Winegrowing

Earth, Air, Human Care

Growing winegrapes is both a profoundly simple and an amazingly complex process.  While grapevines require only soil, sunlight and moisture to bear fruit, the specific characteristics of that soil, sunlight and moisture determine how the grapes will taste and the quality and personality of the wine that can be made from them.

With its sunny weather and scant rainfall during the growing season, California’s climate is perfect for winegrowing.  The distinctiveness and variety of Golden State wines, however, come from incredibly diverse topography that includes staggering mountains, gentle foothills, fogged-in valleys, coastal plains, rushing rivers and more.  Each type of topography carries with it a set of distinctive soil structures, sun exposures and microclimates, and often these characteristics are what define an American Viticultural Area (AVA).  Even the same winegrape variety - Zinfandel, for example - will take on dramatically different character depending on where it’s grown.  One region, AVA, or even a single vineyard will produce a Zinfandel that smells and tastes of briar and raspberry jam with a dash of black pepper, while another will yield a Zin that expresses hints of wild blackberry, baking spice and white pepper.  These two wines might be grown very far from each other - one up in Mendocino and one down in Paso Robles - or, depending on topography and winegrowing decisions, the two very different wines might be cultivated in adjacent vineyards.

Discover more about the effects of climate and soil on wine, and meet California winegrowers who are passionately committed to responsible stewardship of the land, season by season.