Its diversity. Where else can you be wine tasting one minute and whale watching the next . Thats right, whether youre in the santa cruz, mendocino or the Carmel Valley wine country, youre not far from the launch point of a whale of an adventure in wine country. My name is nancy. Im the marine biologist and ill be uh talking on the pa today about what we see. Perhaps youre thinking this must be a whale of a tale. Well be taking off here. The idea of whale watching in wine country . For many folks, wine country and whale watching really do go hand in hand. We came out basically to get up into the napa valley, we like wine, well, especially myself. Russ matzen and a group of friends visiting from virginia are combining wine tasting and a day trip with monterey bay whale watch. I want to see some whales were going to an area where we went yesterday which is about another 5 miles further out. Doesnt mean theyre gonna be where they were yesterday, but its always good to look where you went the day before. While eager passengers stand guard with cameras clutched in hand, trip leader nancy blacks on the lookout. Monterey bay is probably one of the best places in the world to see you know a really diversity of whales and dolphins. We can see whales here year round and theres no other place in the world where you really can do that. Oh yeah. Two of them. Excellent. We have our First Sighting whales spotted off our port side. Now there certainly could be others in there, too. We might just barely be getting to the feeding area. So once we get up there well slow down. Sure enough, many more whales break the surface. Schools of playful dolphins descend on our boat, too. You dont get this at disneyland its really exciting. Theres probably over a thousand dolphins with maybe up to 20 humpback whales all around. All the sheer waters are here feeding, too. Theyre all feeding on anchovies. So this is like a big hot spot we hit right in the middle of the ocean. Over the years, nancy has captured video of breeching whales, hunting killer whales and some Close Encounters of the aquatic kind. In fact the humpback whales can be quite curious. Sometimes theyll come right up to our boat. We just stop. If theyre coming towards us we just stop the boat. And sometimes theyre just as curious about us as we are about them so actually that gets pretty exciting. As if on cue today, a humpback does a move called a spy hop to take a peek at the awestruck sightseers. Whoaaa oh gosh seeing the humpback whales so close to the boat was just like indescribeable. It was wonderful. It took us a while to get out there, but when we finally got out there it seemed like everything broke loose and it was real exciting. Everyone agrees they really did have what else . A whale of a good time. Coming up, after that adventure at sea, youll need a little wine country pampering. Youre wrapped in hot steeping wine soaked towels. And later. They get part of the dream, part of the hopes, part of the stoke. The stoke of surfing and making wine, poured into one bottle. And if youre on facebook, join our fan page at facebook. Com inwinecountry. See you there. A heart attack . Every 40 seconds someone has a stroke. But it doesnt have to be that way. Every day theres hope. Join me and the American Heart Association and get serious about your heart and your health. If youre doing nothing, do something. If youre doing something, do more. Find Healthy Living solutions from the American Heart Associations my heart my life. Its that simple. When you hear the name fess parker you probably think of his roles as televisions daniel boone or Davy Crockett , or perhaps of his Santa Barbara county winery. But the legendary actor also owns the Wine Country Inn and spa in los olivos where you can head for some vintage r r. In one pampering treatment at spa vigne you can get completely wrapped up in wine. The name of the spa is spa vigne which is a spa of the vinewe try to focus most of our treatments around the wine theme. The wine infusion wrap is deeply relaxing. Therapist diane hovey prepares the infusion. Crushed grapeseeds are mixed in with rosemary, eucalyptus and calendula. We put the herbs insideofa big tea pouch. The tea bag infuses a water bath. Your treatment begins when diane adds the key ingredient, red wine. Its uh one of fess parkers wines. Diane soaks towels in the wine and herb infusion that she lays under and over your body. Okay . Uhhum. Then she wraps you in heated and mylar blankets. The heat relaxes you. Ive heard people describe themselves as being cocooned in their mothers womb if they could imagine what it would be like. Thats might be what its like. Chilled grapeseed leaves are placed over the eyes. The contrasting cool and hot is a nice effect and will keep her body temperature from overheating. Theres also a full body massage once the wrap is removed. Its just a great way to get away from the hustle and bustle of life. That in itself is very healing. Healing and pampering, through wine. Most people eat chocolate with red wine. But did you ever consider that in some cases beer may be a better bet . The man who created petes wicked ale should know. Pete slosberg is an expert in microbrews and now hes got a second career making chocolate. You heard it through the grapevine, cocoa petes in town with beer and chocolate pairings 101. Were going to do a chocolate education session. Pete slosberg is a man on a mission. Hes touring the country, speaking at venues like san franciscos Cathedral Hill hotel, spreading the word that chocolate goes great with beer, not wine. Yeah, everybody says red wine and chocolate. But when you sit down and actually do it, it doesnt work the vast, vast majority of the time. Beer is something pete knows a thing or two about. You see, hes pete of petes wicked ale fame. He used to run one of the most successful microbrews in the country. I find that pairing chocolates with beer is actually much easier. But dont think petes just trying to sell more beer. Hes not. Pete got out of the beer biz years ago. Now hes running a gourmet Chocolate Company called cocoa petes. The best way to enjoy it is to take a little bite not a big one but a little bite of the chocolate, let it melt on the tongue and as it liquefies try a sip of the beer. Pete leads tastings to introduce folks to his chocolates and to debunk the old myth that theyre best paired with red wine. That was a surprise you know, id think that wine would definitely pair pretty well with chocolate. I would think that. Only about 5 of the pairings work. Literally, 95 of the pairings are either horrible or mediocre at best. The reason beer works better, pete says, is that chocolate and beer have a lot in common. Chocolate and wine do not. Chocolate ranges from fundamentally bitter to sweet. Beer ranges fundamentally from bitter to sweet. So you have much more, a high probability of getting what ill call flavors that come together. Not that were taking petes word for it. Lots of folks are here tonight to put his theory to the test. I wasnt too thrilled about it at first. But it was really good. I think its better than with wine. After an evening of tasting chocolate and beer, petes won over some converts. Wow. Today tasting for the first Time Chocolate and beer, it can match. I think it can match really well. Ive always paired it with wine and tonight is the first time ive paired it with beer, and i have to say, it is great. It seems petes making progress. Cheers . One chocolate lover at a time. To your health, sir. Well theres no chocolate involved, just a little pomace in todays pop quiz. In fact our question today, what is pomace . Is it a the solid residue left after pressing grapesb a special stone winemakers use to clean their hands orc a chunk of grape skins sometimes found in old wine barrels . You know the drill, well have the answer coming up after the break. Also ahead. Were just doing the same things that people have been doing for hundreds of years. Making milk the tradional way in wine country. Click on inwinecountry. Com to see behind the scenes photos, watch videos, download podcasts and sign up for our email newsletter. All at inwinecountry. Com. I was having trouble getting out of bed in the morning because my back hurt so bad. The sleep number bed conforms to you. I wake up in the morning with no back pain. I can adjust it if i need to. If my backs a little more sore. And by the time i get up in the morning, i feel great if you have back pain, toss and turn at night or wake up tired with no energy, the sleep number bed could be your solution. The sleep number beds secret is its air chambers which provide ideal support and put you in control of the firmness. And the bed is perfect for couples because each side adjusts independently to their unique sleep number. Heres what Clinical Research has found ® 93 of participants experienced backpain relief. ® 90 reported reduced aches and pains. ® 87 fell asleep faster and enjoyed more deep sleep. For study summaries, call this number now. Well include a free dvd and brochure about the sleep number bed including prices, and models plus a free 50 savings card. And how about this . Steel springs can cause uncomfortable pressure points. But the sleep number bed contours to your body. Imagine how good youll feel when your muscles relax and you fall into a deep sleep im not just a back surgeon, im also a back patient. I sleep on the sleep number bed myself and i highly recommend it to all of my patients. Need another reason to call . The sleep number bed costs about the same as an innerspring but lasts twice as long. So if you want to sleep better or find relief for your bad back, call now. Call the number on your screen for your free information kit with dvd, brochure and price list. Call right now and youll also receive a 50 savings card just for inquiring about the sleep number bed. Ask about our riskfree 30night inhome trial. Call now for your free information kit and a free 50 savings card. Call now welcome back, were in wine country and im mary babbitt. Well did you guess the answer to our pop quiz today, what is pomace . Is it a the solid residue left after pressing grapesb a special stone winemakers use to clean their hands orc a chunk of grape skins sometimes found in old wine barrels . Ill admit it, it sounds like something youd use to clean and soften your skin. And in fact i have a pumice stone at home. But in this case pomace is something different. In fact the answer is a. Pomace is the residue left after pressing grapes. In winemaking terms, pomace is the mass of grape skins, stems, seeds and pulp left over after pressing. Consider this your rock solid pop quiz. You know they make wine in wine country but did you know wine countrys also home to several family owned dairies . And just like some wineries are known for their small production artisan wine, weve discovered a dairy that makes an artisan style of milk called raw milk. Thats milk thats neither pasteurized nor homogenized. We recently visited claravale farm in watsonville, to see homegrown milk made fresh at the dairy. Its early on a chilly morning at claravale dairy farm in santa cruz county. The suns beginning to warm the earth, and the cows are growing restless. Moo theyve lined up to be milked, just as they do every morning, round about the same time. Its what theyve been bred to do for hundreds of years. Theyre very comfortable with it. What theyre not comfortable with, however, is our camera. Dairy cows are creatures of routine, and our camera is definitely not routine. But with gentle prodding from alejandro guzman, the cows amble into place for milking. This is called a claw. This is what we hook up to the udder. It has a vacuum in it a pulsation on it so it kind of mimics a calf sucking on the udder. Ron garthwaiteis the owner of claravale farm. Milking these cows may be the workaday routine for ron, but the milk produced here is anything but ordinary. We do not process the milk at all. So whatever the cows are doing, thats what goes into the bottle. Which means the consumers gonna get a much Higher Quality bottle of milk. Claravale farm is one of only two dairies in california producing raw milk. Rons milk basically goes straight from the cow to the customer. Raw milk is milk that hasnt been cooked. Other milks have been cooked to preserve them. In other words, claravale farm milk is not pasteurized. Nor is it homogenized. Nothing is added to it, nothing is taken out. Some of our customers are really Health Conscious so they buy their milk because its um really nutritious. But the other group that buys it, and probably the bigger group, are people who um are just looking for really high Quality Fresh local food. But claravale farms milk might not be for everyone. Since its not pasteurized, each bottle carries government warnings describing the potential risks. Which might give pause to some folks. If people are nervous about buying it then they shouldnt buy it. Rons small herd is all jersey cows. Animals, by the way, not all that concerned with our camera anymore. Ron says jersies produce Higher Quality milk than the holsteins ranched at most large dairies. Within hours of milking, rons product is hand bottled and shipped out mostly to health foods stores like whole foods and mothers market. This is, of course, the Old Fashioned way to run a dairy. But if you ask ron, its the only way hed say the best way to make milk. So if youre interested in quality if youre interested in food and youre interested in seeing what real milk from a good quality cow tastes like, its a totally different thing. Stay with us, up next, catching a wave in wine country. People who surf a lot and people who are involved in the wine business, they have no choice but to be in touch with nature. Why surfing and making wine are a natural pairing. Click on inwinecountry. Com to see behind the scenes photos, watch videos, download podcasts and sign up for our email newsletter. All at inwinecountry. Com. And if youre on facebook, join our fan page at facebook. Com inwinecountry. See you there. Next week in wine country. A white water adventure where good wine and food are key provisions. Goat cheese fresh as a flower. And, creating a tuscan dream home. Thats all next time, in wine country. The winemakers we meet are passionate about what they do and the wines they make. And, they often have hobbies that are totally unrelated to wine. In the case of Sonoma Countys Longboard Vineyards, winemaker oded shaked is stoked about surfing, collecting and restoring, what else, but longboards. Behind the label, this vintners connection to a restored barn, surfboards and wine. I like finding old longboards and restoring them. I like the idea of trying to preserve the heritage of eh well the surfing tribe if you want. I feel i definitely that i belong to that. Oded shaked is focused on one of his passions restoring a longboard. This board will eventually join odeds collection. The top board is a jacobs and this is actually the exact same board that i had that was my first board in 1972. The bottom board is an interesting one. Its a hobie and if you see right here, at the back of the board theres still the original permit from the city of Newport Beach from 1969. Odeds hobby is also the namesake of his Sonoma County winery, Longboard Vineyards. On all of my labels i tell people spend more time with surfing with friends and family and less time reading the back copy of wine labels. People have bought the wine just because of the label because oh my dad was a surfer or my partner surfs and then they tasted the wine and they said wow, you know we didnt expect it, its a great wine too. The vineyard here, he calls dakine. Dakine of course being a hawaiian word which could almost mean anything you want but i use it in the sense of the best. In this barn that oded also restored, another surfing related item. Ready to see my little baby . Sure. Five years of sanding and varnishing. Oh look at that woodie. Oded is renovating this classic surfer car. This is a real 1951 ford woodie wagon. Its a labor of love. Its almost done, restored. The outside is done, the engine is done. Ive still gotta finish the interior but uh that is uh. Got your name on it. Got my name on it. Now its my turn to be stoked, when oded offers me a ride. Surfs up. This is so cool. A little joy ride up and down westside drivethat was dakine that was dakine. Yeah, you got it. You may have noticed one thing missing at odeds barn. Winemaking equipment. Thats because he makes longboard wines down the road at j vineyards and winery in healdsburg. Where he pulls double duty as js head winemaker. I fit in longboard into my holidays, weekends, after work, whenever i can. Here he also tends to barrels of longboard. This is the silk road syrah. A handson operation, from grape to bottle. Most likely i touched that individual bottle. They do get that. They get part of the dream, part of the hopes, part of the stoke, part of the passion. Its definitely in there. Wine, waves and soul in wine country. Thats gonna do it for our show today. Thank you for joining us. From Longboard Vineyards in Sonoma County, we hope you enjoyed your stay in wine country and well see you again next time. For more information about todays show, log onto our website, inwinecountry. Com