amounts of grains for stockpiling. The highlight of my trip? The baked-goods section, where label after label read “vegan.” From turnovers to cupcakes, a grip of treats were untainted with moo juice—it had to be documented. With my camera poised and ready, I was about to shoot every fluffy muffin and pinched crust when an employee politely informed me that pictures are not allowed. I pointed to myself and said “VegNews,” and that’s all it took to have free reign with the food photography. (Hmm, what other advantages come with my new VegNews status?)

Behold, vegan cupcakes aplenty.

I kept my eye on the prize (vegan chocolate-peanut-butter cupcake), and made it home safe. Now, with the milestone of discovering Rainbow under my belt, I feel a sense of empowerment. I now know where the widest selection of vegan specialty foods—aka cupcakes—are in San Francisco and am now a full-fledged San Francisco vegan.

The prize.