Napa Valley, California: America's Premier Wine Country

Napa Valley is the most celebrated wine region in North America, a narrow valley — just 30 miles long and five miles wide at its broadest point — that produces some of the world's finest Cabernet Sauvignon and has become synonymous with American luxury wine. With over 400 wineries, a constellation of Michelin-starred restaurants, and some of the most expensive agricultural land on earth (prime Napa vineyard land sells for over $300,000 per acre), Napa Valley is, in the words of the wine writer Hugh Johnson, 'the nearest thing to a wine paradise this side of the Atlantic.'

The Judgment of Paris

The turning point in Napa's history came on May 24, 1976, at a blind tasting in Paris organised by the English wine merchant Steven Spurrier. The event — known ever after as the **Judgment of Paris** — pitted top French Bordeaux and Burgundy wines against California Cabernets and Chardonnays, judged by a panel of eminent French wine experts. To the astonishment of everyone, particularly the French judges, the 1973 **Chateau Montelena Chardonnay** (Napa Valley) placed first among the whites, and the 1973 **Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon** (Napa Valley) placed first among the reds, defeating legendary French wines including Château Haut-Brion and Château Mouton-Rothschild.

The result was covered on the front page of the New York Times and transformed the perception of California wine worldwide. The story was later told in the 2008 film 'Bottle Shock' and in George M. Taber's definitive book, 'Judgment of Paris.' The original bottles from the tasting are now in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.

The Great Wineries

**Robert Mondavi Winery**, founded in 1966 by Robert Mondavi, is the spiritual home of modern Napa. Mondavi was the first to build a major winery in the valley since Prohibition, and he pioneered the use of French oak barrels, cold fermentation for white wines, and the concept of the winery as a destination for wine education and hospitality. The winery, designed by architect Cliff May, is one of the most beautiful in the valley.

**Chateau Montelena**, founded in 1882 and revived in 1972 by Jim Barrett, is the winery that won the Judgment of Paris for white wine. The chateau sits at the base of Mount Saint John, with a Chinese garden and a stone castle that is one of the most iconic images of Napa.

**Opus One Winery**, founded in 1979 as a joint venture between Robert Mondavi and Baron Philippe de Rothschild of Château Mouton-Rothschild, produces one of the most expensive and sought-after Bordeaux-style blends in America. The winery, designed by Scott Johnson of Johnson Fain, is a modern interpretation of a French grand cru estate.

**Castello di Amorosa** is a 13th-century Tuscan castle, authentically reconstructed over 14 years by Dario Sattui, situated on a hillside above Calistoga. **Domaine Chandon** in Yountville was the first French-owned sparkling wine house in Napa, founded in 1973 by Moet & Chandon.

The Restaurants

Napa Valley has one of the highest concentrations of Michelin-starred restaurants per capita in America. **The French Laundry**, in Yountville, is chef Thomas Keller's three-Michelin-starred temple to French cuisine. Opened in 1994, the restaurant — set in a two-story stone building constructed in 1900 as a French steam laundry — is widely regarded as one of the finest restaurants in the world.

**The Restaurant at Meadowood**, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in St. Helena, was led by chef Christopher Kostow until the restaurant was destroyed in the 2020 Glass Fire. It is being rebuilt as the **Stanly Ranch** project.

In addition to the Michelin-starred temples, Yountville — a town of just 3,000 residents — contains more Michelin-starred restaurants per capita than anywhere else in America, including **Bouchon** (Thomas Keller's French bistro), **ad hoc** (Thomas Keller's casual restaurant), and **redd**.

The Hotels

**Auberge du Soleil**, perched on a hillside in Rutherford, is the original luxury resort of Napa Valley, founded in 1981. Its restaurant is one of the most celebrated in the valley, and the spa is among the best in California.

**Meadowood Napa Valley** in St. Helena was a 250-acre luxury resort with a championship golf course before the 2020 Glass Fire destroyed its main buildings. It is being rebuilt.

**Calistoga Ranch** is a luxury resort in the northern end of the valley, near the historic hot springs that give Calistoga its name. The area's natural geothermal springs have drawn visitors since the 1860s, when Sam Brannan, a California Gold Rush millionaire, attempted to create a Saratoga Springs of the West — hence the name 'Calistoga.'

**Solage, Auberge Resorts Collection** in Calistoga offers one of the most luxurious spa experiences in America, with its mud-slide treatments and geothermal mineral pools.

The Napa Valley Wine Train

The **Napa Valley Wine Train** is a 36-mile round-trip train ride through the valley in lovingly restored Pullman rail cars from the early twentieth century. The train departs from Napa, travels through the towns of Oak Knoll, Yountville, Rutherford, and St. Helena, serving gourmet meals prepared on board. It is one of the most elegant ways to see the valley.

Reference Links:

- Visit Napa Valley: visitnapavalley.com

- The French Laundry: thomaskeller.com/tfl

- Robert Mondavi Winery: robertmondaviwinery.com

- Chateau Montelena: montelena.com

- Opus One Winery: opusonewinery.com

- Auberge du Soleil: aubergedusoleil.com

- Napa Valley Wine Train: winetrain.com

- Judgment of Paris (Smithsonian): americanhistory.si.edu