The Sonoma Spiel

What makes a hotel feel like part of its hometown? For Kendall Comfort, General Manager of Sonoma Valley Inn, it starts with the people.

This week on The Sonoma Spiel, Kendall joins Tim Zahner for a conversation about growing up in Sonoma, building a hospitality career, and helping visitors feel at home in wine country. Approaching 30 years with the same hotel, she shares how a front desk job became a career spanning meetings, events, and hotel management.

Kendall takes us behind the scenes at Sonoma Valley Inn, discussing its family ownership, walkable location near Sonoma Plaza, and place within Hilton’s Tapestry Collection. We also talk about guest reviews, communicating special requests before arrival, and the joys—and occasional surprises—of welcoming travelers with pets.

In “We Get Questions,” we tackle Thanksgiving visits, quieter-season travel, ferry connections for a Sonoma trip, California state park careers, stops in Forestville, and ideas for a Sunday in Sonoma. There’s also an unexpected detour into Kendall’s love of horses.

Expect practical travel ideas, local stories, and a few very memorable animal encounters.

IN THIS EPISODE

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The Sonoma Spiel is presented by the Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau. Follow the podcast for more conversations with the people who make Sonoma Valley special.

Come hungry: Sonoma Magazine dining editor Heather Irwin returns to The Sonoma Spiel for a lively conversation about Sonoma Valley and Sonoma County restaurants, food trends, and the people behind the plates.

Heather and host Tim Zahner sip milkshakes from Smash while talking about Spread Kitchen’s dirty fries, burgers at Little Lou’s, Swiss Hotel’s back patio, and the pleasures of discovering a restaurant you’ve overlooked for years.

Is brunch really dead? Heather makes the case for the “brunchería,” where Mexican-inspired breakfast dishes, family gatherings, and mimosa flights keep the brunch spirit alive. We also discuss early dinner reservations, later dining, and why Sonoma’s farms and local ingredients remain at the heart of its food scene.

Heather shares the story of founding Sonoma Family Meal after the 2017 wildfires and its evolution into culinary training. She also explains why her food writing focuses on people and stories—and why supporting local journalism matters.

In “We Get Questions,” we tackle seafood stops, restaurant ideas for a group of 10, and a wine-country outing that begins with the ferry and SMART train before meeting a local driver.

One question remains: Where are the great nachos? Send us your recommendations!

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The Sonoma Spiel is hosted by Tim Zahner, CEO of the Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau.

Jimi Good grows food at Oak Hill Farm in Glen Ellen, but around October, well all know him as “the pumpkin guy.” Jimi joins The Sonoma Spiel to tell the story of Pumpkin Day, including how a harvest gathering with pumpkins and fresh-pressed cider acquired a trebuchet.

The conversation wanders through Oak Hill Farm’s history, Jimi and Melissa Bucklin’s approach to farming, New Mexico green chiles, winter squash, and a beloved fingerling potato. Jimi also joins Tim for “We Get Questions,” answering visitor questions about Sonoma Valley.

Find Oak Hill Farm, its Red Barn Store hours, and event information at https://www.oakhillfarm.net/. Plan a Sonoma Valley visit at https://www.sonomavalley.com/.

What does it take to drive a trolley full of wine tasters around Sonoma Valley—and keep everyone informed and entertained along the way?

Paul Hendricks of the Sonoma Valley Wine Trolley joins The Sonoma Spiel to talk about his 11 years as a trolley driver and guide. His unconventional journey includes living in Germany, working around the Los Angeles music scene, studying improv in Chicago and leading international travelers on multiweek adventures through America’s national parks.

Paul explains how the Sonoma Valley Wine Trolley combines local history, winery visits, lunch and plenty of humor. He also shares advice for new wine tasters, discusses the appeal of Sonoma’s family-owned wineries and answers practical visitor questions about shipping wine home, evening dining, nonalcoholic options, children at tastings and tipping a tour guide.

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Questions about Sonoma Valley? Email [email protected] or text 707-996-1090.

Pumpkin patches, grape stomps, haunted wineries—and a pumpkin-spice taste test nobody asked for!

Michelle Lacy of the Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau and Mark Bodenhamer of the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce join Tim Zahner for a lively guide to fall in Sonoma Valley.

Discover seasonal events, harvest experiences, fall hikes, Halloween celebrations and pumpkin patches around Sonoma, Glen Ellen and Kenwood. The group also shares recommendations for restaurants, breakfast, coffee, pastries and the best places to see fall colors.

Meanwhile, Tim challenges Michelle and Mark to sample an increasingly questionable assortment of pumpkin-spice coffee, pretzels, rice cakes, snack cakes and protein bars.

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The Sonoma Spiel is produced by the Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau. Visit one of our two visitor centers, email [email protected] or text 707-996-1090 for personalized recommendations.

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The Valley of the Moon Vintage Festival returns September 24–27, 2026, and Robyn Sebastiani of the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance joins Tim Zahner with everything you need to know.

Sonoma’s signature harvest celebration includes a communal Harvest Dinner around City Hall, dueling pianos, a 5K and one-mile fun run, the Blessing of the Grapes, the historic grape stomp, a free daytime festival, live music, local artisans, family activities and the Sonoma Valley Grand Tasting at the historic Sonoma Barracks.

Robyn also explains the festival’s “Year of Community” theme, its support for local nonprofits and student scholarships, limited-edition Sonoma Valley wines and the Lighted Tractor Parade coming after Thanksgiving.

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Peter Sichel escaped Nazi Germany, joined the U.S. Army after Pearl Harbor, worked for the OSS during World War II and became a CIA station chief in Berlin at the dawn of the Cold War. He later returned to his family’s wine business and helped turn Blue Nun into an international phenomenon.

His daughter, Bettina Sichel of Laurel Glen Vineyard, shares the extraordinary story behind the documentary “The Last Spy”—from her father’s work with the French Resistance and early Cold War intelligence operations to his growing concerns about the CIA’s involvement in overthrowing foreign governments.

Bettina also explains why she created Laurel Glen’s PS Riesling as a tribute to her father, complete with a tiny blue nun on the label.

The conversation also covers:

• Peter Sichel’s Jewish family and their escape from Nazi Germany

“The Last Spy,” directed by Katharina Otto-Bernstein, will be presented at Sonoma’s historic Sebastiani Theatre on October 22 and 23, 2026, with live Q&A programs.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22:

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 23:

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What turns a cucumber into a naturally fermented pickle—and how is that different from simply adding vinegar?

Sam Paone, founder of Golden State Pickle Works and Collective Cultures, joins Tim Zahner for a delicious tour of pickles, probiotics and Sonoma County farmers market culture.

Sam shares how growing up in Hawaii, working in Bay Area kitchens and cooking with just-picked Sonoma produce inspired her to start preserving vegetables instead of wasting them. She also walks Tim through an impressive tasting menu: deli-style half-sour cucumbers, fermented ranch potato salad, Pepperonata Slaw, Allium Aioli, fermented strawberry-cucumber relish and probiotic gazpacho.

They also discuss:

• How salt, water and beneficial bacteria transform vegetables

During “We Get Questions,” Sam helps answer visitor questions about places to eat before Broadway Under the Stars, boutique Sonoma Valley wineries, bringing children to wineries, the 30th anniversary of Scream and where to find fermented foods around Sonoma.

SHOP, LEARN AND FIND WORKSHOPS

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Long before Joseph Hooker became a prominent Union general, he was stationed in Gold Rush-era Sonoma, where a bitter dispute with Army engineer and humorist George H. Derby led to accusations, arrests and two extraordinary courts-martial.

Local historian and author Travis Wagner joins Tim Zahner to discuss his book, Military Honor on Trial: The Saga of Joseph Hooker and George H. Derby. Travis traces the conflict between the ambitious, notoriously prickly Hooker and Derby, a gifted satirist who wrote as John Phoenix and Squibob.

Their feud involved a stolen horse, competing ideas about military authority and allegations that Hooker profited from selling Army supplies. It also drew in officers who would later become major Civil War figures, including Henry Halleck and William T. Sherman.

The conversation ranges across Sonoma’s Mexican and military history, the Russian presence at Fort Ross, California’s early theater culture and a newspaper prank that changed San Diego politics.

In “We Get Questions,” Travis and Tim discuss family-owned Sonoma Valley wineries, tipping tour guides, the Sonoma Plaza restrooms, the historical flags displayed around town and why locals call it the Sonoma Plaza—not the Sonoma Square.

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Save up to 25% on Sonoma wine tastings with the Sonoma Tasting Pass! Choose three great wineries in Sonoma Valley:

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Codi Binkley grew up touring in a converted school bus, became a musician and eventually helped transform a long-vacant building on Sonoma Plaza into B&V Whiskey Bar & Grille.

Codi joins Sonoma Spiel host Tim Zahner to share stories from his unconventional Sonoma journey. He explains how he and Executive Chef Carlo Cavallo built B&V, why its early days were filled with live music and how his experiences touring with The Whiskey Thieves shaped his approach to hospitality.

And then the good stuff: an oversized burger bearing Codi’s name, the pirate flag that stirred up controversy, rumors of tunnels beneath Sonoma Plaza and a hidden wishing well.

During “We Get Questions,” Codi and Tim answer practical wine-country questions, including what to wear wine tasting, where visitors can stomp grapes, whether Sonoma Valley has cooperative tasting rooms and which winery experiences may work well for families traveling with children.

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ABOUT THE SONOMA SPIEL

The Sonoma Spiel introduces you to the people, places and stories that make Sonoma Valley such a special destination. The podcast is produced by the Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau.

Plan your Sonoma Valley visit:

Questions about Sonoma Valley?

Email: [email protected]

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ExperienceSonomaValley

VISIT OUR SONOMA VALLEY VISITOR CENTERS

Historic Sonoma Plaza

Jacuzzi Family Vineyards

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