Sierra Foothills

Sprawling along the west side of the Sierra Nevada mountains, the Sierra Foothills wine region offers wine drinkers variety and diversity.  Situated along the front range, the foothills are an easy day trip from the Bay Area and other popular northern California locations.  

The multi-county Foothills AVA is  east of Sacramento, the state capitol and fifth largest city.  Further east are the lofty Sierras, a mecca for winter sports fans. Lodi, a celebrated wine region, in its own right, is a short distance south of Sacramento.

One way to define the Sierra Foothills, at least in wine terms, is by referring to the Sierra Foothills AVA of 1987, that encompasses these eight counties: Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Mariposa, Nevada, Placer, Tuolumne and Yuba, plus a small group of sub-AVAs.  

Elevation and volcanic soils are key to the grapes that grow best in the Sierra Foothills.  All of the expected grapes, like Chardonnay and Cabernet, are there.  In recent years there has been a push for Rhone varieties, notably Syrah, Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne.  Interest in varietal Viognier is not what it once was and a lot of Foothills Viognier now goes into white blends. 

                                       

 There's gold in them thar vines!

More than any grape, Zinfandel is the single variety that defines the Sierra Foothills.  In the early days of Ridge Vineyards, Paul Draper thought enough of Foothills Zin, starting in 1976, to make a Fiddletown Amador County Zinfandel. 

Since the early 20th century, books and lengthy magazine articles have attempted to tell the real story of where Zinfandel came from and how it got to California. It took heavy research by a California wine historian and DNA analysis to uncover the complete story.  A Long Island nurseryman named George Gibbs, and not California wine pioneer, Agoston Harazthy, is now credited with bringing Zinfandel to America.  Part of that heritage is the understanding that Zinfandel is related to both a Croatian and and an Italian grape.  

How Zinfandel arrived in the Foothills is another unexpected story.  The short version is that gold miners in 1849 panned for the rare metal but came up dry, so they turned to agriculture, ordering vines from a Long Island nursery, owned by Mr. Gibbs.  Unsuspecting sourdoughs and their descendants found their gold in Zinfandel.

Over the years, Foothill Zins built a reputation for boldness with underlying finesse, fruit purity and acidity; things that made Cabernet Sauvignon drinkers look at Zinfandel with new respect.  Zinfandel became another wine to learn about and enjoy.  

More than Zinfandel

In time, the Foothills wine region began to expand.  And, as more winemakers took to the hills, an understanding developed that the same conditions that worked for Zinfandel, could also work for other varieties.  There were a lot of choices, with Cabernet Sauvignon and other Bordeaux varieties, showing an affinity for the diversity of climate, soils and elevation.  

Later, Syrah and other Rhone varieties came into their own in El Dorado and Amador counties and California Shenandoah Valley.  But not without controversy. Leon Sobon and colleagues in the California Shenandoah fought to use the name Shenandoah Valley,  losing to the historic presedence of Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, resulting in the awkward three-word California Shenandoah Valley appellation. 

            

El Dorado County is one of the coolest wine regions in California.  High vineyards were reaching up to almost 4,000 feet.  Growing conditions are cool at that height, forming an ideal environment for Merlot, Riesling, Chardonnay and cool-climate Syrah. 

At the far north end of the Sierra Foothills is the North Yuba AVA.  In the late 1990s, the Fellowship of Friends, an obscure religious group, founded Renaissance Vineyard & Winery and began releasing acclaimed late harvest Rieslings and a few controversial red wines, aged in German oak. The Rieslings won awards but the reds were just odd enough to keep them out of the main stream.  Today, Renaissance makes Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and late harvest Riesling.

Sierra Foothills destinations are as varied as the region's wine.  Bay area wine fans, planning  a day trip or weekend away, make the easy trek to foothills towns like Murphys, for relaxing inns and B&B's and a little wine and food.  With a visit to your local wine merchant, you can enjoy Foothills wine without leaving home.

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