I recently went to Sebastopol for a paella lunch at Marimar Winery. My friend from Reno who knows the owner and is a club member asked if I wanted to come. We got to stay at a guest house for two nights and had a wonderful time. Marimar Winery is a beautiful place and Sebastopol is one of those cute little towns that gets lost in the shuffle of all the cute little towns around us, but so worth a visit!
We started our road trip Friday evening and stopped in Graton at the Underwood Bar & Bistro for a drink and heavy appetizers that were absolutely delicious and surprisingly busy for a small town.
The next day was the actual paella lunch. For those that haven’t had paella, it’s a famous Spanish cuisine made of rice, chicken, and seafood (or other meats, depending on the chef). It’s cooked in a large wok-like pan (a paella dish) and served family-style. It’s truly a cultural cuisine experience and one of the tastiest things you’ll ever eat! This recipe was out of the Marimar cookbook and was served with some tasty tapas and a wine pairing. She comes from a Castilian family raised in Spain, where her family also has a winery. In the 1970s, she bought land in Sebastopol and started growing grapes in the European style and now has her adult daughter helping her run the winery.
As you can see from these photos, it was a wonderful visit to Sebastopol. There was a robust and diverse crowd, which gave me a chance to meet and talk to some folks and make connections, and of course, the wine was wonderful. I highly recommend a visit to Marimar Winery (and check out some of their annual events!), but you have to wait until next October to get you some paella!