Suisun Valley - Wine Region of the Day

/

The Suisun Valley received its designation as an AVA in 1982 and is located on 15,000 acres in Solano County, California. Suisun Valley features a range in elevations from 200 feet on the floor of the valley to over 2,000 feet up on Oak Hill. The region features varying soils depending on the location. In the valley, the soil is sandstone, deep and well draining. In the foothills, the soils are more volcanic in nature. The Suisun Valley receives daily sunshine but due to its proximity to Suisun Bay, it has foggy and cool nights with coastal breezes flowing through the valley during the day. The variety of soils, temperatures and growing elevations gives Suisun Valley great versatility in its varietals with more than twenty varieties of wine grapes being produced. Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Gamay, Merlot, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Sangiovese, Syrah, Viognier, Riesling, and Zinfandel.

North Coast - Wine Region of the Day

/

The North Coast received its designation as an AVA in 1981. North Coast is a super AVA encompassing grape-growing regions in six counties: Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Sonoma, and Solano. This large appellation covers over 3,000,000 acres and includes some smaller sub-appellations that all share the common ecology trait of having its weather affected by the cool fog and breezes from the Pacific Ocean. The sub-appellations include: Alexander Valley, Anderson Valley, Atlas Peak, Bennett Valley, Benmore Valley, Big Valley Lake County, Calistoga, Chalk Hill, Chiles Valley, Clear Lake, Cole Ranch, Coombsville, Diamond Mountain District, Dos Rios, Dry Creek Valley, Eagle Peak - Mendocino County, Fort Ross-Seaview, Fountaingrove District, Green Valley of Russian River Valley, Guenoc Valley, High Valley, Howell Mountain, Kelsey Bench-Lake County, Knights Valley, Los Carneros, McDowell Valley, Mendocino, Mendocino Ridge, Moon Mountain District Sonoma County, Mt. Veeder, Napa Valley, Northern Sonoma, Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley, Oakville, Petaluma Wind Gap, Pine Mountain-Cloverdale, Potter Valley, Red Hills Lake County, Redwood Valley, Rockpile, Russian River Valley, Rutherford, Solano County Green Valley, Sonoma Coast, Sonoma Mountain, Sonoma Valley, Spring Mountain District, St. Helena, Stags Leap District, Suisun Valley, Wild Horse Valley, Yorkville Highlands, and Yountville.

Clarksburg - Wine Region of the Day

/

CLARKSBURG

Clarksburg wine region by David Toomey for Qorkz.

Clarksburg received its designation as an AVA in 1984. Sitting on 64,640 acres, Clarksburg is located across Sacramento, Solano, and Yolo Counties. The soils of Clarksburg are dense clay and loam. With influences from both the San Francisco Bay to the west, and the Sacramento River, the climate of Clarksburg is cooler and more moderate than most of Sacramento. The region features heavy sun exposure with cooling effects from the river allowing for a longer growing season than most central valley AVAs. The longer growing season allows the fruit to develop a well-balanced acidity and tannin structure. The region is known for Petite Sirah and Chenin Blanc.