Will Work For Wine

This past weekend we celebrated Wild Steelhead month at the 3rd Annual Healdsburg Wild Steelhead Festival. What does steelhead have to do with wine, you ask? Ha! You must not know Healdsburg! In Healdsburg everything has to do with wine. In particular, many local

wineries are instrumental in raising money and supporting causes. The Russian River, which runs through the town of Healdsburg and through the Alexander Valley and Russian River Valley wine regions, supports the largest spawning population of Central California Coast Steelhead, but its population is believed to have declined seven-fold since the mid-1960s. (For more information see NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service). Loss of habitat and water pollution are major threats to this species and the festival helps bring awareness of that threat to the greater community.

We're sure that in this case the cause was reason enough for the fishers of Sonoma County to gather - there were booths dedicated to water conservation, habitat protection, fishing equipment, arts and crafts for kids, actual steehead, steelhead art, and the list goes on. But interspersed throughout the plaza were also quite a few tables set up where, in exchange for red tickets (purchased from the festival organizers), you could taste a great selection of local wines. And this is, admittedly, what drew us in. A few favorites include Michel Schlumberger, Camellia Cellars, Simi, Quivera, as well as a few we weren't as familiar with but are definitely on our list (all to be visited at a later date). Of course there were also booths set up around the perimeter of the festival by some local restaurants - for us, worth battling the rain to try the special festival offerings. As non-fishers, it felt a little bit awkward to simultaneously support preservation efforts and consumption of the same fish. But we learned that the steelhead offered "two ways" by Dry Creek Kitchen was sustainably farmed. Still, "save the fish, eat the fish" was a mantra that came to mind while eating. After tasting the delicious steelhead cakes topped with steelhead roe we determined that the life of that fish was well served!

After tasting most of the wines, we were given the opportunity (putting it more accurately: we were lured) to stand in for our friends at the Camellia Cellars table while they took a lunch break across the street. Thank goodness for the band, whose lively tunes saved us from the freezing cold! The wine helped with that as well. We had a great time in our spontaneous roles as pourers (putting some of our new skills and wine knowledge to the test). It became apparent to us quite quickly that Chris and Bruce are beloved by this community when nearly everyone passing by asked where they were. Nevertheless, we did manage to pour every drop of the Camellia wine and with Steve's help we collected a lot of red tickets (don't mess with CC's friend Steve - no ticket? no taste!)

TOP 10 THINGS WE LEARNED AT THE WILD STEELHEAD FESTIVAL

10. Go to as many wine-serving festivals as possible - there is a good chance you will be hosted by the winery owner or wine-maker themselves;

9. Tuna is the "other trout" (according to the tuna-sandwich booth);

8. You can get a Polish Dog at John & Zekes if you know the right people (or maybe there's a password? We'll look into it);

7. If you hang around your friends' table hoping for free wine long enough, you will eventually have to "pay" for it;

6. There are two different ways you can make a steelhead out of nothing but a paper plate;

5. It is difficult to concentrate on the "nose" of a wine when your nose is freezing cold;

4. Even though it sounds impossible, soft, smooth felt on the bottom of shoes stops you from slipping on slimy rocks;

3. If you were born on or before February 6, 1989 you were allowed to drink wine at the festival (this is also rather difficult to believe, especially for the ladies who checked our ID's, telling us we "barely made it" when their count was off by 10 years);

2. It is possible to be sipping wine in the rain in a slicker in Healdsburg at 3:30pm and still make it to a black-tie fundraiser in San Francisco that starts at 5:30 without getting a speeding ticket (but we don't condone nor recommend our readers try this); AND, DRUMROLL PLEASE...

1. Do not attempt to swirl your wine if you are drinking out of a dixie cup.