Sonoma Valley- Napa Valley Wine Country: Real Locations used in Just a Kiss novel

"I’ll take you there... Let me take you there…”

I had so much fun writing Just a Kiss.  It was the perfect excuse to tell a hot and sweet love story and set the tale in my home town. Grounded in romance and vino, my characters live and work in Napa - Sonoma wine country, an hour north of San Francisco. 

The Single Girls Wine Club series centers around three roommates who live in an historic estate in Sonoma Valley called “Bella Villa.” In future books, each woman, will be treated to a toe-curling love affair she never saw coming. 

There's a reason I'm known as "The Real Wine Wife" on Twitter! Many of the book’s venues are “real” wine country locations. I also use actual events and pour genuine wine whenever possible throughout my Single Girls Wine Club series.

So, without further ado, let's dive into a few story scenes from the debut book of the series, Just a Kiss.

Pour a glass of your favorite vino and let me show you around wine country…

*All of the photos are my own.

In Just a Kiss, Lulu Castelli is the landlord of “Bella Villa” but she's more like a friend to the three women who live there. The actual building is an exact replica of the family home “Count,”Agoston Haraszthy built for his family in the 1800s. It's now on the Bartholomew Winery property in Sonoma.

This is Sarah Dupont’s view in  Just a Kiss. In real life, the original owner of this estate founded Buena Vista Winery.   I remember the day I took this photo. I kept thinking, what if someone still lived here? What if she had roommates? What if she met the love of her life?

In Just a Kiss, Lulu Castelli is the great granddaughter of a famous winemaker very similar to Agoston Haraszthy.  Mr. Haraszthy, the self-proclaimed “Count of Buena Vista,” created California’s first premium winery in Sonoma Valley in 1857.

Just a Kiss is the first of three stories planned in The Single Girls Wine Club series. The novel centers on the love story of Sarah Dupont and Jamie Santino. 

The story begins when Sarah Dupont takes the advice of her best friend and moves to Sonoma Valley. She opens a café in the heart of town, on the Sonoma Plaza.

 

There really is a bakery-café on The Plaza.  I didn’t use the actual name because Sarah and Jamie do the kinds of things there that get “real” people fired. :) Sarah’s shop is called The Vine Café.

Do you notice the green awning in the photo above? Sebastiani Theatre is a California landmark and plays an integral role in the story because Jamie Santino is an actor.  Sarah meets him when one of her roommates convinces her to give Jamie baking lessons for an upcoming movie role.  

A much older crowd than Jamie Santino pulls in!  I snapped this from the café next to the theatre. I think they were showing a documentary about eggs.

 

All six of the gorgeous Santino brothers appear throughout The Single Girls Wine Club stories. In Just a Kiss, although Jamie Santino is the "star" of the story, you'll meet all of his brothers. Their family owns Napa Valley's Santino Family Winery.  So of course, I had to do some "research." 

Here I am hard at work at B.R. Cohn Winery...

Now, back to the tour…

The annual lighting of the Sonoma Plaza Christmas tree is mentioned in the book's first scene. My family attends this magical event every year.

Collage of various photos of Sonoma and Napa events. Top left is the annual lighting of the Sonoma Plaza’s Christmas tree. I'm standing in front of the plaza, facing the crowd.

 

Vineyard Colors: There's a moment in Just a Kiss when Sarah Dupont looks out her window and contemplates the future. This is what she sees.

I hope you enjoyed the mini-tour!  If you'd like to see more of wine country and Just a Kiss story scenes, check out my photo gallery on www.KateKisset.com here. 

             Buy Just a Kiss on Amazon.

About Kate Kisset: 

Former San Francisco radio disc jockey Kate Kisset has a passion for telling great stories.

After playing thousands of Pop, Country, Rock and Oldies tunes, for her primarily female fan base, she changed her tune and became an author. 

Just a Kiss is the first book in her wine country romance series, The Single Girls Wine Club.

She lives in Northern California and Santa Barbara with her family and rescue pup “editor” Luciana Parmigiana, where she hikes, reads, listens to music, and drinks wine.