Wine regions of the world 8 California

I think it was when I was a kid that I first became aware that wine came from California. And that was down to one thing and one thing only.  And that was the Paul Masson California Carafes. I remember the advert as it was Ian Carmichael sitting on the deck of a boat in what looked like a harbour in Devon or Cornwall. He was sitting back extolling the virtues of the wine while mocking the language used by Americans , such as laying fine wines on you man. And then the understated tag line at the very end “Paul Masson California Carafes they're Really Jolly Good”. This however was not the only thing that was so good about the wine, it came in a Carafe. Unlike all the other wine that you could get that came in a bottle this came in a carafe that you could was up and use over and over again. Before all you could do was stick a candle in it or turn it into a lamp if it had that raffia outside to the bottle.  I rambler in our house it was  so much better than just a bottle of wine, wine in a container that had another use.  It was a sort lived feature however as  after a while as you only need so many carafes in one house before you have too many.  But I remember the adverts and the brand after all this time some thirty years ago now.

Now to start like this when talking about California wine you might say is unfair. Just remembering a advert and one brand over all the other wines that are produced there. Wines that are equal to if not better that any old world European counterpart. And if you are thinking that you are right. But the reason why I started with this renaissance of wine drinking. Wine became more accessible to more and more people and I would say that it was Californian wine with all its associated glitz and glamour that lead this new world wine culture in Briton.

What is truly astounding are that actual fact of the region, California wine made in the  state of California USA is three-quarters the size of France. But California accounts for nearly Ninety present of entire American wine production. California alone produces more wine than that of Australia. And if California was a country in its own right it would be the fourth-largest wine producer in the world.

It has over 1,200 wineries in the area , everything from small boutique wineries to E & J Gallo Winery who has distribution all over the world and is seen in almost every supermarket I have ever been in. Wine is produced from almost very kind of grape you can mention ,  from Albariño, Alicante Bouschet, Alvarelhão, Barbera, Bastardo, Black Muscat, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan, Charbono, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Cinsaut, Colombard, Concord, Dolcetto, Dornfelder, Flora, Freisa, Gamay Beaujolais, Gamay Noir, Gewürztraminer, Grenache, Malbec, Malvasia, Marsanne, Merlot, Mourvèdre and  Muscat Canelli. As weel as  Muscat of Alexandria, Nebbiolo, Niagara, Orange Muscat, Palomino, Petit Verdot, Petite Sirah, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir, Primitivo, Riesling, Roussanne, Rubired, Ruby Cabernet, Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, Souzão, Symphony, Syrah, Tempranillo, Teroldego, Tinta Amarela, Tinta Cao, Tinta Madeira, Touriga Nacional, Trebbiano, Trousseau gris, Valdiguié, Verdelho, Viognier and of course the  Zinfandel grape as well.

 In fact when you think about the reason for the wine being there in the first place and what happened to them as it was not war that almost killed the wine industry but the law. The first vines where planted by missionaries back in the 18^th century to produce wine for mass.  This was all started by the Spanish to start with but it was The California Gold Rush in the 19th century that brought new settlers to the region. And it was this increasing the population and the local demand for wine that really pushed things along. And it went from strength to strength getting reconition world wine way before any other new world wine had even got off the ground. But then on the 16^th  of January 1919 18th Amendment ushered in the beginning of Prohibition. Vineyards were ordered to dig up vines and destroy cellars.  All most overnight a whole industry was told to stop producing or face prosecution.  Some of the vineyards survive by converting to producing  grape juice. And a few were able to stay in operation in the production of sacramental wine for the church. When prohibition was repealed in 1933 only 140 wineries were left. It was not until the 1960s actually recover from this set back.  California was known for its sweet port-style wines made from Carignan and Thompson Seedless grapes.

But all part of that 60s new way of thinking a new wave of winemakers emerged. And it was them who ushered in the renaissance of California wine. With their focus on new winemaking technologies and the all-important emphasis on quality.

Then in 1975 and in what is now called “The Judgment of Paris,” Californian wine came of age. In a blind tasting event a number of   Californian wineries were compare to the best of Bordeaux and Burgundy. The Californian wines shook the wine world by sweeping the competition in both the red and white wine categories. It was this that changed the way the world saw  California wines.

California is roughly divided into 4 main regions the north , central and south coast and the central valley . The  North Coast  Includes most of north coast  and north of San Francisco Bay. Also is where you will find the  Napa Valley , probably the best know wine region of the area. The Central Coast covers the central coast of California to the area south and west of San Francisco Bay and down to Santa Barbara County. And the South Coast covers the coastal regions south of Los Angeles down to the border with Mexico. Finally the Central Valley over to the central valley and the sierra foothills.

As for the wine its self well you get a great number of bottle that are mass produced and are in there own right good drinkable wines. You have your  Cabernet Sauvignon,  Chardonnay,  Merlot, Sauvignon blanc and the Zinfandel wines and nothing wrong in them as they fill a gap in the market.  But more and more you are getting real craft wines from small boutique wineries. Wines that have a simpler flavour but with real fruit taste.  Wines that have an intensity that is truly their own and almost dare I say it like an old world wine style set to a region and area.

The only problem with that is as more and more people in America get interested in wine and their own grown products the less we have to be shipped over here to the UK.  And who could blame them , why let the good stuff get away.