(image of my California map from Delongwine.com and the red scribblings are my additions)

We’re going to kick it off by lumping 3 small American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) of Northwest Napa together… well two official AVAs and one that, due to some good ol’ fashion politics, is still pending approval: Calistoga (the one non-AVA), Diamond Mountain District, and Spring Mountain District. They’re all situated on or around the Mayacamas Mountains, a range which separates Napa Valley from Sonoma Valley. It also offers some high altitude land, good for covering with vineyards and gathering proper eastern exposure. The wineries in these areas are mainly small and family owned, and there are some excellent wines to be found.

(Napa Valley’s 14 AVAs + pending Calistoga. Courtesy of NapaVintners.com)

1. Calistoga

(photo left credit & photo right credit)

Even if the name Calistoga doesn’t ring a bell, you’ve likely heard of the town’s most famous winery. Chateau Montelena was the star of the moderately entertaining film Bottle Shock depicting when it became a household name after the 1976 Judgment of Paris. Calistoga is the very northern tip of the Napa Valley and on average is warmer than the southern end at Carneros, 64km (or 40mi) away, because the south gets more cooling winds blowing in off from San Pablo Bay. This added heat contributes to growing ripe grapes and making bold wines. There are over 30 wineries in the town of Calistoga, yet many don’t source or grow their grapes from the actual Calistoga region. The big names here are the Cabernet and Chardonnay from Chateau Montelena, and the Zinfandel from Storybook Mountain Vineyards. Currently, all wines produced from fruit around Calistoga technically fall under the large Napa Valley AVA.

Storybook Mountain ‘07 Zinfandel “Mayacamas Range”
As I’ve tried wines from Chateau Montelena’s ‘Napa Valley’ label in the past and didn’t exactly have the cash to spring on a bottle of Montelena Estate Cabernet, my next choice was Storybook Mountain’s Zinfandel. The “Mayacamas Range” label is their early drinking, everyday wine and it conveniently comes in a half bottle (also conveniently for $14.99). The fruit is certified organic, meaning we know the grapes were grown free of pesticides, but it doesn’t speak for any processes in the winery. This wine is all about dark berry fruit - fresh pressed blackberry, blueberry, black raspberry, with a very slight dusty coating. Medium tannins and bright acidity - I noticed the alcohol at first but forgot about it quickly. Great fruit characters - definitely juicy, but not overly so and showing restraint. Interestingly, it doesn’t have the baking spice characters that I personally associate with Zinfandel and I find it a touch varietally ambiguous. Good and very drinkable! In San Francisco, it’s usually priced around $30 and $15 for a half bottle which is appropriate. Storybook wines are available in Canada and imported into BC by Vintage Corks, but by the time it arrives, it unfortunately isn’t in the same ballpark of a price I would consider paying ($63 cost).

2. Diamond Mountain AVA

(photo borrowed from Diamond Creek Vineyards)

Diamond Mountain’s steep and rocky terrain offers 500 acres of vineyard land on volcanic soils and at altitudes between 400 to 2,200 feet - high enough to be above fog levels. Home to some of Napa’s most distinguished Cabernet Sauvignon - powerful, chewy textured, minerally and structured with hard tannins when young. Cabernet Franc and Zinfandel both have stage presence here as well. Roughly 20 wineries call Diamond Mountain home.

I have yet to try wine from any of them, however many Canadians will have tasted the work of one notable producer. Dyer Vineyards is owned by Bill and Dawnine Dyer, and Bill is the winemaker/consultant who in 1997, was responsible for boosting the Okanagan Valley’s Burrowing Owl Estate Winery into cult status and later helped propel Church & State Wines to a new level. Diamond Creek Vineyards, and Von Strasser are two other Diamond Mountain wineries with big reputations.

3. Spring Mountain AVA

(Photo of Barnett Vineyards plantings in Spring Mountain credit here)

Spring Mountain features 1000 acres of vineyard land - 90% of which is red - with first plantings dating back to the 1870s. Dark, bold and structured Cabernets are also the stars of the show here, yet you’ll find 12 other varietals planted. The vineyard elevations fall into the same range as Diamond Mountain where again the fog doesn’t play much of a role - a moderate and long growing season aides in the ripening of the big reds. There are a mere 12 acres of Riesling planted with wineries Stony Hill Vineyard and Smith-Madrone Vineyards known for making some of the best in California.

Barnett Vineyards, Spring Mountain Vineyard, Frias Family Vineyard, Pride Mountain Vineyard, Stony Hill, and Smith-Madrone Winery are all notables who are based in the Spring Mountain. I’ve tried a few of Barnett’s wines when winemaker (and BC boy) David Tate was in Vancouver last year for a California wine event. They were awesome and really stood out in a convention center full of good California wine. Many of the Spring Mountain District Cabernets from the aforementioned producers are hovering somewhere between $50 to $100 in the California market, and as you can imagine, quite a bit more in Canada.

If you’re in Vancouver and are interested in tracking down some wines from Spring Mountain District, email one of the following importers and see what shops stock their wine: Vintage Corks imports labels from Spring Mountain Vineyards, New World Wines imports Barnett (the BCLDB stocks their Cab), and Dream Wines imports Frias.

Smith-Madrone ‘08 Spring Mountain District Riesling
Naturally, when people start throwing around words like “California’s best Riesling” I find myself trekking across the city to find me some. Smith-Madrone, named after proprietor Stuart Smith and the population of Madrone trees (aka Arbutus) found on his estate, only made 420 cases of Riesling from the 2008 vintage. There is hardly any residual sugar present (7g/l) and the body has a medium richness which is sliced in half by the lean acidity. Fresh squeezed lime, Asian pear, and red apple. When I went back to it the next day, it reminded me of a juice box I had as a child….ahh memories (and sorry Sun-Rype, but I don’t quite believe you when you say this is a “NEW!” flavour, because I vividly remember drinking it 25 years ago). This is good Riesling, if not a touch expensive at $25 in California, yet the small production levels help justify it. I was able to find it at K&L in San Francisco. This makes me thankful that BC’s best Riesling, which in my opinion is much better value than the Smith-Madrone (this isn’t a knock… California isn’t exactly known for Riesling) is available for only $22.90. Did someone say “value” and “BC” in the same sentence?….yup, I just did.

Please feel free to contribute any information, experience or tasting notes you have that relate to Calistoga, Diamond Mountain AVA or Spring Mountain AVA below and check back next Sunday for more Napa AVA demystification.

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