Arguably the most famous American wine region, most wine lovers who have not had the pleasure of Napa's hills and valleys may be surprised to find out how small Napa actually is. Napa has just under 40,000 acres under vine and it only produces about 5% of all wine made in California. Napa Valley reminds that sometimes it is quality, not quantity, that's important. At the time of this writing there are less than 500 wineries in Napa, though there are well over 1000 growers.
Napa features many of the more popular international varietals like: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Zinfandel, but the undisputed champion of grapedom what many wine lovers perceive as the king of all grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon. Napa features many of the most famous Cabernet regions on the planet, including Yountville, Stags Leap, Rutherford, Oakville, Calistoga, Mount Veder and Spring Mountain.
A little north of Napa is Sonoma, the second most famous region in California. Sonoma is known for a variety of climates, and its Russian River Valley is one of the coolest regions in California. Russian River is marked by maritime influence and fog is often present, resulting in consistent cloud cover. Russian River boasts some of the finest Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in California. Some of the other famous regions for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in Sonoma are: Green Valley and Carneros. Dry Creek, Alexander Valley, and Anderson Valley boast numerous opportunities for top flight Zinfandel, Cabernet, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay.
Carneros
Perhaps the most famous part of Sonoma is the Carneros region, which straddles the Sonoma and Napa County lines. Carneros is known mostly for still Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, though wine lovers should not have been surprised by the wave of investment from sparkling wine producers in the last twenty years, many from Champagne itself. Because Pinot and Chardonnay are Carneros' natural strengths, and because of the oft windy conditions that slow the ripening process, Carneros can produce wines that are ideal base wines for sparkling wine production.
The dry, still wines of Carneros consist mostly of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, but Syrah and Merlot are also becoming more popular. Carneros Pinot Noir is usually fruit forward, friendly, and ripe with medium to full body without the minerality of Russian River Valley Pinots. Chardonnay can vary from crisp and clean, to full and dry with apple, citrus, butter and hazelnuts.
South of San Francisco Bay
The area south of the bay has numerous regions, some put on the map because of the famous wineries. One such region is the Santa Cruz Mountains, home of Ridge Vineyards. While Ridge is famous for its Zinfandels, Ridge's superstar Cabernet blend called Montebello calls the Santa Cruz Mountains home. The Monterey AVA is also important here as it encompasses all of the Arroyo Seco, Carmel Valley, and Chalone AVAs. Chardonnay is generally the mainstay of all these appellations, though Arroyo Seco grows delicious Riesling. The Chalone AVA grows famous, world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. While it overlooks Arroyo Seco, the Chalone AVA enjoys different climate, more fog and calcerous soils.
Between Monterey and Santa Barbara are the appellations of California's Southern Central Coast, namely: Paso Robles, Edna Valley, Arroyo Grande, Santa Maria Valley and the Santa Ynez Valley. Paso Robles has had particular success with Zinfandel and Rhone varietals like Grenache and Syrah. Edna Valley is a Chardonnay stalwart, with some producers also excelling with Rhone varietals. Santa Maria provides a cool climate that is ideal for Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and even Syrah. Santa Maria is home to the famed Bien Nacido vineyard, which is seen on various labels. Santa Ynez offers great potential for high acid white grape production like Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc, but is already producing great Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
About 75% of the wine produced in California is produced in the Central Valley. The biggest reason for this fact is E and J Gallo, in Modesto. The Central Valley is hot. Central Valley grows Sultana, Rubired, Chenin Blanc, Zinfandel, Merlot Chardonnay, Grenache and Colombard among other things. The most famous AVAs in this region are: Lodi, Clarksburg, Amador and the Sierra Foothills. Lodi and Amador have long been famous for heady Zinfandels and are becoming more noted for Rhone varietals, particularly Syrah and Grenache. Clarksburg, on the other hand has gained high acclaim for its whites, especially Chenin Blanc.
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This offering has elevated the Estate Pinot Noir program. Layered components of earth violets and black fruits complete this elegant Pinot. After nearly a decade, the Estate bottling has finally found its voice and it begs a listen.
This bright, juicy wine offers lush aromas of black fruits, espresso, black pepper and clove, with rich vanilla and plum flavors on the palate supported by firm tannins.
94 WE Duckhorn's Three Palms bottling is one of the oldest and most consistent Merlot designations in California and this is a classic example. The wine is always very tannic. But the '05 is dry and rich with mineral-laden cherries and currants with just the right application of new oak. Decant.
While most Au Bon Climat Pinots are vineyard specific, Isabelle is created by masterful blending in the cellar of the best barrels from those specific sites (Bien Nacido, Sanford & Benedict, Talley Rincon, Mt. Carmel...the proportions are a very proprietary secret). The result is a wine of incredible depth, complexity, and focus- very serious Pinot. For this year's Isabelle, Jim was presented with more quality components than he has ever had to work with due to the exceptional nature of the vintage. A brilliant effort worthy of space in any cellar- it will live for years.
A full varietal impact of fresh crush. Aromas of plum jam and cranberries with earthy undertones. Knock your senses to their knees! Bright flavors of blackberry, cassis, cedar and plum prevail with a long classic Cabernet Sauvignon finish not to be forgotten!
On the palate, the wine is supple and long, with a touch of oak and butterscotch cookie in the finish. Enjoy with fried calamari, scallops in a light curry sauce, crab cakes, filet of sole with almonds, or turkey Panini.
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