{harvest} purple poetry

i strolled through the vineyard at the reid ranch last week, singing sweet songs to the cabernet sauvignon grapes. they are full of slowly simmered indigo juice and soaking in the last golden rays of the season...

garden slumber party

one of the great joys of my weekend was camping in the vineyard garden at the reid ranch...

i adored sleeping amidst growing plants, misty dew, redwood trees, and softly singing birds.

walk with me through a few magical moments...

{zucchini blossom}

{artichoke blossom}

{zazen}

{beans + barn}

{sunlight + sunflower}

{full foliage grapevines}

{onward + upward}

{vine + sky}

{tendrils + tiny web}

{sunset glow}

{grapes growing}

{glowing gnome caves + dancing blue flames}

{adventure} iron horse vineyards

my beloved and i spent our anniversary tasting wine and frolicking about at iron horse vineyards, which is only ten minutes from our treehouse.

just like the day of our wedding five years ago, it was a "blue true dream of sky day"...

{soaking in the sunshine}

{tasting pinot noir}

{menu of flights: sparkling + chardonnay + pinot noir}

{wildflowers + vines}

{big sky + lush leaves}

{lounging blue*belly lizard}

{sky meets poppies}

{wood bridge}

{hidden horse}

foodstuff: chardonnay day

i live in the middle of wine country.

my family grows grapes and crafts them into french-style merlot and viognier.

we love wine and all the fun that living in the midst of winemaking culture brings.

last week, kevwrex and i participated in chardonnay day, a celebration in which "all you need is some chardonnay in your glass."

it was a simple soiree. i visited a local market and grabbed a bottle of sonoma county chardonnay, a slice of cheese, and some ripe strawberries...

a few tasting notes...

the wine: bluenose 2009 chardonnay, described as having notes of "pineapple, ripe peach and honeysuckle fruit with abundant flavors of vanilla, crème brulee and spice." it was delicious.

the cheese: point reyes farmstead toma. described as "a truly versatile semi-hard table cheese with a smooth, light and buttery flavor." it was indeed buttery and reminded me of a softer, creamier cow's milk version of petit basque, one of my favorite cheeses.

the strawberries: it is prime strawberry season here. plump, ripe, and devoured before the evening was finished.

chardonnay day was fun and we will definitely be participating again next year.

dear guests, do any of you enjoy drinking wine?

wine and yurts

i spent last week working on two exciting creative projects:

designing a new internet presence for our family winery

+

preparing for + teaching a workshop on how to build a hexayurt

i am planning to elaborate on both of these projects soon with words and pictures...

but tonight, i am:

catching my breath after a week of intense creative output

+

mentally preparing for school to start 

(this is the last official week of summer vacation)

artist: rewined recycled glassware

i live in wine country.

i love drinking wine.

what i don't like is the number of used bottles that the consumption of fermented grape juice creates.

thus, i truly appreciate this etsy seller for his beautiful reclaimed wine bottle glassware...

...it's lovely and his philosophy is sound.

side note: i enjoyed reading his "quit your day job" interview for the storque.