Northern California's Best Wine Regions

  When people think of California wine, they usually think of Napa Valley Cabernet first. Then maybe Sonoma County, specifically Russian River Valley, for Pinot Noir. There's actually a lot more. This is a look at the top areas in NorCal for wines, listed alphabetically.

Click on any image to enlarge for readability. 

from AmadorWine.com

Amador County, Shenandoah Valley

  In the central Sierra Foothills, east of Sacramento, Amador is historically known for Zinfandel, and they make some great Zins. Recently Amador has shown itself to be the best place in the country for Barbera. Zin is half of the vineyard acreage. Syrah and other Rhones do well in the Sierra Foothills along with Sangiovese and Vermentino. Amador prices are reasonable. 
  There are historic gold mining towns for lodging and browsing. Sacramento area people make up most of the visitors; otherwise, this is an undiscovered and underappreciated area.

from ElDoradoWines.org

El Dorado County 

  In the central Sierra Foothills, just north of Amador, with US 50 running through from Sacramento to South Lake Tahoe. Vineyards are planted at 1,200 to 3,500 feet in elevation. Zinfandel has been the top grape, but Rhone varieties also do well here (Syrah, Grenache, Viognier, Vermentino, and others). The remote Fair Play AVA is worth the trip, just for the high-elevation Zinfandel. There are a lot of apples and other fruits in this area, too.

 

from Lodi Winegrape Commission

Lodi

  The town of Lodi and its surrounding wine growing areas are in the Central Valley east of the SF Bay Area and south of Sacramento. The Central Valley is known for hot, dry summers. Lodi is unique in that cooling breezes come in off the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and the SF Bay. The area is defined by big, jammy Zinfandel. You'll also find Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and many others.

 

from Livermore Valley Winegrowers Assoc

Livermore Valley

  Situated in the "far East Bay" of the SF Bay Area making this region within a handy drive of a few million people. Known for the ol' standbys of Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon they're expanding with Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc. California's success with Chardonnay is largely owed to the Wente family of Livermore Valley.

 

from wikipedia.org

Mendocino County, Anderson Valley

  Mendocino is a coastal county, just north of Sonoma. It's an hour's drive from Healdsburg in Sonoma County to Anderson Valley. It's all about Pinot Noir here, and they do a great job with it. Prices have risen some, but there's still value to be found. Sparkling wines and Chardonnay are found here, too. There's not much in the way of lodging or food in Anderson Valley, but you can stay a short drive away on the Pacific Coast. 
  The growing areas inland, to the east of Anderson Vly, are quite hot during the summer. Here you'll find Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, and other warm weather varietals.

 

from NapaVintners.com

Napa County, Napa Valley

  Where Cabernet is king, though there are plenty of other wines available. The southern end of Napa sits on a bay where temps are cool enough to grow Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. As you move north through the valley, it heats up in the summers, and you find more Cabernet. The mountains on both sides have their own unique conditions. Prices are high for lodging, tasting, and bottle purchases.

 

from Sonoma County Vintners

 

Sonoma County 

  Unlike Napa County, Sonoma doesn't have a single AVA like Napa Valley that covers almost the whole county. Sonoma's larger wine areas are Carneros, Alexander Valley, Dry Creek Valley, Russian River Valley, and Sonoma Valley. Each has distinct growing conditions and specializes in different wines. Summer temperatures in the county vary drastically. It's not unusual to find 105 degrees in the northeastern area of the county and 60 at the Pacific Coast a distance of just 25 miles away. This climate is great for growing any premium wine grape somewhere in the county. 
  Prices will seem high to out-of-state visitors but are significantly lower than Napa's. You can pay a lot in some instances, usually for Russian River Pinot Noir, but there are good values in the county. See this previous post for current deals.

 

  Below are  "undiscovered" wine regions. Undiscovered by me, that is, as I'm not familiar with wines from here and don't know if they qualify for this list.

Lake County

  This location north of Napa has hot summers and is geographically challenged, in that there's no easy way to get to Lake County, but this means low prices for tastings and purchases. It's mostly Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Lake County is home to about two dozen winery tasting rooms.

Solano County, Suisun Valley 

  Ten miles east of the town of Napa over the Vaca Mountains is Suisun Valley, known for winds that keep temperatures down. This area is known for Petite Sirah, although Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon are moving in, and the area is growing. There are maybe 15 tasting rooms here.