Images of our new spa taken by photographer Edward Duarte

In partnership with Francis and Alexander (of Auberge du Soleil, Calistoga Ranch, Solage, and Mansion on Peachtree fame, just to name a few) Farmhouse, or rather I, get to announce the launch of our fabulous new farm-to-table spa- Spa at Farmhouse, by Francis and Alexander.  Romantic couples treatments, girls getaways or individual therapeutic healing, our new spa embraces and celebrates it all!  Exciting, huh?  Well, it really, really is for us.  Spas are hard.  Really hard.  I should know.  My brother, Joe and I have been at this for nine years.  And we’re just getting it right. 

Peggy Francis and Loma Alexander

 Joe and I bought the then rundown and oh so creepy (but loaded with potential and a great location in the Russian River Valley Wine Country!)  Farmhouse back in 2001 (Valentine’s Day was our first day of ownership), with an incredibly optimistic business plan and about $.50 to update the entire property and realize our “vision”  (oh my!).   

For what seemed like the worst, but turned out to be the better, we didn’t have the upfront money to simply come in and fix everything that was wrong .  We had to do it bit by bit, as we earned the money.  But, in retrospect, we could have spent millions- and we’d have spent it all wrong. Our first “direction” for the property “Wine Country Chic Amid the Vines” (what does that even mean?) involved a lot of shiny fabric that couldn’t be burned with a blow torch or stained with squid ink…  (apparently we didn’t have much faith in our guests-to-be…)  Although we’ve always emphasized local, seasonal and organic- for ages, we just didn’t know how to take that out of the restaurant and into the rest of the business.

We”ll, through endless fits and starts, we’ve finally come to a point where Farmhouse is a truly Farm-to-Table property-wide.  Meaning that the food and products from the farm, ours and our neighbors,  make their way into every corner of the business.  From breakfast to spa to dinner to the product you use in your after dinner bath, the farm is present.

Early winter honey from the bees on our ranch

Last year we added the Barn, redecorated and re-renovated the Cottages and restaurant- and last but far from least, we’re finally launching the spa we’ve been dreaming of.

The spa has been, by far, the toughest thing to get our arms around.  When we purchased Farmhouse, our then marketing consultant convinced us that we needed a “spa”.  Guests of a “Wine Country Chic” Inn wanted massage!  Well, that sounded good to us.  So we hired a local massage therapist to head it up, got some phone numbers from some local therapists and voila!  Most of our rooms were too small to fit a massage table, so our “spa” moved all over the property, each location weirder, colder and more remote than the last. 

Finally, about 5 years ago, Joe and I decided to give our little spa a home at last.  Still, with no budget, we committed our vast and completely under utilized “event center” (that’s a whole other story) to the spa.  We built some walls, painted them sky blue and yellow (I know, what was I thinking), brought in a wonderful local woman to “manage” it, and called it a day.  With grand dreams of farm-to-table treatments, utilizing our own cream, eggs and honey, Joe and I waited.  And waited.  And, what we ultimately found out was that spa is easy to talk about and as hard to make happen as a Michelin Starred restaurant.  See, we’re learning as we go!

Outdoor massage, fireside on a Barn deck

This time, I think we’ve done it right.  We turned to Myra Hoefer again for the interior design.  Weathered wood floors, creamy wainscotted walls and fresh, farmy accents have evolved our two spa rooms into cozy, warm and simply lovely spaces.  Our great room has been transformed into a haven for relaxation.  Comfy chairs, ottomans and sofas invite guests to choose one of our many lovely spa, art or design books off our huge farm table (or bring a book of their own) and stay a while. 

One of our lovely new spa rooms, designed by Myra Hoefer

Well, I’m so pleased and proud of the partnership that we’ve created and that’s resulted in our incredible new spa!  Please, take a look at our new spa menu, an actual masterpiece by Francis and Alexander.  We think it’s simply delightful- and hope you’ll join us soon and take advantage of one of our new treatments.  They’re all so exciting and will make you feel divine.   ”Catherine’s Favorite” really is my favorite.  Every time I have it my five year old daughter makes me bring her a towel with the delicious scented oil for her to sleep with (cute, huh?).  But the Carrot, Carrot, Carrot is wonderful too.  Loma actually has added a fresh carrot eye treatment and has been finishing it up with a carrot muffin.  So Carrot times 5?  Maybe too much.  Then again, maybe not.

My own naivete continues to amaze me.  I could be talking about any number of weird little things that come up during the course of a day- but, in this instance, I’m talking about a little conversation my brother and I had, sitting in this very cramped, little office, about a year ago.  It went something like this, “Cath, this construction project is really a lot of work”.  “True, Joe, but once the building’s up and we have all of the interior work done, then we can really relax for a while.”  “Yeah, wow, what are we going to do with all of our time??”  “Well, Joe, I hadn’t thought about that.  Probably take some vacations?  And I’ll have time to blog all the time!”…

Needless to say, once we finished building the building and expanding the property, we had to learn how to run the thing.  And, while it’s been challenging in a number of ways, to go from a tidy little ten room country inn to what really amounts to a small hotel, in a recession to boot,  I don’t think we’d change a thing. 

So, this is a long way of saying that I really thought I’d have more time to write blog entries.  But, I spend all of my time working on sales, marketing and public relations programs, plus all of the wonderful fun day-to-day stuff that still goes on everyday.  Joe and I have brought on some amazing, incredibly talented consultants to help us brand and position Farmhouse, and now we have a lot of meetings.  But, boy, have we learned a lot.  And it has actually been so much fun!

But, here it is, a super-rainy day.  Joe’s gone on an actual vacation (Nevada to take the kids to see the in-laws, but I’m calling it a vacation…)  My meetings are done for the day.  The river is rising, and I’m drinking a fabulous cup of cocoa and thinking about how lucky I am. 

Here’s the recipe for the cocoa and marshmallows- in case you’re in the mood for something cozy.  (This is a great rainy day project with kids, too).

Cocoa Mix

2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup cocoa (we use Valhrona)
2 1/2 cups powdered milk
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 pinch cayenne pepper, or more to taste
Homemade marshmallows
Hot water or millk
Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and incorporate evenly. In a small pot, heat 4 to 6 cups of water.Fill your mug half full with the mixture and pour in hot water or milk. Stir to combine. Add marshmallows to taste. Seal the rest in an airtight container, keeps indefinitely in the pantry.

Vanilla or Peppermint Marshmallows       
 
3 envelopes of unflavored gelatin ·        
1/2 cup cold water ·        
2 cups granulated sugar ·        
2/3 cups corn syrup ·        
1/4 cup water ·        
1/4 teaspoon salt ·        
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla or peppermint extract ·        
Confectioners’ sugar for dredging
Preparation:
In the bowl of an electric mixer, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water. Soak for 10 minutes.
Combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil hard for 1 minute. Pour boiling syrup into gelatin and mix at high speed. Add the salt and beat for 12 minutes. Add extract and incorporate into mixture.
 Scrape into a 9 x 9-inch pan lined with oiled plastic wrap and spread evenly.
(Note: Lightly oil hands and spatula or bowl scraper).
After pouring marshmallow mixture into the pan, take another piece of plastic wrap and press mixture into the pan.
Let mixture sit for a few hours. Remove from pan, dredge the marshmallow slab with confectioners’ sugar and cut into 12 equal pieces with scissors (the best tool for the job) or a chef’s knife. Dredge each piece of marshmallow in confectioners’ sugar.

Hope you enjoy it.  I sure am.

Do you do that?  I do.  If I’m working on a yard project of just my annual “junk purge”, I schedule a party (yes, those of you who know me, knot that I’ll throw a party for just about any reason) and voila!  instant incentive to keep to a schedule.  Joe and I have been working for months now on the final “renovation project”, well, final in this round anyway, at Farmhouse.  The Spa and Carriage House.  We’ve converted an under utilized room adjacent to the spa building into a multi purpose room/salon.

About a month ago, I started to realize that this was one of those projects that could linger, half finished with loads of potential, into infinity.  So, when my good friend, Kathryn Sloan of Small Vines winery mentioned that she was having a hard time finding a venue for her annual release party, as they say “a light bulb went off” (I know, on).  So I suggested she use my awesome new Carriage House.  When I took her up to show her- and she looked around at the piles of debris (from our expansion/remodel earlier in the year), scratched walls and hideous curtains, I could hear her thinking “Great, Cath, thanks for the offer!”. 

But, to her credit, she took me up on it and it worked.  By this Saturday morning, we were painted, re furnished, paintings on the walls, candles lit and ready to welcome her guests.  Kathryn and Paul did us credit!  Their wines are fabulous and showed beautifully. Here’s Paul pouring his lovely pinot noir.

Small Vines Winemaker, Paul Sloan

our new Carriage House Salon

What fun!  Myra Hoefer (who did our Barn and all of our renovation) came in and worked her magic on this one too.  A long rustic farm table flanked by beautiful linen-draped chairs, a huge carriage-house lantern with lovely candles, slipper chairs and comfy arm chairs all work together to create an environment that is elegant yet casual and very welcoming.

This room has a great future at Farmhouse.  For the holidays this year, it will play home to our new, complimentary to Farmhouse guests, Artisan Crafting programs, Wine Tasting Classes with our MS, Geoff Kruth or Matt Stamp, Visiting Winemaker Series and much more.   We’ll also use it for small meetings, tiny weddings and we have some great Spa Day packages in the works.

So, take a look at our Holiday packages, I hope you’ll come visit and take advantage of our new space and all its offerings!