Napa Valley shares only 2% of the globe that has a Dry Mediterranean climate.
Napa Valley being 32 Miles long and 5 miles wide at its widest point, with 16 individual micro climates makes this one of the most unique places on earth.
With over 33 different soil series spread across this tiny valley, it's easy to see how we can achieve such diverse results when crafting these artisan wines.
ARE ALL WINERIES THE SAME?
Among the 500+ wineries in Napa Valley, there are three types of tastings. Bar top tastings, where you return to the bar for your next pouring. Seated Tastings, where they bring the wine to you and answer questions. Private tastings, where you have an educator to talk you through your flight of wines. Usually this comes with a tour of the property or production facility and provides the personal touch & insight you deserve.
Within each of these tasting types comes a style; rustic, modern, or new age. As well as a theme tying together the history and vision behind the winery. And you can't forget the wines they are most notable for producing.
It's this intricate combination of different aspects that allows each winery to have its own essence.
IS IT WORTH THE TRIP?
More than 3 million people visit Napa Valley annually.
Less than 5% of the total wine production in the United states comes from Napa Valley.
Nearly 80% of Napa Valley wineries produce less than 5,000 cases a year.
Many wineries do not distribute, making their wines exclusive to the Napa Valley. The means you have to visit to taste these award winning wines.
Great food aside, Napa Valley has more Michelin stars per capita than anywhere else in the Nation. This is a Foodies Mecca.
STILL NOT CONVINCED TO VISIT NAPA VALLEY?
Napa was the first agricultural preserve founded in the US. Est. 1968. We have thousands of acres of redwood forests, history laden property and hiking trails set aside to enjoy.
We are home to a plethora of mineral hot springs, including one of three Faithful geysers in the world.
62 beautiful tributaries run into the Napa river that runs into the San Pablo Bay. Coupled with several fresh water reservoirs and irrigation ponds making this a fishing capitol.
Not to mention One of the largest Redwood trees in the Bay Area!
Napa county wild life & watershed
Napa County’s watersheds not only provide a home to over 133,000 people, they also support abundant wildlife, several of which hold the unique status of rare, threatened, or endangered.
Napa County is one of the most biologically diverse counties in the San Francisco Bay Area. Located at the margins of three major biological regions (the northern reaches of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary, the western edge of the Sacramento Valley, and divided north-to-south by several extensions of the Coast Range), the county exhibits a uniquely high level of wildlife diversity.
The forests, woodlands, shrublands, grasslands, rock outcrops, riparian corridors, wetlands, and vernal pools in our watersheds provide habitat for a variety of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates. Napa County is a stop on the Pacific Flyway, a bird migration route that extends from Mexico to Canada.
Fish of the Valley
The Napa River watershed supports thirty native fish species, including several threatened and/or rare species such as steelhead/rainbow trout, fall-run Chinook salmon, Pacific and river lamprey, hardhead, hitch, tule perch, and Sacramento splittail.
The Napa River is estimated to have historically supported a run of 6,000–8,000 steelhead trout, and as many 2,000–4,000 coho salmon (USFWS 1968). By the late 1960s, coho salmon had been extirpated, and steelhead trout had declined to an estimated run of less than 2,000 adults.
The present-day run of steelhead trout is believed to be less than 200 adults. Introductions of exotic fish species have impacted most freshwater ecosystems in California, including the Napa River. Habitat alterations can determine the species composition of a fish community by favoring certain species over another. Habitat alterations have occurred gradually, but constantly, during the past century.
The Napa River system has changed from being dominated by pools and riffles to a morphology dominated by large, deep pools with increased water temperatures and slow-moving water. Much of the Napa River and its tributaries now provide the preferred habitat of predatory fish species, many of which are exotic, such as largemouth bass.