Wine region | |
Type | U.S. County |
---|---|
Years of wine industry | 185[1] |
Country | United States |
Part of | California, North Coast AVA |
Other regions in California, North Coast AVA | Sonoma County, Mendocino County |
Sub-regions | Atlas Peak AVA, Chiles Valley AVA, Diamond Mountain District AVA, Howell Mountain AVA, Los Carneros AVA, Mt. Veeder AVA, Napa Valley AVA, Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley AVA, Oakville AVA, Rutherford AVA, Spring Mountain District AVA, St. Helena AVA, Stags Leap District AVA, Wild Horse Valley AVA, Yountville AVA |
Total area | 748 square miles (478,720 acres)[2] |
Size of planted vineyards | 45,275 acres (18,322 ha)[3] |
Grapes produced | Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Pinot noir, Zinfandel, Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, and more |
Napa County wine refers to the viticulture and winemaking in Napa County, California, United States. County names in the United States automatically qualify as legal appellations of origin for wine produced from grapes grown in that county and do not require registration with the United States Department of the Treasury Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB).[4] TTB was created in January 2003, when the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, or ATF, was extensively reorganized under the provisions of the Homeland Security Act of 2002.[5]
The vast majority of Napa County's 45,275 acres (18,322 ha) cultivated land is within the boundaries of the world-famous Napa Valley AVA and its numerous sub-appellations.[6] The portion of the county that falls outside of the boundaries of the Napa Valley AVA is northeast of the Chiles Valley AVA, where few grapes are cultivated.
Few wines are produced that carry a Napa County appellation of origin designation, as almost every wine produced from grapes grown in the county is eligible for release with the more commercially profitable Napa Valley AVA designation. The most common use of Napa County on a wine label is when a wine has been produced from grapes grown in two or more counties, such as Sonoma County and Napa County. In such a case, the wine label must indicate what percentage of grapes were sourced from each county.