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Winery
Clos Sonoma
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
There is little doubt about the fact that the most familiar red wine grape varietal in the world is the Cabernet Sauvignon grape, seen listed on bottles from more or less every single wine producing country across the globe. Part of the reason for this is the fact that Cabernet Sauvignon is a particularly hardy grape, resistant to both frost and rot, and can grow well in a number of climatic conditions so long as it receives enough sunlight and water. Of course, this is only half the story – we cannot ignore the fact that wines made from the Cabernet Sauvignon varietal are prized not only for their strong acidic fruit flavors, spicy and earthy notes and high tannin content, but also for the fact that they age beautifully in oak, resulting in wines which are on another level from those made from lesser grapes. Aged wines made using primarily Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are widely recognized to be the finest in the world. The aging process rounds out the tannins, softens the acidity and allows a wide range of fascinating and complex flavors and aromas to come through, making them an unquestioned highlight of the red wine world.
Region: California
California as a wine producing region has grown in size and importance considerably over the past couple of centuries, and today is the proud producer of more than ninety percent of the United States' wines. Indeed, if California was a country, it would be the fourth largest producer of wine in the world, with a vast range of vineyards covering almost half a million acres. The secret to California's success as a wine region has a lot to do with the high quality of its soils, and the fact that it has an extensive Pacific coastline which perfectly tempers the blazing sunshine it experiences all year round. The winds coming off the ocean cool the vines, and the natural valleys and mountainsides which make up most of the state's wine regions make for ideal areas in which to cultivate a variety of high quality grapes.
Country: United States
Of all the New World wine countries, perhaps the one which has demonstrated the most flair for producing high quality wines - using a combination of traditional and forward-thinking contemporary methods - has been the United States of America. For the past couple of centuries, the United States has set about transforming much of its suitable land into vast vineyards, capable of supporting a wide variety of world-class grape varietals which thrive on both the Atlantic and the Pacific coastlines. Of course, we immediately think of sun-drenched California in regards to American wines, with its enormous vineyards responsible for the New World's finest examples of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot based wines, but many other states have taken to viticulture in a big way, with impressive results. Oregon, Washington State and New York have all developed sophisticated and technologically advanced wine cultures of their own, and the output of U.S wineries is increasing each year as more and more people are converted to their produce.
Appellation: Sonoma Valley
Since the 1850s, Sonoma Valley has been recognized as one of the United States' most important and productive wine regions. Any visitor to the region will quickly understand just why Sonoma Valley has had so much success over the past hundred and fifty years, as the region benefits enormously from the wonderfully hot and dry climate it receives, alongside mineral rich soils, geological features such as thermal springs. Furthermore, the region has a rich wine heritage which gives the region a sense of pride and a determination to consistently put quality above quantity, and to make the most of the wide array of red and white wine grape varietals which flourish there. The Valley of the Moon, as it is affectionately named, is now widely understood to be home to many of North America's finest wines, and this is set to continue for many years to come.