Winelingo
Cool-coast Pinot Noir is silky and bright with red cherry and a savoury edge, while Chardonnay runs from crisp and citrussy to gently creamy. Inland, Zinfandel is brambly, jammy and peppery, and Cabernet Sauvignon is fuller and riper with blackcurrant and soft tannin.
How Sonoma County wine tastes
Sonoma is big and varied, so the taste really depends on where in the county the grapes were grown, cool and coastal or warm and inland.
From the cooler, fog-cooled zones near the coast and along the Russian River, Pinot Noir is silky and fragrant, with red cherry and raspberry, a savoury, earthy edge and gentle tannin. Chardonnay from these areas ranges from crisp and citrussy to softly creamy, often with a hint of oak.
Head inland to the warmer valleys and the wines get bolder. Zinfandel turns brambly and jammy, with blackberry, black pepper and a warming kick of alcohol, while Cabernet Sauvignon is full and ripe with blackcurrant and rounded tannin. Next to neighbouring Napa, Sonoma often feels a touch more relaxed and fruit-forward.
Signature styles & what to look for
Sonoma’s two headline acts are cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and richer, inland reds. For the former, look to the Russian River Valley and the coastal Sonoma Coast; these names on a label point to brighter, more elegant styles.
For classic California Zinfandel, seek out Dry Creek Valley, the county’s spiritual home for the grape, where many wines come from gnarled old head-trained vines that are decades, sometimes a century, old. Alexander Valley is the place for plush, ripe Cabernet Sauvignon.
Unlike much of Europe, California doesn’t use ageing tiers like ‘Reserva’; the word ‘Reserve’ on a US label is a producer’s own term rather than a legal classification. The genuinely useful clues are the grape variety and, above all, the specific AVA (American Viticultural Area). As a rule, the smaller and more precise the named area, the more distinctive the wine.
The grapes & the land
The signature grapes are Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the cool areas, and Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon where it is warmer; Sauvignon Blanc also does well.
The magic ingredient is fog. Cold water off the Pacific pulls a blanket of fog and cool air inland through gaps in the coastal hills, especially along the Russian River. This natural air-conditioning slows ripening, letting grapes hold on to fresh acidity, which is ideal for delicate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Further inland, beyond the fog’s reach, the valleys are sunnier and warmer, ripening Zinfandel and Cabernet to fuller, riper, bolder wines. That contrast, packed into one county, is exactly why Sonoma can do both graceful and generous so well.