San Francisco Bay Area Wine-Yorkville Highlands Winemakers: Bink, Meyer Family, Wattle Creek & Yorkville Cellars

"Down-home and largely undiscovered, the tiny appellation evokes images of a time gone by."  Virginie Boone, Savor Wine Country

Since the mid-1990’s, California has witnessed a dramatic increase in the number of wine-growing regions designated as American Viticultural Areas, or AVAs. With ten of its own sub-appellations, Mendocino County is an increasingly important region in the North Coast, particularly in light of the wide range of grape varieties planted in the county. A proportional number of microclimates support the efforts of the county’s grape growers, from the warm inland corridor that runs from Hopland north to Redwood Valley, to the cool-climate Anderson Valley just north of Sonoma County.

Tucked in the wild, picturesque hills that separate the Alexander and Anderson Valleys, the decade-old Yorkville Highlands AVA is one of Mendocino's most exciting appellations, if one of its lesser known. On Thursday, July 10th, four of Yorkville’s top wineries will introduce you to this extraordinary spot on California’s wine map. As a San Francisco preview to the annual Yorkville Highlands Festival which takes place in August, the owner-winemakers from Yorkville Cellars, Wattle Creek, Bink Wines, and Meyer Family Cellars (the festival’s host) will pour a diverse lineup of their current releases, including sauvignon blanc, syrah, pinot noir, and cabernet franc.

More than many viticultural regions in the state, the Yorkville Highlands represent a coming-together of factors that allow for the production of elegant, balanced red, white, and rosé wines: the Highlands’ continuous string of elevated benchland vineyards; proximity to the nearby Pacific Ocean, which moderates the climate and provides for an extended growing season; and ancient, gravelly, and well-draining soils that comprise many of the AVA’s best vineyard sites. Not to overlook the human factor of dedicated Yorkville growers working in tandem with winemakers whose collective goal is to produce elegant, food-friendly wines.

We hope you will be able to attend this unique tasting of wines from one of Northern California's up-and-coming regions!

Yorkville Highlands Winemaker Tasting
Thursday, July 10th, 2008
6pm to 8pm
$10 per person