The Route
From Highway 12/121, take Duhig Road south to a left on Las Amigas Road to Cuttings Wharf Road to Carneros Avenue. At Highway 12/121, go west to Old Sonoma Road and left on Dealy Lane. Return on Dealy Lane to east on Old Sonoma Road to Highway 29. Go north and take Imola Avenue east to Skyline Regional Park
America’s
largest private collection of contemporary art, sparkling wine
with French and Spanish connections, a winery that disappears into
the hills, and a walk on a country lane are some of the pleasures
of Los Carneros, a grape-growing district on the southern borders
of both Napa and Sonoma counties. A few old farm houses recall
the days when sheep and dairy cows grazed the hills and hay was
the main crop, before these lowlands were discovered to be prime
real estate for growing Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Twenty miles
or so of lightly traveled roads are perfect for slow drives and
bike riding.
In the 1850s, hay and grain were transported by barge from Cuttings Wharf in the Carneros to cable car barns and livery stables in San Francisco. Today’s Cuttings Wharf is a rustic boating launching site with a café.
Many acres of Carneros salt marshes and sloughs within the Napa Marsh State Wildlife Area are on the Pacific Flyway migration route. More than a hundred species of birds and waterfowl reside or rest here temporarily during the year. From the roadsides and from the wildlife viewing blind at the south end of Buchli Station Road you may see the endangered California clapper rail, snowy plovers, pintails, mallards, Cinnamon teal, egrets, herons, black-crowned night herons, red-tailed hawks, and even Golden eagles and Peregrine falcons.
Three miles from the north end of San Pablo Bay, which connects with the dependably chilly San Francisco Bay, the Carneros AVA is known for a unique lowland terroir comprised of shallow, rocky clay soil and cool ocean breezes. The growing is season is long, rainfall is minimal, the yields per vine are low, resulting in grapes of concentrated fruit character and high acidity, increasing the wines’ ability to age.
Continue
the Carneros Winery Tour with Stops at
Acacia, Bouchaine, and Domaine Carneros
The article on this page is adapted from the book, Backroads of the California Wine Country by Karen Misuraca (www.karenmisuraca.com), published by Voyageur Press.
Photo Credit: The pictures on this page are by Lisa Moore. www.studioponderosa.com