The rolling hills of Carneros, blanketed by happy vines

The Carneros AVA lies at the southern end of both Napa and Sonoma counties, straddling their mutual border. San Pablo Bay, just south of the AVA, strongly moderates temperatures in the AVA. That large body of water, the fog and the maritime breezes which sweep across the flats and gently rolling hills give Carneros the coolest growing season of all Napa Valley AVAs.

Being a moderately cool area, though with a long growing season which sees little to no rain, this is an AVA that excels with grapes such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Cabernet Franc and Albariño. It’s grapes contribute to excellent sparkling wines.

Because of the quality of the AVA’s grapes and its uniquely moderate climate compared to many others within those counties, a lot of the fruit is shipped to wineries farther north where it provides all or most of their Chardonnay and/or Pinot Noir.

The annual Carneros Wine Alliance barrel tasting is an excellent opportunity to see how upcoming releases are looking and to gauge the character of particular vintages. In addition to the barrel tastings though, some wineries pour current releases or wines just about to be released. Below are my thoughts of my favorite wines from among the current releases. Very nice stuff.

2014 ZD Chardonnay Carneros Reserve 92 14.3% 750ml $72
Fruit-centered but nuanced. Apple, apple leaf, citrus and under-ripe stone fruit. Medium+ body balanced by freshness.

2014 Truchard Roussanne Carneros Estate 90 14.1% 750ml $25
Medium+ body and lightly textured. Peach, apricot, white flowers and almond

2013 Starmont Chardonnay Carneros Stanly Ranch 91 14.8% 750ml $45
Attractive, medium-bodied Chardonnay with poached apples and pears, saffron, spice and sparingly buttered toast.

2012 Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay Carneros 92 14.4% 750ml $55
Pretty yellow apple, white flowers, spice, cream and toast. Softly elegant but with backbone.

2014 Domaine Carneros Chardonnay Carneros Palmer Vineyard 91 13.8% 750ml $44
Winemaker TJ Evans says he aimed for a Chablisienne style. He got close. Mineral, freshness, salinity and green apple. Medium+ body.

2013 Donum Estate Pinot Noir Carneros Single Vineyard 92 72% 750ml $72
Spicy cherry pie with fine, grippy tannins. Good intensity.

2013 Schug Pinot Noir Carneros ‘Schug Estate’ 93 13.7% 750ml $45
Pretty, appetizing and long. Dry grass and herb, red cherry, dried flowers and berries. A great value.

Copyright Fred Swan 2016. Photo courtesy of Carneros Wine Alliance. All rights reserved.