As the filming location for Alfred Hitchcock’s blockbuster suspense thriller The Birds, the Extreme Sonoma Coast of Northern California is no stranger to peculiar happenings. With its rugged coastline, chilling climate and the eerie fog that rolls in day after day, this is California’s most mystifying—and mystical—wine region. Breathtakingly picturesque, with some of its vineyards lining gentle slopes that overlook the Pacific Ocean, it’s unique in having several sub-climates that help account for its terrific versatility. Specializing in Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and even cool-climate Syrah, the Extreme Sonoma Coast—the area west of the Russian River Valley—has been enchanting more wine lovers each year with its complex and naturally well-balanced wines. 2011 James Beard award-winning author and wine writer for SF Magazine Jordan Mackay recently stopped by the SF Wine Center and gave a class full of thirsty minds the insider lowdown on this incredible region. We tasted some of the Extreme Sonoma Coast’s benchmark producers such as Hirsch, Cobb, Failla, and Peay, alongside some of the best known but more inland Sonoma producers like Kistler, Three Sticks, and Kosta Browne. Here’s a taste of what we learned…
The extreme coastal vineyard conditions differ vastly from the more inland vineyard locations. The intense climate conditions, thick fogline, and relatively heavy rainfall, make growing grapes on the Extreme Sonoma Coast a truly risky business. A quick glance at the weather patterns and average temperatures, and it’s questionable that grapes would ever fully ripen here. But here’s the rub: the vineyards receive enough warmth to successfully ripen these grapes because so many are planted at elevations just above the reach of the afternoon fog line. Combined with a long cool growing season and a late harvest during October or November, this allows the grapes to achieve a crucial balance and produce wines with true varietal characteristics and some of the purest expressions of terroir anywhere in the United States. The region really came onto the scene only in the 1990s, having earned its AVA status (that’s American Viticultural Area) in 1987. But buoyed by intense fruit and complexity, these Extreme Sonoma Coast wines, age-worthy and food-friendly, are winning the hearts of restaurateurs and wine lovers across the globe. Some of the world’s most skillful and adventurous winemakers practice their art here, and the daring required by the territorial challenges has proven well worth the risk.