美國加州葡萄酒產區_中北部山谷Yolo縣
Introducing the North Central Coast, CA

舊金山附近的葡萄酒產區

北海岸地區:索諾瑪,納帕,索拉諾,馬林

灣區:康特拉科斯塔,聖馬特奧

中央山谷:阿拉米達(利弗莫爾),鄧尼根山,約洛縣,聖克拉拉

中央山谷面積廣闊,與加利福尼亞太平洋海岸線平行,行程超過400英里(650公里), 它位於內陸約100英里(160公里)的地方,吞沒了該州北部的三分之二,其邊界延伸至西部的沿海山脈和東部的內華達山脈。

從技術上講,中央山谷實際上是兩個山谷:北部的薩克拉門託山谷和南部的聖華金河谷,它們匯集在廣闊且水文複雜的薩克拉門托 – 聖華金河三角洲,這可能被視為舊金山海灣的自然延伸,並帶來了內陸50英里(80公里)的鹽和淡水的交匯點,所有這些水的存在不僅有助於降低溫度,而且還提供了所有重要的灌溉。

中央山谷是加州農業產量的重要組成部分,它向美國和世界的幾乎每個地方提供各種食品,從西紅柿和蘆筍到杏仁和杏,葡萄藤不可避免地進入了這個高產區,擁有出色的土壤和灌溉系統,中部山谷本身沒有產區,但山谷是許多鮮為人知的AVA(美國葡萄種植區)的所在地,其中最著名的是位於薩克拉門托南部的洛迪。

中央山谷是加州葡萄酒產業的主力軍,生產了該州一半以上的葡萄,這裡盛行的炎熱乾燥條件有利於高產,大部分收穫進入散裝葡萄酒市場,然而在選定的次區域,也正在生產越來越多的優質葡萄酒,具有較高天然酸度的葡萄,如Chenin Blanc、Colombard、Barbera、Chardonnay是表現最佳的葡萄。

 

Yolo County Wine

悠若Yolo縣是加利福尼亞州中央山谷和舊金山東北部最北端的葡萄酒產區,該縣是一個重要的農業產業的所在地,葡萄栽培只是其中的一小部分,這是番茄的主要國家,也就是說該縣擁有四個AVA以及加利福尼亞大學戴維斯分校最著名的葡萄酒(葡萄酒相關)學院。 Chardonnay、Chenin Blanc、Petite Syrah是該地區最重要的葡萄酒,然而,優質的赤霞珠,歌海娜以及較少量的Petit Verdot,Petit Sirah,Tempranillo也在Yolo縣取得了成功。

Yolo County位於著名的加州葡萄酒區中心,納帕縣位於西部的Vaca山上,湖縣位於Yolo縣的西北部,索拉諾縣與Yolo共享其北部邊界,Lodi AVA位於東南部。

這裡的四個子AVA遍布全縣, Capay Valley和Dunnigan Hills AVA位於西北角,Clarksburg和Merritt Island位於薩克拉門托河邊緣,形成該縣的東部邊界。

在這條河上,海洋影響蔓延,Yolo縣比中央山谷內的大多數其他AVA稍微涼爽。在克拉克斯堡(Clarksburg)和梅里特島(Merritt Island)尤其如此,霧和沿海風使葡萄園日常降溫,延長了生長季節,然而這裡肥沃排水不良的土壤更有利於高產,而不是高品質,使這兩種AVA非常適合大量生產涼爽氣候的葡萄酒。

西部的Dunnigan Hills和Capay Valley更適合生產優質葡萄酒,較高的海拔意味著更明顯的晝夜溫度變化,仔細的選址可以優化任何給定葡萄園的陽光和風暴,Dunnigan Hills乾燥,肥沃的土壤提供了良好的排水性,導致葡萄產量較低,具有極佳的風味濃度。

Yolo縣(以前稱為“Fremont”郡)是加利福尼亞州最初的18個縣之一,它成立於1850年。與加利福尼亞州的大部分地區一樣,葡萄酒釀造在1850年代加州淘金熱期間來到該地區。人們一致認為“Yolo”是美洲原住民,意為“豐富的草原”。流行文化為該縣樂於採用的詞語提供了另一種選擇:

“YOLO”是“You Only Live Once”的首字母縮寫。

California – North Central Valley Wine Region; Yolo County

Wine Regions near San Francisco

North Coast Region: Sonoma, Napa, Solano, Marin

Bay Area: Contra Costa, San Mateo

Central Valley: Alameda (Livermore), Dunnigan Hills, Yolo County, Santa Clara

The Central Valley is a vast area, running parallel to California’s Pacific coastline for more than 400 miles (650km). Located about 100 miles (160km) inland, it swallows up the northern two-thirds of the state, with its boundaries extending to the Coastal Ranges in the west and the Sierra Nevada mountains in the east.

Technically speaking, the Central Valley it is in fact two valleys: the Sacramento Valley in the north and the San Joaquin Valley in the south. They converge at the extensive and hydrologically complex Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta. This might be viewed as a natural extension of the San Francisco bays, and brings the meeting point of the salt and fresh water some 50 miles (80km) inland. The presence of all this water not only contributes to lowering temperatures, but also provides all-important irrigation.

The Central Valley is a key component to California’s agricultural output. It supplies all types of foodstuffs to almost every part of the United States and the World, from tomatoes and asparagus to almonds and apricots. Inevitably, the grapevine has found its way into this highly productive area, which has excellent soil and irrigation systems. There is no Central Valley appellation per se, but the valley is home to a number of lesser-known AVAs (American Viticultural Areas), the most notable of which is Lodi, just south of Sacramento.

The Central Valley is the workhorse of California’s wine industry, producing more than half of the state’s grapes. The hot, dry conditions which prevail here are conducive to high yields, with the majority of the harvest going into the bulk wine market. However, in selected sub-regions, increasing quantities of high-quality wines are also being produced. Grapes with higher natural acidity, such as Chenin Blanc, Colombard, Barbera and Chardonnay, are among the best performers.

Yolo County Wine

Yolo County is the northernmost wine region within California’s vast Central Valley and northeast of San Francisco. The county is home to a significant agricultural industry of which viticulture is only a small part; this is prime tomato country. That said, the county boasts four(4) sub-AVAs as well as the most famous oenological (wine-related) college in California, at the University of California, Davis.  ChardonnayChenin Blanc and Petite Syrah are the most important wines produced in the region. However, excellent Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache, and lesser production quantities of Petit Verdot, Petit Sirah, Tempranillo are also successful in Yolo County.

Yolo County is in the middle of a cluster of famous Californian wine zones. Napa County is just over the Vaca mountains to the west and Lake County is to the northwest of Yolo County.  Solano County shares its northern border with Yolo, and the Lodi AVA is in the southeast.

The four sub-AVAs here are spread out across the county. The Capay Valley and Dunnigan Hills AVAs are in the north-western corner, while Clarksburg and Merritt Island are along the edge of the Sacramento River, which forms the eastern border of the county.

It is up this river that marine influences creep, and Yolo County is slightly cooler than most of the other AVAs within the Central Valley. This is particularly true in Clarksburg and Merritt Island, where fog and coastal winds cool the vineyards daily, extending the growing season. However, the fertile, poorly drained soils here are more conducive to high yields than high quality, making these two AVAs excellent for the bulk production of cool-climate-style wines.

Dunnigan Hills and Capay Valley in the west are better suited to producing quality wines. Higher altitude means a more-pronounced diurnal temperature variation, and careful site selection optimizes sunlight and wind exposure for any given vineyard.  The dry, loamy soils of Dunnigan Hills offer excellent drainage, leading to lower yields of grapes with an excellent concentration of flavor.

Yolo County (previously named “Fremont” County) was one of California’s original 18 counties, and it was formed in 1850. As in much of California, winemaking came to the region during the California Gold Rush of the 1850s. There is a consensus that “Yolo” is Native American in origin, meaning “abundant grasslands”.  Popular culture has offered up an alternative meaning for the word that has been happily adopted by the county:

“YOLO” is an acronym for ‘You Only Live Once.’

淺談 白葡萄品種Chardonnay(夏多內)
Introducing Chardonnay

如果紅葡萄酒之王是赤霞珠(Cabernet Sauvignon),那白葡萄酒之王就是Chardonnay(夏多內)了,他是一款非常穩定優質、豐富和複雜的白葡萄品種。這是一款非常多用途的葡萄品種,在全球各地都能良好生長,在勃艮第他被用於精緻的白葡萄酒,如Montrachet,Meursault,Pouilly-Fuissè和真正的夏布內,香檳酒中它變成了Blanc de Blancs,法國以外,夏多內展現最好的非美國加州莫屬了,知名產區Napa、Sonoma是最好產區,也有許多其他國家釀成夏多內fever.

夏多內在20世紀30年代被引入加利福尼亞,但直到20世紀70年代才開始流行,如安德森谷、卡內羅斯、蒙特雷、俄羅斯河、聖伊內斯(聖巴巴拉)和聖瑪麗亞谷等地區現在生產的葡萄酒遠遠超過20年前的葡萄酒.

雖然有一個名叫夏多內的馬康納村莊,但是葡萄的起源並沒有明確的一致,甚至可能是中東.

製作精良時,夏多內呈現蘋果、無花果、甜瓜、梨、桃、菠蘿、檸檬、葡萄柚、香料,蜂蜜,黃油,奶油糖果和榛子的大膽口味,成熟豐富和強烈的水果口味,釀酒師使用常見的釀造技術,例如桶式發酵,老化過程(葡萄酒留在其天然沉積物中)和蘋果乳酸發酵(一種將蘋果酸轉化為更柔軟的過程)來使這種易於操作的葡萄酒變得更加複雜乳酸),沒有其他白葡萄酒可以像橡木桶陳釀或桶裝發酵一樣享用夏多內夏多內葡萄具有相當中性的風味,並且由於它們通常被粉碎或壓榨,不像紅葡萄酒那樣用果皮發酵,無論從葡萄中出現的任何風味在粉碎後幾乎立即被提取,通過發酵浸泡幾天或幾週的紅葡萄酒,可以完全不同地提取其風味.

由於夏多內也是一個多產的品種,每英畝可以輕鬆生產4-5噸優質葡萄,因此成為每個種植它的,國家生產者的搖錢樹,許多美國和澳大利亞的夏多內都非常華麗美味,並且散發誘人香氣,但它們缺乏豐富性、深度、專注度,並且實際上進化得相當快,常常在一兩年內失去它們的強度和濃度,許多葡萄酒商研究並認識到這一點後,現在正在大幅度降低作物產量,將噸位降至每英畝2至3噸,相信這將導致更大的集中度,這種策略唯一的缺點是較低的作物量會導致出售葡萄酒的數量大大減少,從而導致夏多內價格上漲.

夏多內的受歡迎程度也導致了普通夏多內葡萄酒的巨大市場,所以這個品種有多種質量可供選擇,有相當數量的國產夏多內,可以從簡單和乾燥到更複雜、更高層次。生產商在葡萄酒上的名稱,通常是價格,是質量水平的唯一指標.

法國以外,夏多內展現最好的非美國加州莫屬了,知名產區Napa、Sonoma是最好產區

推薦精品夏多內白葡萄酒

火影亞索尼詩 夏多內白葡萄酒

The Arsonist Chardonnay

NT$1,200

Matchbook’s 2016 The Arsonist夏多內展示了Dunnigan Hills的品質,是一款無縫融合橡木和水果的甘美酒。 我們手工挑選我們莊園種植的最好的桶裝水果來製作這款夏多內。我們在晚上挑選了我們的夏多內克隆4和124(Dijon)。在日出前將莊園水果,在不到30分鐘的時間內從葡萄樹送達破碎機,保留新鮮水果風味。我們使用了一種釀酒師最喜歡的混合酵母,以確保複雜的發酵特徵得以發展。這些精心挑選的水果酒槽中頻繁攪拌在桶發酵。然後只挑選最好的10%,讓他們在保持頻繁的攪拌程序的同時再額外六個月。然後再次進行評估,最初的前10%中僅有一半入選2016年火影Arsonist夏多內的最終混合物。
A luscious wine with seamless integration of oak and fruit, Matchbook’s 2016 The Arsonist Chardonnay showcases the quality of the Dunnigan Hills. We hand-select the best barrel lots of our estate-grown fruit to craft this Chardonnay.

  • 年        份:2016
  • 酒        廠:Matchbook
  • 產  區:Dunnigan Hills AVA
  • 葡萄品種:Chardonnay 100%
  • 酒精濃度:14.3%
  • 品酒筆記:Matchbook的2016 The Arsonist夏多內展示了Dunnigan Hills AVA產區的品質,是一款無縫融合橡木和水果的甘甜美酒。 手工挑選我們莊園種植的最好的桶裝水果來製作這款夏多內。 玻璃杯中美麗的稻草色打開誘人的奶油和金銀花香氣,與香草香料混合。 奶油糖,焦糖布丁,菠蘿和芒果的口味將這種豐富的葡萄酒帶入了生活
  • 試飲溫度:10°C~12°C
  • 佐餐食物:非常適合當開胃酒,特別是奶油醬汁料理,如:阿爾弗雷多寬麵、奶油龍蝦
  • Tasting Notes: A beautiful straw color in the glass opens to enticing aromas of cream and honeysuckle that mingles with vanilla spice. Flavors of butterscotch, crème brûlèe, pineapple and mango bring this rich wine to life. The Arsonist is big and creamy, yet welcoming in its nuanced synthesis of flavors.
  • Pairings: Enjoy as an apéritif, or pair with fettuccine alfredo, poached lobster drawn in butter or your favorite salmon recipe.

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