Establishing the Sonoma Coast AVA
There's a distinct whiff of fashionability in the mountain air along California's Sonoma Coast. STEPHEN BROOK offers some style notes on the vineyards of this exclusive enclave.
Sonoma wine region
Credit: Trent Erwin / Unsplash
Sonoma County is the most diverse wine-growing region in the USA. Three-times the size of Napa County, it comprises 13 AVAs divided across three main areas: Sonoma Valley, Northern Sonoma and Sonoma Coast.
The ‘true’ Sonoma Coast, where many vineyards cling to ridges just 3km to 8km from the Pacific Ocean – not to be confused with the ‘official’ Sonoma Coast AVA, which is ridiculously large at 200,000ha and includes parts of the warmer Carneros and Sonoma Valley appellations – is a hot spot for cool-climate Pinots with crystalline fruit, high acidities and lower alcohols.
Quick Links Sonoma Wine Reviews | California producer profiles
Read more about the Sonoma wine region:
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Interview with Vanessa Wong
Taking over as winemaker at a California cult winery is no easy task. Vanessa Wong, who has done just that at the Peter Michael Winery, talks to SUSAN KEEVIL
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Sonoma: Naked Chardonnay
The global popularity of Chardonnay shows no sign of waning. RICHARD MAYSON goes Stateside in search of California's finest and strips Sonoma bare.
