Wines in California. Explore the origins of wine production, the modern success story, main wine regions, and grape varieties.
California is the heartland of the USA's modern wine revolution.
Origins:
It was Spanish missionaries who first introduced the vine to California, towards the end of the eighteenth century. They brought with them, seeds and cuttings of mediocre, but at least palatable, European varieties.
Some sixty years later, a group of French immigrants successfully planted commercial vineyards on a larger scale, using superior European grape varieties. By 1831, Jean Louis Vignes, a native of Bordeaux, France, was producing acceptable wine and distilling good quality brandy.
However, the real beginnings of the Californian wine trade are largely attributable to the Gold Rush of 1849. Mass migration to the West Coast, where land was freely available, meant that farming began to flourish. Fortunately, one of the most popular crops, at that time, was grapes. The arrival, in the same year, of Agoston Haraszthy, a Hungarian political exile, played a major rôle in the further development of the burgeoning Californian wine industry. As early as 1857, Haraszthyhad established the now famous Buena Vista vineyard in Sonoma County. In 1861, he was sent on a journey to Europe by the Governor of California. His mission was to bring back the widest selection of European vines available at the time. Haraszthy returned with an amazing 1,400 varieties and well in excess of 100,00 cuttings.
By 1875, Californian vineyards were producing in excess of four million gallons (eighteen million litres) of wine annually made from classic Vitis Vinifera stock. European vintners could no longer rest on their laurels!
In 1919, the Californian wine industry encountered a devastating set back - Prohibition! It lasted for fourteen years and by the end of that period, most wineries had virtually gone out of business. In fact, the only wineries to survive, legitimately, were those that produced table grapes for home winemaking, or for sacramental consumption. In 1920, there were more than 700 wineries in California. By the end of Prohibition, there were only about 160.
The Resurgence:
California, unlike many wine-producing regions of Europe, has never been shackled by centuries old wine-making traditions. Its winemakers, therefore, are able to experiment and take full advantage of modern technology and investment.
The challenge to produce large volumes of affordable, fruity, fresh wines of consistent quality that would appeal to the global market, probably began, in earnest, in the early 1970s. California wine production fast became a serious science, to which the University of California at Davis and Fresno State University bear testimony. Both are seriously committed to the scientific study of wine production.
The main regions:
California's wine producing areas can be roughly divided into four main groups:
North Coast: Napa County, Sonoma County, Mendocino County
North Central Coast: Monterey County, Santa Clara County, Livermore
South Central Coast: San Luis Obispo County, Santa Barbara County
San Joaquin Valley: Central Valley
Napa Valley is the most famous area for quality. Although this thirty mile (50km) valley is covered in vines, the best wines come from its cooler southern areas, or from the mountainside terroir to the east and west of the valley. Sonoma County, to the west, also produces some of regions' finest wines. Napa and Sonoma combined, however, only produce around 12% of California's total output. The bulk of Californian wine is from the San Joaquin Valley, where mostly "jug" wines are produced. ("Jug wine" refers to simple, inexpensive, everyday quaffing wine). San Joaquin Valley accounts for a massive 54% of all wine grapes planted throughout the regions.
Climate:
The benign climate, accommodating soil and favourable aspects, make California a natural home for the vine. One of the main reasons why it produces such a wide variety of wines, is that it enjoys so many different climates. Some are as cool as European regions, such as the Rhine, Champagne or Burgundy. Others are as warm as Italy, Spain, Portugal or the Rhône Valley. To complicate this diversity, the winegrowing areas have inner districts with "microclimates" (climates within climates). Alexander Valley in Sonoma County and Stag's Leap in Napa, are good examples of microclimates. Coastal fog shrouds the vines throughout the summer from fierce morning rays, which, in turn, benefits the quality of the grapes by slowing down the ripening process.
Main Grape Varieties:
Reds:
The bulk of California's red wine is produced from European grape varieties, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir and Merlot, as well as the ever popular, indigenous Zinfandel. Wines produced from these grape varieties are, generally, ultra-modern in style and range from light and fruity, to ripe, spicy or blackcurranty flavoured wines of great depth and intensity.
Whites:
Chardonnay, with its characteristic toasty flavour, accounts for most of California's white wines. Sauvignon Blanc (Fumé Blanc) and Johannisberg Riesling are also widely grown, but the latter two grapes tend to be less tangy than their European counterparts. Sauvignon Blanc is often successfully aged in oak for softer, more aromatic flavours.
California has played an amazing part in the history of world wine production. Perhaps, most significant of all, is the fact that it challenged Europe's accepted traditions and wine making procedures.
Today, wine lovers can thank California for becoming the world's leading viticultural iconoclast.
