In recent years the Carneros Viticultural Area, which stretches across the southern boundary of both Napa and Sonoma Counties along San Francisco Bays has attracted attention from wine enthusiasts around the world. In addition to the exceptionally high quality of the wines produced here, the region has developed a sense of place--the relationship of the character of a wine to the soil and climate of the vineyards where the grapes were grown. (This is what French wine makers call terroir.) No winery has contributed more to this emerging sense of place than Carneros Creek Winery.

In 1973, Francis Mahoney, the founder and owner of Carneros Creek Winery chose the Carneros district for his vineyards and winery because he believed that the conditions there were ideal for Pinot Noir. Even before his vines began to bear grapes he launched an ambitious research project to determine which clones of Pinot Noir, as grown in his vineyards in the Carneros, would produce the flavor components which give the great wines of Burgundy their worldwide reputation. By linking specific flavor characteristics with specific clones across several vintages, he knew that he would then be able to vinify the clones separately or in combination to achieve consistent styles of Pinot Noir, from light to full, from fruity to rich.

The wines from Carneros Creek express both the distinctive character of the Carneros region and the inimitable style of this small, highly personal winery.

Carneros Creek Winery / 1285 Dearly Lane / Napa CA 94559, 707-253-9463


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