Deciding which are the best wines in Napa or any other wine-growing region is very much a matter of personal taste. Some people like red wines, while others prefer white. Some people prefer greater fruitiness, greater acidity or more tannins.
Still, there are certain general rules most people agree on. The best wines are complex and intense, with connoisseurs able to detect a variety of aromas in the nose and flavors in the taste and finish. Fruit flavors tend to predominate, but spices, flowers, chocolate, tobacco and even leather, earth and stone have been detected. In the best wines, these flavors are well balanced, so that no one overwhelms the others. The flavor should linger in the finish as long as possible, with new notes becoming detectable as the old notes fade.
The Wine Advocate Magazine
One of the leading judges of the world’s best wines is The Wine Advocate, a magazine founded by Robert M. Parker Jr. in 1978. Parker developed a 100-point rating system for wine which is still in use today. But as with books and movies, it’s important to always read the whole review, not just the rating number, to figure out if you’ll like the wine. Wine experts can give you more advice on finding the join a wine club.
Best wines from a vineyard near St. Helena
Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, a 10-minute drive from downtown St. Helena, holds tastings in its barrel caves, where visitors can sample current releases and library wines and learn about the process of making and storing the wine. Cave tastings are $65, but one tasting fee can be waived by joining their wine club or making a $100 purchase. Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards produces world-class wines at affordable prices. The vineyard is a 40-acre estate just south of Howell Mountain, and has been owned and operated by the Anderson family since 1983. Anderson’s wines are sold online and in five locations in Napa Valley, and many other locations nationwide.
The Wine Advocate praises their 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon for its “terrific purity, plenty of depth and ripeness, and a full-bodied mouthfeel” and describes the 2010 Cab as “an elegant, finesse-styled effort to enjoy over the next decade.” The 2010 Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is an intense dark purple and red wine with an aroma and palate of blackberry, blueberry, rosehips, licorice, anise, tobacco and smoke, all perfectly balanced and aged in French oak. The 2012 Estate Reserve Cab is similar in color, with an aroma of cloves, mocha, licorice and the ripest red raspberries. Its mouthfeel is silky and polished, flavored with dark red fruit, spices, new leather and licorice, with notes of white pepper and orange peel in the finish. Join the wine club and order a Cab today.
The best vineyards Napa match the grape to the terroir. In the coolest parts of the valley, winemakers grow Pinot Noir and Merlot grapes. The hardy Cabernet Sauvignon grapes can grow anywhere in the valley, but yield better wines in some areas than in others.
The best vineyards Napa use pruning to hold the canopy at an even height, allowing for plenty of photosynthesis without letting the vine invest too much nourishment in growing the central stock. They thin the crop at the beginning of veraison, sacrificing a few of the grapes to make sure that those allowed to stay on the vine are fully nourished. They pull leaves away from the grapes to give them more contact with the air, reducing potassium and malic acid and protecting them from mildew. They use refractometers to check the sugar level in the juices of grapes to determine ripeness, and harvest the grapes at precisely the right time, when the grapes are fully ripe but without too much sugar.
Wine club
Some of the best vineyards Napa have their own wine clubs. The way these clubs work is simple — you agree to order a certain number of wines every year, and in return you get a discount on the regular price. You also get invitations to wine tastings and barrel tastings. The advantage of a wine club connected to a Napa vineyard is that it is better at keeping the wines on its list in stock.
One of the best vineyards Napa is near St. Helena
Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, a 10-minute drive from downtown St. Helena, is one of the best vineyards Napa. Their Cabernet Sauvignon and Bordeaux blends are widely regarded as among the best wines in Napa. Their Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and non-malolactic Chardonnay of this vineyard also have a cult following. It holds tastings in its barrel caves, where current releases and library wines may be sampled and visitors can learn all about the process of making and storing the wine. Cave tastings are $65, but one tasting fee can be waived by joining their wine club or making a $100 purchase. One of their better wines is the 2009 Right Bank. Ruby red with purple at the edge, this wine has a cassis aroma with notes of espresso, cedar and black pepper. With its full-bodied mouthfeel, rounded tannins and taste of black fruit and chocolate, this is a wine to cherish.
Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards produces world-class wines at affordable prices. The vineyard is a 40-acre estate just south of Howell Mountain, and has been owned and operated by the Anderson family since 1983. Anderson’s wines are sold online and in five locations in Napa Valley, and many other locations nationwide. Join their wine club today.
Precisely which wines are the best California wines depend on personal taste and what you’re in the mood for. Here are some varieties of wine from which some of the most highly praised California wines have come:
Cabernet Sauvignon is a classic red wine which usually has cassis notes and strong tannins. It goes well with any sort of red meat, and grows in a variety of climates.
Pinot Noir is a red wine grape usually grown in cooler areas, and is much harder to cultivate than the Cab. It has an aroma of cherries, raspberries and strawberries, and grows earthier with age. It goes well with lean pork, duck, salmon or pasta.
The aroma of Syrah, or Shiraz, depends very much on the climate and soil of the area in which it is planted. The Syrahs that come from Napa Valley go well with spicy barbecued meat.
The Zinfandels that come from California are often blended with other wines. They are often paired with poultry and pasta.
Now we come to the white wine grapes. Since 2005, California has produced almost 25 percent of the world’s Chardonnay. These wines are marked by notes of tropical fruit, and go well with turkey, veal or any kind of seafood.
The Sauvignon Blanc is another white wine, often called Fumé Blanc when it comes from California. A delicate wine, it is best paired with cheese and green vegetables.
Wine club
The best way to find the best California wines is to talk to experts on California wines. You can find a lot of these people at once by joining a wine club and going to its social functions. It’s like joining a book-of-the-month club — you agree to buy a certain number of bottles a year and get a discount on them.
Some of the best California wines come from near St. Helena
One of the best California wines is the Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards 2008 Èloge. This dark ruby red blend was born of a turbulent year with a cold, dry early spring, a cool late spring and summer and a hot early fall, producing a wine both rare and excellent. The aroma carries the smell of black cherries, chocolate, cedar, cassis, leather, mocha and crushed rocks, with a distant hint of smoked meats. The wine has a rich flavor of chocolate-covered black cherries, currants and plums, with hints of toffee, mocha and spices.
Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards is a 40-acre estate just south of Howell Mountain, outside St. Helena, CA. Anderson’s wines are sold online and in five locations in Napa Valley, and many other locations nationwide. Join their wine club for discounts on their best wines.
One of the events that every true wine enthusiast wants to get a ticket to is a barrel tasting at a Napa Valley winery. A barrel tasting is a lot like other wine tastings, with the difference that all the wines come straight from the barrel. Here you can taste the results of last year’s grape harvest at its earliest stage and try to make a guess as to how good the wine will be when it’s judged ready to be sold. Barrel tastings are usually held in the spring or summer, when the weather is good and long before the vineyard is busy with this year’s harvest. If you’re starting your own wine collection, you’ll definitely want to attend some barrel tastings and find out what you should be saving room for.
One thing you might be able to do at a best barrel tasting is buy a wine future at a discount. A wine future is a lot like any other futures contract — you agree to buy a certain number of bottles of wine when the wine has been bottled. By committing yourself to the purchase ahead of time, you save a lot of money on the wine.
When you’re going to a barrel tasting, keep in mind the usual rules of wine-tasting functions. Don’t wear strong-smelling perfume or cologne. Remember that this isn’t a bar. Don’t drink too much, especially if you’re going to more than one vineyard and they aren’t serving food. A designated driver might also be a good idea, just in case. When in doubt, try something you’ve never tried before.
Barrel tastings at a St. Helena vineyard
Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley, a 10-minute drive from downtown St. Helena, holds tastings in its barrel caves, where current releases and library wines may be sampled. Tastings are $65, but one tasting fee can be waived by joining their wine club or making a $100 purchase.
An example of a library wine that might be available at an Anderson’s Conn Valley wine tasting is the 2009 Èloge. This dark ruby red wine, born from a particularly mild year, has a deep, full, layered aroma of cedar, cigar box and crème de cassis, with hints of red currant, violets, spice and toast. Its flavor is deep, full and layered, tasting of concentrated dark fruit, spice and mocha.
Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards is a 40-acre estate just south of Howell Mountain, and has been owned and operated by the Anderson family since 1983. Anderson’s wines are sold online and in five locations in Napa Valley, and many other locations nationwide. Club members save $25 on the ’12 Èloge. Join today.
Starting a wine collection takes money and time. You need a place to keep your wine where it will stay at a constant temperature of 55 degrees with 75 percent relative humidity, but you don’t want this to lead to a mold problem elsewhere in your home. It might be more cost-effective to put your wines in a wine storage facility.
Once you start collecting your wines, you may be interested in having a theme for your collection, such as wines from best Napa wineries. Napa Valley produces some of the best wines in the world, after all. It may help to join a wine club in Napa, so as to get savings on the wines you buy. Keep the documentation on all your wines, and have them appraised regularly without taking them out of climate-controlled storage. Look for wines you’d be equally happy to drink or resell — you don’t know what will be worth thousands of dollars in years to come, and what won’t.
If you’re visiting a small winery to see if they have wines worth collecting, make an appointment beforehand so there’ll be someone there you can talk with. Best Napa wineries have permit restrictions and can only accommodate a certain number of visitors each day, and hold scheduled tastings at specific times.
One of the best Napa wineries near St. Helena
Some of the best California wines come from Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards in Napa Valley. Just a 10-minute drive from downtown St. Helena, these vineyards produce world-class wines at affordable prices. The vineyard is a 40-acre estate just south of Howell Mountain. Instead of a busy tasting room, the vineyard offers you the chance to meet the owners and wine-makers and taste excellent wine stored in a cave. Wine Merchants Gourmet includes them in one of its Middle Valley tours.
An example of what this winery has to offer is the Signature Cabernet Sauvignon, a wine that comes only from the best of the vintage. The 2011 Signature Cab is an intensely dark purple and red wine with an intense aroma of dark berries, smoke, blue flowers, anise and other spices, tar and minerals. It tastes as good as it smells, with a fruity palate of blackberries and blueberries with hints of violets, licorice and smoke. This is a rare vintage, produced in a cool year when yields were low.
Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards has been owned and operated by the Anderson family since 1983. Anderson’s wines are sold online and in five locations in Napa Valley, and many other locations nationwide. By ordering six bottles or more per year, you can join their wine club, giving you discounts on many of their finest wines.
