Look Closely...
There's a Quiet Evolution Happening in the Napa Valley

by Alan Goldfarb
May 27, 2008

If there was any concept that could be concluded from our tasting of Napa Valley wines it was this: There’s a quiet evolution taking place in the Napa Valley. Some producers have taken up the cudgel of terroir-driven wines.The wines are beginning to be ratcheted back through various means both in the cellar and in the vineyard; and equilibrium is returning, especially to the Cabernet Sauvignons that made the appellation so famous in the first place.

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When H. W. Crabb planted a vineyard in this central Napa Valley AVA in 1868, he named his chosen site ‘To Kalon’, Greek for ‘most beautiful’. Today, this vineyard is surrounded by 5,000 acres of vines, in an appellation that only totals 5,700 acres. The region is virtually a flat field, squeezed between the Mayacamas Mountains to the west and the Vaca Range on the east. The gravelly, well-drained soils are perfect for the world-class wines that are made here, mostly from Bordeaux varieties. They are characteristically rich and dense, with firm tannins and often with notes of mint and herbs. The cooling wind and fog that rolls in during the afternoon greatly influences the fine balance achieved in these quality wines. Crabb named his vineyard justly, for the wines of Oakville certainly are most beautiful!