Wine, naturally!

DC Looney is co-owner (with his wife Lisa Costa) of The Punchdown, a natural wine tasting room and wine store in the Barlow. (Photo by Laura Hagar Rush)

In the last few years, Sebastopol has become a mecca for natural wines. There are two restaraunts/wine bars—Piala and The Redwood—that feature natural wines exclusively, and in 2023, the most famous natural wine bar in the Bay Area, The Punchdown, opened a new location—a tasting room and wine store—in the Barlow, the center of Sebastopol’s food and wine maker culture.

Here’s a quick tour of natural wine in Sebastopol.

The Punchdown

The Punchdown opened in Sebastopol in May of this year. It’s their second location. The original, which is located in downtown Oakland, has been open since 2010; it’s a mecca for natural wine fans and was nominated for a James Beard award for their wine selection in 2022.

The owners, DC Looney and Lisa Costa, moved to Sebastopol with their new baby in 2020.

In a way, it was a return to their roots. They met while working the harvest north of Sebastopol at Williams Selyem in 2007. Both have deep wine backgrounds.

“Lisa's actually a certified sommelier,” Looney said. “I have a master's degree in wine marketing that's through an international program, OIV, which is based in Paris. I traveled to 32 countries in two years, learning all about wine.”

The wine selection at the Sebastopol location fills two long walls of their spacious tasting room. They carry wines from around the world—France, Italy, Spain, the Republic of Georgia, Australia, Chile and many more—and have a great selection of locally produced natural wines as well.

What is natural wine?

The phrase “natural wine” refers, in general, to wines made without chemical intervention at all stages of winemaking from vineyard to bottle, but The Punchdown takes that a step further.

“Our favorite wines are what we call “zero-zero” or "super natty" or "vivant" (living). This means that there is nothing added or taken away during the entire winemaking process,” Looney said.

There’s a terrific description of their guiding principles on their website, which includes the following:

• The vineyards should practice a "more than organic" approach. This means that they should be farmed using natural farming principles (organic, biodynamic, ancestral, "do nothing") without the use of chemicals (especially the use of Round-Up which has been shown to be residual in the finished wines in 100% of the vineyards tested that use it). The soils should be teeming with good microbial life, creating a healthy and balanced ecosystem (which is better for our health and the environment too).

• Transparency in the winemaking: minimal intervention throughout the entire wine-making process. No additions of the naturally occurring components (yeast, water, acid, tannin, sugar, enzymes, nutrients, etc.) and especially no chemical additions used to change the flavor, aroma, structure, color, texture of a wine. If grandma doesn't know what it is, then there is no need to add it to our wine. Good healthy fruit can equal good healthy wine; no need to mess around with it too much.

“The point is if you have good healthy organic fruit, you can make a good healthy organic wine. It's been done for hundreds of years,” Looney said.

“We just wanted to sell what we liked,” he said, noting that he and Costa simply don’t drink non-natural wines anymore.

Natural wines have a broader palette of flavors than industrially-produced wines and even some smaller production wines, which have been shaped by interventions to make them fit expected flavor profiles.

Some of the flavors in natural wines are seen as “faults” in modern wine making, but Looney said, “At the end of the day, I'm more accepting of a fault than I am a correction.”

“You might have to adjust your palate and your frame of flavors that you're looking for, but once you make that adjustment then it's hard to go back to other wines,” he said.

He compares it to cheese.

“Somebody's cheese isn’t defective because it smells like feet, right? It’s just a stinky cheese. You know, these are stinky wines,” he said, half-joking. “They have more flavor, and they're not corrected. We drink the purest zero-zeros. We like it to be alive, where it's a natural product that's raw fermented, and our palates are flexible enough, where if it does taste a little different, we like that.”

Looking over the wine selection at Punchdown, you’ll notice a few unusual things that you won’t find even in a well-stocked grocery store wine section: orange wine (which can look like a rosé, but is made from white instead of red grapes); Pét-nats (short for petillant naturel—a precursor to champagne); and unusual blends made from wine varieties rarely seen in the United States. They also have a large selection of naturally made Champagnes and other sparklers.

We asked Looney to recommend some wines for readers who may be unfamiliar with natural wines and want a little guidance. (One thing you’ll notice as you scan the shelves here is the near absence of well-known winery names – the thing most people go by when choosing a wine.) You could also, of course, just go to The Punchdown for a tasting (so fun!) and choose based on that as well.

Three wines for people new to natural wines

Domaine Saint Germain's Crac Boum'bu Blanc, Onda Brava Moscatel de Alexandria, and Garrut (a Mourvedre)

Domaine Saint Germain's Crac Boum'bu Blanc. Coming from the Savoie region of France, the white wine is a field blend of Jacquère, Chardonnay, and Malvoisie. It’s harvested early which results in lower alcohol. “Really fresh,” Looney said. “It tastes like snowmelt.”

Onda Brava Moscatel de Alexandria. Some of the first wine varieties in the Americas, which were brought over from Spain, still thrive in Chile. Moscatel of Alexandria is one of these. Sixty- to 100-year-old vines yield grapes that are hand-destemmed and foot-trodden. This wine is a partnership between a winemaker from the Sierra Foothills and his counterpart in Chile.

Garrut is the Spanish name for the red grape known as Mourvedre or Mataro. Looney calls this wine by Spanish winemaker Jordi Llorens “light, fresh and fun. This is a really easy drinking light red that we would call ‘glou glou,’” which is the French slang for the sound of the bottle tipped upside down. From the Catalonia region of Spain.

And don’t forget about the tinned fish!

Tinned fish at The Punchdown in Sebastopol.

Popular at natural wine bars everywhere, tinned fish is having its moment. The Punchdown has an entire wall of tinned fish, perfect for stocking stuffers.

The Punchdown is located at 6770 McKinley St, Ste 130, in the Barlow, Sebastopol, next door to Indigenous Clothing. (707) 827-3483. Find them online at punchdownwine.com.

Sebastopol’s two restaurants specializing in natural wine

In addition to The Punchdown, which serves light snacks, there are two natural-wine-oriented restaurants in Sebastopol:

Georgian cuisine with natural wine at Piala

Piala is a wine bar and restaurant, which specializes in Georgian cuisine. It is located at 7233 Healdsburg Ave., Sebastopol. (707) 861-9186. pialanaturalwine.com. (Note: they’ll be closed for the holidays from Dec. 24 to Jan. 2.)

The menu at The Redwood is designed around natural wines.

The Redwood is a natural wine bar and cafe, offering small plates and dinners of well-curated, locally sourced specialties. The restaurant, which also has a bottle shop, opened in February and was founded by Khom Loi alumni Geneva Melby and Ryan Miller. It is located at 234 S Main St, Sebastopol. (707) 861-9730. theredwoodwine.com

Nourish your soul in Sebastopol

More than just love spells: Milk and Honey is a full service Goddess store.

Sebastopol is a magical place. The influx of hippies in the 1960s and 70s and the continuous stream of spiritual seekers up from the Bay Area have given Sebastopol a certain je ne c’est quoi that continues to draw those interested in the spiritual side of life.

Here are a few must-sees on the spiritual tour of Sebastopol:

Milk and Honey: Seriously, how many small towns in America have a Goddess store on Main Street in the very center of downtown? Sebastopol does. This place puts the witch in witchy. It’s all here: a large selection of tarot cards; goddess statues; books on magic; magic potions for love, money and more; tiny cauldrons; wands; and oodles of magic rocks.

Amazing rocks, magical and otherwise, at Sagestone

Sagestone:  Speaking of magic rocks. Check out the giant crystals at Sagestone, which is conveniently located right across the street from Milk & Honey. You don’t have to have a penchant for the supernatural to be fascinated by the earthly wonders of Sagestone, which carries a huge array of crystals, fossils and other cool rock-related objets.

The Labyrinth at St. Stephen’s Episcopal. Labyrinths date back to the ancient world. Think of it as slowly (and circularly) walking your way to inner peace. This one, which was built by the church’s members a few years ago, is meant to be used as a tool for prayer and meditation. St. Stephen’s takes ecumenicism seriously and invites all serious and respectful seekers to enjoy walking their labyrinth, which is based on the labyrinth in the floor of Chartres Cathedral.

Give body and soul a workout with ecstatic dance.

Ecstatic Dance. A musician who had toured all over the world once told a local journalist that Sebastopol had its own unique dance style, which he called “noodle dancing.” You can see plenty of noodle dancing – and every other type of dancing —  in action at Sebastopol Ecstatic Dance, which happens on the first and third Fridays at 7 pm at the Sebastopol Youth Annex, 425 Morris Street. The $20 entry feel includes a sound healing at the end of the evening. You can also see (and participate) in ecstatic dance (of the noodle variety) in the downtown plaza every Sunday afternoon after the Sebastopol Farmers Market, when drummers set up in the gazebo and beat those bongos until dark.

Sound Bathing. Sound bathing is the hot new therapy/past-time in Sebastopol if you look at the sheer number of events involing this unusual healing modality. According to its proponents, “Sound healing creates the space for self-healing and transformation using the power of vibration to re-harmonize the entire body to its most beneficial state. When we hear the frequencies, our cells become attuned to that vibration and this creates a harmonic state for healing within the body.” You can find sound healing events on the third Friday each month at the Sebastopol Community Cultural Center and and frequently at Soft Medicine, a new elixer bar and event space on Main Street.

Soft Medicine. Speaking of groovy healing modalities, you can find many of them on offer at Soft Medicine, a 20-something hang-out in Sebastopol’s main drag that offers food and libations for body and soul. According to their website, “The lounge is set up to create a healing space for everyone that enters, and we listen to the community's needs for space and what events touch them most.” Look for Indian music and electronica, sound healing, ecstatic dance and other soul-healing dances, and much more at this fashionable new hot spot.

Rosemary’s Garden. Sebastopol famous herb emporium, Rosemary’s Garden, has a knowledgeable staff and a vast array of herbs and housemade herbal remedies in a beautiful peaceful space on Sebastopol’s busy Main Street. This herbal apothecary offers organic Western, Chinese, Ayurvedic, Latin and culinary herbs, as well as books about herbs, holistic skin care, herbal extracts, essential oils, flower essences, and custom teas.

Many Rivers has tools for spiritual practices of all sorts.

Funk and Flash. Not exactly spiritual but definitely a sartorial walk on the wild side, Funk and Flash sells rave and festival wear. Colored wigs, a wide variety of unique duds for wild occasions, and gorgeous creative T-shirts with arcane symbols on them. This place is a Sebastopol original.

Many Rivers. If you’re looking for books about almost any spiritual, religious or psychological tradition under the sun, chances are they’ve got what you’re looking for. They’ve also got incense, prayer beads and other spiritual tools for serious seekers. And tons of good teas and tea accoutrements.

Bliss Organic Day Spa. Soak your troubles aways at the Bliss Bath House on Main Street and if that doesn’t mellow out your aura, Bliss has a whole menu of spa treatments that will. The space itself is gorgeous - with towering ceilings and floating swirls of fabric in soothing colors. Everything here is meant to make you exhale deeply - out with the bad energy - then breathe in deeply - in with the good energy. So, so soothing.

Resources:

Bliss Organic Day Spa

Funk & Flash

Many Rivers Books & Tea

Milk & Honey

Rosemary’s Garden

Sagestone Gallery

Soft Medicine

Farm Livin' is the Life for Me

Sebastopol's agricultural heritage runs deep. You can see it in the weekly farmers market and in the many farm-to-table eateries around town. Here are a few ways to enjoy the bounty:

Sebastopol Farmers Market

At the Sebastopol Farmers Market

Check out the year long Sebastopol Farmer’s Market, every Sunday, 10 am – 1:30 pm, in the downtown Plaza. Artisan cheeses, locally baked breads, herbs, sprouts, handspun wool, teas, produce and flowers all make a bountiful appearance each week. Children play in the fountain. Musicians play in the gazebo. Enjoy dancing to the music, or take your turn with a hula hoop!

You can also buy lunch at the Farmers’ Market. There are a wide range of options including organic breakfast and lunch fare, homemade tamales, sushi burritos, Indian curries and from-scratch paella.

Farm Stays and U-Picks

Western Sonoma County is home to many small family farms. Check out Sonoma County Farm Trails to find maps to farms you can visit, U-Pick farms, events at local farms, and farms that offer overnight lodging.

The magical Gravenstein Apple

Gravenstein apples on the tree

Sebastopol's heirloom apple, the Gravenstein, is known for its crisp, slightly sweet, slightly tart flavor. In the early 1900s there were over 11,000 acres of Gravenstein orchards. The Gravenstein is our town emblem. We celebrate the springtime with the Apple Blossom Festival: a delightful hometown parade down Main Street on Saturday morning and live music, dancing, food and crafts over the rest of the weekend. Gravensteins are ready to harvest from mid-July to August. No one wants to miss the Gravenstein Apple Fair, dubbed the “sweetest Little Fair in Sonoma County,” which happens every August. Bring the kids to the oak-studded fields of Ragle Ranch Park to see the draft horses, watch the little two-stroke antique engines at work, or enter the pie-eating contest. Dance to live music, sing along with the Love Choir, and enjoy local food, arts and crafts. Something for everyone at this delightful village hoe-down.

Farm-to-Glass

Sebastopol is also part of the Wine Country. For those in search of wine, beer, cider or spirits, there are tasting rooms all over town and at the Barlow, the 12-acre maker marketplace where you can meet the makers, often right there on the premises.

Pinot Noir grapes

You can also visit some of the many award-winning small family vineyards that dot the hillsides and valleys around Sebastopol. Sebastopol's wineries are located smack in the middle of three overlapping appellations (the french word for grape-growing regions): The Russian River Valley appellation, the smaller Green Valley appellation, and the overarching Sonoma Country appellation. Sebastopol wineries make several varieties of wine, but thanks to the fog that pours over the western hills in the early evening all summer, our region is world famous for two cool weather varietals: Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Pinot Noir is light, luscious and complex red wine, while west Sonoma County county Chardonnays are bright and crisp - a whole other universe from the blousy, oaky Chardonnays of yore.

Check out the Russian River Valley Winegrowers to locate vineyards by wine variety, those with tours or picnic facilities, those that are organic and those that are kid- and pet-friendly.

Farm-to-Table

Sebastopol lies at the foot of the fertile Gold Ridge, where a famous early 20th century plant breeder named Luther Burbank established his Experiment Farm because, as he said, “I firmly believe, from what I have seen, that this is the chosen spot of all this earth as far as Nature is concerned.”

With so much agricultural abundance, Sebastopol is full of farm-to-table restaurants. Area chefs pride themselves on their use of local ingredients, ranging from cheesecakes crafted with locally made chevre to seasonal entrees cooked with produce picked just that morning. And if you have special dietary needs (e.g., vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free), many of our restaurants highlight those options specially on the menu.

See our list of local restaurants, conveniently organized by type of cuisine.

Farm-to-Patient

And in Sebastopol, we know that good food is good medicine. One of our premier non-profits is the Ceres Project where local teens are taught organic gardening and commercial culinary skills as they prepare foods that are delivered free to area residents coping with a serious illness. The mission of the Ceres Project is to energize communities by linking what we eat and how we care for each other with the health of people and the planet. What’s not to love?!?!

Herbs and Cannabis. Local cannabis growers are well-represented in the local cannabis shops, and local herbalists sell their wares in local herb shops and at the farmers market. If what ails you, can be solved with herbs or a little CBD, you can find a list of your options here.

Follow Your Art: A Guide to Artistic Sebastopol

Sebastopol is brimming with artists, musicians, actors, authors, dancers and creative thinkers. We are often considered the cultural center for west Sonoma County, and no wonder.

Visual Arts

Do we love murals in Sebastopol!

Walk west from the Plaza on McKinley Street and you will see the Coyote mural extending all along the north side of the Oddfellows Building. Painted as a community event, facilitated by muralist Dave Gordon, the mural depicts the ocean creation myth of the Pomo people who inhabited this area before the European settlers. You can see other murals on Edman Way (near the parking lot behind City Hall and the Library), such as Dana Vallarino’s “See the World in an Apple Seed.”

The Sebastopol Center for the Arts (SEbARTS)

Sebastopol Center for the Arts hosts  community and international exhibitions throughout the year, like its yearly Abstract and Black and White exhibitions, as well as the biennial Fabric Arts show, bringing cutting-edge work to Sonoma County. In addition, SebARTS hosts two open studio tours a year where locals and visitors are invited into the workspace of Sonoma County artists. Art at the Source occurs in early June, while Sonoma County Art Trails takes place at the end of September. On these self-guided adventures, you can watch the artists at work, learn about their creative processes, and purchase art.

Art Galleries

There are numerous galleries of fine arts and artisanal works located in the historic downtown of Sebastopol, and at The Barlow, showing the best of local Sonoma County artists and fine artists nationwide and from around the world.  

Folk Art

Folk art is alive and well in Sebastopol. Check out the whimsical sculptures of Patrick Amiot, whose neighbors on Florence Ave graciously host his “junk art” characters made from tea kettles and alarm clocks, gas cans and buckets. There you will find mermaids, the Mad Hatter, Babe Ruth, Batman, Godzilla and wild-eyed Pele (the Soccer Player).

Theatre Arts

Sebastopol is rich with theater offerings, both the live stage and in cinema. Located at the primary intersection of Main St. and Bodega Ave (Highways 116 and 12), Main Stage West offers live performances with a unique pairing of a wine tasting room in the lobby.

Rialto Cinemas, on the edge of the Barlow, provide access to art films as well as closed circuit broadcasts of the Metropolitan Opera, the Bolshoi Ballet, London’s National Theater Live broadcasts, tours of famous museums, and a delightful Academy Awards Viewing Party.

The Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival is counted as one of the top 10 documentary events in the country with films presented from all over the world. The films cover topics from the light and entertaining to serious contemporary issues. Frequently the director, producer or a representative will be available after the screening to talk about the production and answer questions from the audience.

Music

You can find national and local bands, like Burnside (above), almost every night at different venues in Sebastopol. (Photo by Jason Baldwin)

You can find live music almost every night in Sebastopol. Peacetown, a unique Sebastopol institution, sponsors a musical extravanza with multiple stages every Wednesday night throughout the summer in the Barlow, and over the weekend wineries, breweries or local restaurants, like Hopmonk, come alive with live music of all sorts. The Sebastopol Community Cultural Center brings folk and acoustic acts from around the country, and Sebastopol Center for the Arts hosts concerts during the summer and a sing-along Messiah at Christmas.

So whatever your artistic interests, follow your art to Sebastopol. You’ll find lots of artistic activities, as well as like-minded artists and art lovers. It’s that kind of town.