As anyone who has ever been to wine country can tell you, this area has plenty to offer to its visitors and residents alike. Enough to see and do and taste and experience for months on end. And while figuring all of it out on one’s own can be exciting and fulfilling, some experiences are simply improved when they are put into tour form. Kayaking tours, redwood tours, food tours, wine tours, hot air balloon tours, etc. The options are endless. But not all tours are created equal, even in wine country. A prime example is this: Wine Country Walking Tours’ Tastemaker Tour experience is a step above your highest expectations of what Sonoma County and Healdsburg in particular can offer you. As we enter into our fourth year of leading this remarkable tour, we can safely say it is among the finest and most unique experiences you will find in our sweet haven of Healdsburg.

Wine tasting is one thing; wine tasting with the head winemaker and listening as she explains the process and nuances of creating the nectar of the gods in front of you is a completely different thing. And eating at a delicious restaurant is one thing; but eating at a restaurant with the owner or the executive chef, watching him prepare his sauces and sides, learning about where he sources for produce and meat and about his passion for sustainability in the high-end restaurant world is quite another thing. Not to mention, you, our tour guest, get the chance to be the chef or the barista at select stops along our tour. What better way to understand the food and wine industry in Sonoma County than becoming a direct creator of it? So not only do you get to hear the backstories of many of Healdsburg’s excellent restaurants and tasting rooms, you also get to show off your own handiwork and creativity through crafting your very own appetizers or cocktails or desserts, depending on the tour!

But these tours are not limited to the fine tastes of our winemakers and executive chefs. We make sure to include a stop (wine included, of course) at one of Healdsburg’s numerous art galleries, allowing for interesting and riveting conversations with the art curators or gallery owners. With the highest concentration of art galleries north of San Francisco, you will always find something exciting and engaging to explore in and around the Healdsburg plaza.

  These intimate, in-depth glimpses of how Healdsburg’s remarkable food and wine culture functions behind the scenes can be enlightening. They take that lovely cabernet or that perfectly spiced enchilada to the next level, adding layers and stories to its creation and development that not only make it taste delicious, but that can even add an emotional factor.  This beautiful balance between flavor, artistry, and feeling is what our Tastemaker Tours strive for. By bringing you into the kitchens and studios and by introducing you to the very people who craft food or wine or art for the worlds’ enjoyment, we hope to enhance your understanding and love for wine country and all it is able to produce.

But this experience is even more than the intimate look at the foods, wines and art that Healdsburg is so famous for. It will provide stories and depth to each bite of food you take and every single drop of wine in that burgundy glass. Stories about how the winemakers learned their crafts and how they have perfected that craft over the years.

Stories about the chef’s roots in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico and how their heritage intensely affects the meals they choose to prepare for you. Stories about an artists’ love for the North Bay that allowed her to open a magnificent studio showcasing art from Northern California artists. Each stop along our Tastemaker Tour brings with it stories of dedication to a craft, perseverance, loss, heartbreak, hope, and revelation. And these stories are just waiting to be told.

Now for some logistics. This tour runs strategically from 3:30 pm to 7:30 pm, perfectly timed so that our tours avoid the dinner crowds and thus take advantage of the calm environment. This allows you, our lovely guests, to ask plenty of questions about the experience and the foods and wines, as well as to enjoy all of the tastings in a stress-free, relaxed manner. So, come join us on select days in January ( 9, 10, 16, 17, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30 & 31) and throughout the year to discover Wine Country in a completely new way. For more information and dates visit Healdsburg Tastemaker Tours. We promise it will be unforgettable.