Finding the Best California Wines

Best California wines

Best California wines in St. Helena, CA

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.