HILLS NEWSPAPERS: December 8, 2011

What is it about holiday lights that we can’t resist? Like moths to a flame, we’re drawn to big, splashy displays of bobbles and bulbs and all things that glitter.

Perhaps it’s a way to counter the low natural sunlight of winter, but there’s no doubt a tree or a building that’s bedecked in bright lights does a lot for lifting our spirits.

So, too, does wine, if we’re to be truthful. There’s something quite grand about the deep berry shades of a rich cabernet or the blush of a light pinot noir. Indeed, the same can be said of a golden chardonnay and a bubbly glass of champagne.

Combining the two — the wine with the eye-candy of holiday lights — is a delight to the senses. It’s in the spirit of the season that I share two of my favorite wine country Christmas towns.

To the north is Healdsburg, reminiscent of a Victorian Christmas with it’s twinkling lights lining the streets and historic town square. The townsfolk take December seriously, and have created a whole calendar of events for Holidays in Healdsburg, including the Strolling Dine Around Dec.14 and 15. What a treat to be able to walk from your inn to a four-course progressive feast. Some of the most celebrated restaurants in Healdsburg are participating, including Charlie Palmer’s Dry Creek Kitchen and Cyrus, along with two more of my favorites — Willi’s Seafood & Raw Bar and Baci. Couple this with a mix of homespun small shops, the world-class Costeaux Bakery andglorious Victorian B&B’s such as the Camellia Inn (circa 1869) and you have a town that transports you to a time when there really was peace on earth.

On the other end of the Bay Area is Livermore, where the downtown has a distinctly western flavor with shops like the long-standing Baughman’s, built back in 1881. The big stallion outside marks this as cowboy country, but with a growing reputation for wine and fine dining. December is a perfect time to visit Livermore’s vineyards because the country roads are quiet and the wineries are adorned with holiday lights and a broad range of wine-related gifts — including “The Wine Seekers’ Guide to the Livermore Valley” by Tom Wilmer. This book is a colorful guide to this rural wine region, where horses and cattle share land with grape growers and the rolling hills rise up to meet the vast, starry sky.