CALIFORNIA WINE REGIONS

It is located on the West Coast of the United States, and is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, the Mexican state of Baja California to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west.

The main wine making region of California is the Northern part of California. Its latitude is the same as France and the weather is similar too. The Pacific Ocean helps create a climate that helps grow excellent grapes. 

Although California is fairly new in the wine making business, it is in the last forty years that California has jumped from making “jug” wines to really great world class wines.

The Northern California region consists of Napa Valley which is an hour north of San Francisco. Napa Valley lies in Napa County which has the Napa River running through it. Sonoma County is a part of Northern California and can be aptly described as the region that separates Napa County from the Pacific Ocean. It lies west of Napa Valley and has a different climate as it is closer to the ocean.

The Central coast of California consists of Santa Barbara and Santa Yvez Valley as the main winemaking regions. This region has also been popularized because of the filming of the movie Sideways. It is a great region for wines like Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon; Pinot Noir and Chardonnay being the more commercial of the lot.