California Wine
Ram a stick into the ground in California—and in a few days, it will start to grow.
No state in the nation enjoys as beneficial a climate for raising crops as does California. It is awash in waves of sunlight, daily swings of warm and cool temperatures—plants go gaga for that—a varied geography and a lengthy growing season.
Year after year, California grapevines bask in this generosity. Their grapes ripen without fail and give voice to the saying that, in California, “Every year is a vintage year.”
The country’s 3rd largest state—and its 1,200 wineries—make 90% of the wine produced in the U.S. Although its wine history dates to the late 1700s, California is, without peer, the world’s innovator and experimenter in the making of wine.
Even Prohibition could not stop this advance. In 1920, more than 700 wineries dotted the state. At Repeal 13 years later, there were 130. (In 1960, Napa Valley was home to only 10 wineries.) But since the mid-1960s—that late—California earned a place on the world wine scene with typical American gusto, hard work and ingenuity. No wine producing area anywhere has come so far so quickly.
Photo by Boudewijn Huysmans on unsplash.com
Major wine producing areas
North Coast (Napa Valley, Sonoma County, Mendocino & Lake counties): Napa and Sonoma are the state’s most prestigious wine sites, although together they account for only 12% of all California wine.
No agricultural real estate in America costs more than that in Napa Valley—$130,000 an acre or more. The top grape here is Cabernet Sauvignon, although you can also find stellar Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc.
Unlike relatively monochromatic Napa, Sonoma County’s dozen distinct growing areas allow it to grow a huge variety of grapes in locales perfectly suited for each type. For instance, the fickle Pinot Noir shines in both Sonoma’s Green Valley and Russian River Valley.
Carneros (Spanish for “ram”), an important vineyard area for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, is a district shared by both Napa and Sonoma. Some of California’s top sparkling wine estates are here.
Mendocino and Lake counties are the state’s most northerly grape growing areas. The leading grape in both areas is Chardonnay, although many others thrive as well. One-fifth of the vineyards in Mendocino are certified organic. Lake County is a net provider of grapes to other California wineries.
North Central Coast: (Monterey County and Livermore Valley): Monterey is the largest viticultural region in the northern portion of the Central Coast and, because it is generally very cool owing to Pacific breezes, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir do well (as does Riesling). Cabernet and Merlot grow in warmer sections of the county.
Several of the state’s oldest wineries started in the Livermore Valley over 100 years ago. This historic district benefits from extremely cooling breezes come evening. Chardonnay and Sémillon do well, and red wines often remind tasters of reds from southern France, which shares much the same climate.
Middle & South Central Coast (Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo & Santa Barbara counties): Due to the state’s geology, some of the coolest vineyards in California populate these counties. Valleys here—and the chilling breezes from the Pacific—tend to run west to east, as opposed to south to north elsewhere (think Napa and Sonoma).
It’s no surprise, then, that Pinot Noir and Chardonnay flourish. Warmer spots, however, especially Paso Robles, produce winning Syrah and other Rhône varieties such as Viognier. The Paso Robles area is as once one of the most historic winemaking districts in California—dating back to the Spanish missions—and one of the most advanced and experimental.
Major grape varieties: Whites
Chardonnay: Undisputed foremost white grape (and most widely planted), which can make wines from vapid to extraordinary. The best is like its counterpart in Burgundy: from cooler areas and in balance with wood.
Gewürztraminer: Can be stellar from cooler areas. Often finished off-dry to counter the grape’s inherent bitterness.
Riesling: Distinctive aroma and flavor set this light and refreshing wine apart from most whites. Made in style from dry to very sweet (late-harvest).
Sauvignon Blanc: Can range in style from light, crisp, citrusy and snappy, to creamy, buttery and toasty (very much like Chardonnay). Occasionally blended with Sémillon in both dry and late-harvest versions. Sometimes called Fumé Blanc.
Major grape varieties: Reds
Cabernet Sauvignon: Can make some of the best wines in the world—powerful, complex, rich and age worthy. It is the standard for all other California red wines. Most widely planted red grape in the state.
Merlot: Now stands on its own, as distinct from playing second fiddle blended with Cabernet Sauvignon. Supple, soft, fleshy and fruity—and maturing earlier than Cabernet—it is a favorite of restaurateurs and restaurant patrons alike.
Petite Sirah: Makes stout, robust, tannic wines.
Pinot Noir: Like Burgundy, best from cooler areas and in hands of skilled winemakers, rendering a wine that is supple, layered, even earthy.
Zinfandel: California’s “own” grape and extraordinarily versatile, making wines that are sweet and pink, to rich powerhouses that are a light shade of black and taste of jam and spice.
California Wines & Food
New Yorkers may scoff, but no other place in the country except California equals the Big Apple for culinary interest. For the same reason that its wines are great—the climate—California benefits in foodstuffs what its fields, farms and seacoast so generously give it.
California wines are so varied that it is impossible to suggest, wholesale, a type of food preparation to accompany them. The same suggestions work for California’s food and cooking as work for similar sorts from other countries. For example, some of the state’s delicious fresh goat cheese is delicious paired with a crisp, citrus-y Sauvignon Blanc—just as that’s the case in the Loire Valley south of Paris.
But Californians cook in one particular manner not generally equaled by other nations or peoples (except, perhaps, the Bedouin of Northern Africa).
Californians grill.
They grill thick slices of chewy bread soaked in olive oil. They grill seafood of every stripe. They grill vegetables—oh, do they grill vegetables—and they grill chicken, duck, quail, pheasant, pork, veal, beef, lamb, sausages and they even grill tofu (of course). They actually grill grilled cheese sandwiches. For dessert, they grill peach halves, or ripe pears, or pound cake.
When they are being uncreative, they grill what everyone else in America grills—hot dogs and hamburgers—but they do not generally enjoy grilling those because that is what everyone else in America grills.
California has a wine that is particularly delicious with all the things that they grill, including the seafood, the bread and the vegetables (though, not the pound cake). It is California’s own wine, Zinfandel. (Syrah and Petit Syrah also fill in nicely.)
Red wine likes the hint of sweet caramel that sometimes comes about when food is grilled. It is a good foil for grilling’s bitter char. And because the grill makes all foods “red meat” dishes, Zinfandel marries well all that range.