Look Closely...
There's a Quiet Evolution Happening in the Napa Valley

by Alan Goldfarb
May 27, 2008

If there was any concept that could be concluded from our tasting of Napa Valley wines it was this: There’s a quiet evolution taking place in the Napa Valley. Some producers have taken up the cudgel of terroir-driven wines.The wines are beginning to be ratcheted back through various means both in the cellar and in the vineyard; and equilibrium is returning, especially to the Cabernet Sauvignons that made the appellation so famous in the first place.

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‘Land of Plenty’ is what Napa meant to the region’s original inhabitants, the Wappo Indians. This valley, snug between the Mayacamas and Vaca mountains in Northern California, claims some of the most expensive agricultural land in the world, producing wines of ‘cult’ status. The main ecological factor of the region is the cool wind and fog that is sucked in from San Pablo Bay during the afternoon, cooling the vines. Temperature fluctuations from north to south can vary as much as 15 degrees, even though the valley is only 30 miles long and five miles wide. Due to these climactic differences, Napa Valley has many unique microclimates that have their own AVA designations. With over 300 wineries and 43,000 acres of vines, the Napa Valley AVA is certainly the land of plenty.