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by Fred McMillin
for May 2002
Battle of the Big Boys. . .
NAPA versus SONOMA
Prologue
Sonoma County today has its fair share of imposing and prestigious
wineries... that are a match for any grand estate in Napa Valley.
Steven Brook
THE WINES OF CALIFORNIA
The Rest of the Story
On the supermarket shelf I see two 1998 $18 Merlots, one from Sonoma and one from Napa. Naturally, I take the NAPA bottle... but wait. Maybe I'm getting a $16 wine and paying $2 for prestige. At a given price, are the Sonoma wines better? To get an answer, we paired 10 Sonoma County wines with 10 Napas of the same price, vintage, and varietal. Here is the winner of each match, with the highest-rated wine listed last. That is, the further you read, the better the wine.
The Winners
| 10th | - | NAPA | '98 | $17 | Merlot, Beaulieu |
| 9th | - | NAPA | '98 | $16 | Sangiovese, Flora Springs |
| 8th | - | SONOMA | '97 | $14 | Old Vine-Old Clone Zinfandel, Alderbrook |
| 7th | - | NAPA | '99 | $25 | Pinot Noir, Acacia |
| 6th | - | SONOMA | '98 | $20 | Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, Chateau Souverain |
| 5th | - | SONOMA | '98 | $l5 | Pinot Noir, Kenwood, Russian River Valley |
| 4th | - | SONOMA | '97 | $20 | Cabernet Sauvignon, Belvedere, Dry Creek Valley |
| 3rd | - | NAPA | '97 | $22 | Merlot, Sattui |
| 2nd | - | NAPA | '97 | $16 | Merlot, Charles Krug |
| 1st | - | SONOMA | '97 | $21 | Cabernet Sauvignon, Lake Sonoma, Alexander Valley |
So what did the tasting tell us?
* The Napa Answer—We won half of the equal-price matches. You don't pay extra for having the words NAPA VALLEY on the label.
* The Sonoma Answer—Wait a minute. The median Napa wine was ranked 7th, while the median Sonoma was 5th. Our winners are better than your winners!
* Conclusion—Steven Brook is right. Sonoma is getting VERY competitive.
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About the Writer
Fred McMillin, a veteran wine writer, has taught wine history for 30 years on three continents. For information about the wine courses he teaches every month at either San Francisco State University or San Francisco City College (Fort Mason Division), please fax him at (415) 567-4468. |
This page created May 2002