California Wine Regions from The World's Greatest Honeymoons

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Napa Valley, Carneros District (CalTour/Robert Holmes)

As California’s wine industry grows and new growing regions emerge, the need becomes greater for defining and naming these areas to help consumers know the source of the grapes in each bottle. Thus, the U.S. Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) approves all wine label information that includes the appellation of origin or geographic source of grapes. Appellations of origin are areas defined by either political boundaries such as county, state or country names; or delimited grape-growing areas known as American Viticultural Areas, or AVAs, which are distinguishable by their geographic, climatic and historic features.

The TTB also approves requests for the establishment of American Viticultural Areas. As of January 2008, there were 107 AVAs in California. Cole Ranch in Mendocino County is the smallest (188 acres); the largest is the Central Coast at nearly 6.8 million acres.

For a wine label to carry an AVA name, at least 85% of the bottle's grapes must be grown in that AVA. A Santa Lucia Highlands-labeled Pinot Noir, for example, must contain a minimum of 85% Santa Lucia Highlands fruit; the remainder can be from elsewhere in California. A wine with 60% Santa Lucia Highlands grapes and 40% from Arroyo Seco, another AVA, can carry the Monterey AVA on its label, because it didn’t meet the 85% requirement for Santa Lucia Highlands or Arroyo Seco, both of which are within the Monterey AVA.

All AVAs are appellations, but not all appellations are AVAs. Appellations defined by the names of county, state and national political boundaries can be used on labels. For example, counties such as Sonoma County and Santa Barbara County are political appellations, not AVAs, although they have several AVAs within their boundaries. A wine bearing the “California” appellation ensures consumers that 100% of the grapes were grown in California.

Northern California Coast Region

This large region includes the North Coast American Viticultural Area (AVA), comprising Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake counties, and portions of Marin and Solano counties. At approximately 100 miles long and 50 miles wide, this winemaking mecca is home to nearly half of California's wineries.

The Northern California region is a landscape of rugged coastline, ancient redwoods, native oaks, and carpets of vines on hillsides and valley floors. The Russian River flows from the coastal mountains in Mendocino County into northern Sonoma County, where it turns west near Healdsburg and heads to the Pacific Ocean.

NAPA COUNTY: At more than 400,000 acres, with about 46,000 acres planted to vines, the Napa Valley AVA encompasses nearly the entire county of Napa and includes 14 AVAs. While Napa Valley produces only 4 percent of California’s wine, it’s the state’s most famous wine region, best known for its powerful Cabernet Sauvignons, and also for Merlot and Chardonnay. Yet Napa Valley is as diverse as any AVA in the state, also producing Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah and Zinfandel.

Napa Valley is bordered by the Vaca mountains on the east and the Mayacamas range on the west, a boundary it shares with Sonoma County. Vineyard elevations range from 250 to 2,500 feet, and temperatures can vary by 10 degrees between Napa to the south and Calistoga in the warmer north. Napa Valley’s most recognized AVAs include Howell Mountain, Los Carneros, Oakville, Rutherford, St. Helena, Spring Mountain District, Stags Leap District and Yountville.

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SONOMA COUNTY: A widely diverse range of topography, soils and microclimates exists in Sonoma County, which encompasses more than 1 million acres, some 60,000 of them in vines. Chardonnay is the most-planted grape, with Cabernet Sauvignon not far behind.

Sonoma County shares its eastern border with Napa Valley and its northern boundary with Mendocino County. Its warm interior valleys excel at Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah and Zinfandel; the cooler regions near San Pablo Bay, the Russian River and the Sonoma coast produce acclaimed Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs. There are AVAs within Sonoma County, among them Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Valley, Green Valley of Russian River Valley, Knights Valley, Los Carneros, Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast and Sonoma Valley.

LOS CARNEROS: This 37,000-acre AVA is unusual in that it straddles two counties, Napa and Sonoma, some 40 miles north of San Francisco. Carneros (“sheep” in Spanish) is a land of rolling hills that host grapevines, sheep and cattle. Breezes and fog from nearby San Pablo Bay and the Pacific Ocean create a long, cool growing region that favors Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and sparkling wine grapes.

MENDOCINO COUNTY: Located directly north of Sonoma County, Mendocino is bounded by the Coastal Mountain Range, the Pacific Ocean and the redwood forests that blanket about 60% of the county. Wine grapes are grown in valleys and along ridge tops, with Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Pinot Noir well-suited to the cool Anderson Valley and Potter Valley, and rich, spicy, old-vine Petite Sirahs, Syrahs and Zinfandels in the warmer Redwood and McDowell valleys.

LAKE COUNTY: Clear Lake, the largest natural lake entirely within California, is the focal point for this region, in which vineyards are planted at 1,300 to 2,000 feet in elevation, within sight of the dormant volcano Mt. Konocti. These elevations provide a later start to the growing season, and summer conditions are suitably warm to ripen the grapes. Cabernet Sauvignon is the most-planted variety, followed by Sauvignon Blanc.

MARIN AND SOLANO COUNTIES: A small yet emerging wine region, Marin County is flanked by the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay (the northeastern half is within the North Coast AVA). Pinot Noir is the star grape, taking kindly to the marine-cooled conditions. A small portion of Solano County is within the North Coast AVA and benefits from cool ocean breezes flowing through the San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento Delta.

Central California Coast Region

This region begins at San Francisco Bay, encompasses Livermore to the east, and runs down the California Coast to Santa Barbara along Highway 101—an ancient road called El Camino Real (the Royal Road) by Franciscan monks. The Central Coast American Viticultural Area (AVA) hugs 250 miles of coastline, encompassing some 6.8 million acres, of which nearly 100,000 are planted to vines that produce approximately 5% of the state's wine grapes.

SAN FRANCISCO BAY: This sprawling sub-appellation within the Central Coast AVA includes Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties and approximately 1.4 million acres. Chardonnay is the No.1 planted variety, followed by Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Syrah and Petite Sirah also show great promise in this region that’s cooled at night by San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.

LIVERMORE VALLEY: This 237,000-acre region in Alameda County (and within the San Francisco Bay AVA) was one of the first AVAs established in California, in 1982. Wine grapes have grown here since the 1840s; today, Petite Sirah and Sauvignon Blanc are among Livermore’s most successful varietals.

SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAINS: One of California’s first AVAs, the Santa Cruz Mountains region was approved in 1981, based on its mountainous elevations, thin, stony soils and cool growing conditions influenced by the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay. The 408,000-acre AVA reaches into portions of San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties and produces fine Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

MONTEREY COUNTY: Known for the rugged beauty of Big Sur and the charm of Carmel, Monterey is also home to more than 40,000 acres of wine grapes and nine AVAs: Arroyo Seco, Carmel Valley, Chalone, Hames Valley, Monterey, San Antonio Valley, San Bernabe, San Lucas and Santa Lucia Highlands. Chardonnay and Merlot have long been important here, and Pinot Noir and Syrah are promising.

The climate reflects the cooling influence of Monterey Bay. There are enough warm days to ripen the grapes, with stiff marine breezes. Due to the cool conditions, harvest is typically two weeks later than in other regions, allowing for a long season and slow fruit maturation.

San Benito County, east of Monterey County, includes the Cienega Valley, Lime Kiln Valley, Mt. Harlan, Paicines and San Benito AVAs, where elevations range from sea level to 5,000 feet, and Pinot Noir and Syrah perform beautifully.

PASO ROBLES AND SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY: The city of Paso Robles, situated 20 miles west of the Pacific Ocean, is in San Luis Obispo County, halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles. The Paso Robles AVA within San Luis Obispo County is warm by day, cool by night, and blessed with a limestone soil component that adds structure and minerality to Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Zinfandel. Farther south, the Edna Valley and Arroyo Grande AVAs—closer to the ocean and cooler than Paso Robles—are well-suited to Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah.

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY: California’s north-south coastal range of mountains turns to east-west orientations here, allowing fog and ocean breezes to flood into vineyards in the Santa Rita Hills, Santa Ynez Valley and Santa Maria Valley AVAs. This makes for a cool climate, yet plentiful afternoon sun ripens Chardonnay, Riesling and Pinot Noir to perfection. On warmer sites, Syrah can be excellent.

Southern California Coast Region

The Southern California region extends from Malibu, north of the city of Los Angeles, to the southern border of California below the city of San Diego. While the area is known for its beaches, the entertainment industry and celebrity sightings, California’s winemaking history began here, in 1769, when Father Junipero Serra planted grapes at Mission San Diego de Alcala.

Commercial winemaking boomed in Southern California in the early 1900s, until Prohibition and development forced the closure of many wineries and the removal of vines. Yet winemaking still thrives in small pockets of Southern California, in the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego—all contained within the 2.14-million-acre South Coast AVA.

There are approximately 50 wineries in the Southern California region, which includes the AVAs of Temecula Valley, Cucamonga Valley, Ramona Valley, San Pasqual Valley, Saddle Rock-Malibu and Malibu-Newton Canyon. Generally, breezes from the Pacific Ocean moderate the warmth of sunny Southern California, and the climate is conducive to growing a wide range of grape types, including the classic Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon varieties, and “new-wave” Rhone, Italian and Spanish varieties.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY: Father Serra’s 1769 planting of wine grapes at Mission San Diego de Alcala (in what is now the city of San Diego) was the first of many vineyards to be developed within the chain of Spanish missions throughout California. A few vestiges of the original Mission grape remain, yet in the San Diego County AVAs of Ramona Valley and San Pasqual Valley, vitis vinifera varieties such as Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc prevail, along with Mediterranean grapes.

TEMECULA VALLEY: This AVA is located in Riverside County, about an hour’s drive northeast of San Diego. Winemaking began in Temecula Valley in the late 1700s, and while development has crept closer to the vineyards, winemaking here shows no signs of slowing down.

Fog often lingers until mid-morning on the 1,400-foot-high plateau between mountain peaks, replenishing vines in this dry, low-rainfall zone. Traditionally a producer of Chardonnay, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc, Temecula has replanted much of its vineyard acreage to Mediterranean grapes such as Syrah, Grenache, Viognier and Tempranillo.

CUCAMONGA VALLEY: Famous for its old-vine Zinfandels and port-style wines, Cucamonga Valley overlaps San Bernardino and Riverside counties, near Ontario and Rancho Cucamonga. At approximately 137,000 acres, the AVA has a winemaking legacy going back to the early 1900s, and while development eliminated many vineyards, the winemaking tradition continues.

More Info: www.discovercaliforniawine.com

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Credits: Thanks to the Wine Institute for this article, which has been lightly edited by WGH. ~ Photo: Thanks to CalTour/Robert Holmes.