Photo: Courtesy of Lake County
Wednesday, May 23, 2012 - Out and About San Francisco ~ San Jose by Sherrie Perkovich
With 265 days of clear skies, there really isn’t a bad time of year to head to Lake County, a beautiful, little known area known for its wineries, Clear Lake, Mt. Konocti and only it is only about a two-hour drive from San Francisco.
Lake County offers sanctity from the more hectic pace of the Bay Area, and relief from the hustle and bustle of some of the larger wine regions. It possesses great natural beauty in its parks, mountains and lakes, friendliness in its down-to-earth residents, relaxation in the hot springs and spas, and high quality in their inns, restaurants and wines.
With summer nearly upon us, here are a few activities and festivities to lure you to Lake County from now until October.
Lake County, wine country
JUNE
6/16 Cattails and Tules2nd Annual Wine & Food Pairing Festival: Showcasing local restaurants competing for awards. Proceeds benefit Anderson Marsh & Konocti Regional Trails. $40 per person.
6/23 Lake County Home Winemakers’ Festival: annual festival for tasting the wines of more than 40 Northern California home winemakers, as well as wines from commercial Lake County wineries. Live music, tasty local food, art, auction, raffles and more. Proceeds benefit the Lake County Symphony and music programs.
JULY
7/7 Ceago Vinegarden Lavender Festival: Every year the fragrant lavender fields bloom at Jim Fetzer’s organic and biodynamic Ceago Vinegarden. This event is full of food, fun, live music, wine and lavender! 1-5pm $50 per person.
Ceago Vinegarden, Lavender Festival
7/28-29 Lake County Wine Adventure: This 8thannual festival is a wonderful introduction to the world of Lake County wines. It features 25 different wineries serving light food pairings, music, art and more. Tickets start at $35 per person.

