On Being the Next Napa

Napa envy is common with other wine grape growing areas and even with people who write about wine. Everyone wants to see the success of Napa Valley happen somewhere else. Don't believe me? Google "the next Napa Valley" and see how much stuff comes up. Heck, I even wrote about it here.

So what do you need to be the next Napa? Well, let's see what those lucky bastards have going for themselves.

Location

Napa is on the outer fringes of the Bay Area and its seven million people. Many of whom hold well-paying tech jobs. It's within two hours of the three Bay Area airports (and the Sacramento airport). Napa visitors have a choice of many other things to visit -- San Francisco, Yosemite, Pacific beaches, etc. Heck, there are even other wine regions nearby. If it wasn't for San Francisco Napa would not be what it is today.

Climate

Some folks in more northern areas like the NY Finger Lakes wine region have a pretty short season of good weather. Napa is a Mediterranean climate meaning there are many months of dry, sunny weather with a few of wet weather. Nobody is too excited about visiting the Texas Hill Country wineries in the summer or eastern Washington in the winter.

The Right Grapes

So another area does great with Riesling or Tempranillo or Cabernet Franc? Whoopee. Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon are the top sellers in the country. Give the people what they want. It's not like these two grapes will grow anywhere and the fact that they will both grow in Napa is even more amazing because they require different microclimates. Oh yeah, the grapes have to make world-class wines.

The Right People

Napa has done a great job of convincing consumers that they make the top premium wines in the country. Local government has to be on the side of both agriculture and commercialization (lodging, restaurants, large winery estates in ag areas). You also need the right people in the wine biz. It isn't just money, it's the confidence, maybe the arrogance, to take on the best in the business, whether that's Bordeaux or Napa.

Unintended Fame

See the 1976 Judgment of Paris

The Next Napa

Napa Envy, it's a real thing. So when someone tells you about the next Napa Valley use this handy checklist to see if there is a chance of that happening.