32 Summer 2013

These two qualities—compassion and pride—are more often present than not in successful farmers, gardeners, and viticulturists who are driven to grow the best quality fruits and vegetables. A hos-pitable climate and good soil of course helps, too, and Sonoma County is con-sidered a land of paradise and possibil-ity by those in the wine industry.

One of the first considerations of any good cultivator is: what will grow here? This is a multifaceted question that in-volves taking a look at soil components, climate and even geography to deter-mine what will thrive in the environ-ment or particular “terroir.”

The answer for Tom and Sally Jordan, founders of Jordan Vineyard and Winery in Healdsburg, was Bordeaux-style varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Verdot and Malbec, tra-ditionally grown in the Bordeaux region

of France, all thrive on the Jordan estate property located within the Alexander Valley growing appellation.

“Alexander Valley is very diverse in terms of what can be grown there, what works,” said Forrest Tancer, who grew up in the Valley and is a wine grape grower and an original board member for Alexander Valley Winegrowers, which worked to get formal government recognition of Alexander Valley as an American Viticultural Area (AVA).

Official AVA status was granted in 1984 and Alexander Valley became designated as a wine grape grow-ing region distinguishable by geo-graphic features. Alexander Valley is located in the northeastern cor-ner of Sonoma County, beginning in Healdsburg and stretching up through Geyserville and Cloverdale to the Mendocino County line. The valley is

ALEXANDER VALLEY—American Viticulture Area

What’s in a name? Soil, climate, geology and more.

Story by

Kimberly Kaido-Alvarez

Photography by

Sarah Bradbury

It’s really pride and compassion that collide in the souls of those who garden or farm on any scale. Yearning for the prize—that juicy, sweet peach, the head of butter-leaf lettuce devoid of bitterness, a gigantic pumpkin—this is pride, and the first half of the equation. It’s often fueled by nothing less than empathy, a caring not only for the plant that produces but also for the fam-ily, friends and community that depend on local food for their sustenance, health, enjoyment and wellbeing.

Official AVA status was granted in 1984 and Alexander Valley became designated as a wine grape growing region distinguishable by geographic features. Alexander Valley is located in the northeastern corner of Sonoma County, beginning in Healdsburg and stretching up through Geyserville and Cloverdale to the Mendocino County line.

Discoveries 33

22 miles long and ranges in width from two to seven miles.

The Russian River, which runs through the entire appellation before heading out to the coast, has strongly influenced the soils along with prehistoric volcanic ac-tivity. Soil types in Alexander Valley range from volcanic ash to gravelly alluvial fans to silty sedimentary solids, all depending on where the vineyard is located in the Valley’s north-to-south length or its 200- to 2,000-foot altitude in growing elevation.

Acting as a conduit that pulls fog through Healdsburg and into Alexander Valley, the Russian River snaking along the valley floor is a moderator that balances climatic swings.

More than 6,000 acres in the Valley are planted to the Cabernet Sauvignon vari-ety, making it the star of the region. This is almost half of Alexander Valley’s vine-yards acres, which total 15,000. Cabernet

Sauvignon grows on the floor, hillsides and mountain ridges of the valley. Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Syrah and Zinfandel are also grown here.

“The cool nights really maintain the fruit-forward characteristic of wine made from Alexander Valley grapes,” said Tancer. Soil composition affects the flavor of the grapes as well, and at Jordan the vine-yard soils have been mapped, explored and analyzed using cutting-edge technology.

Vineyard managers have in their hands a map of the soil structure and its ability to hold water (also called soil resistivity). But what was done scientifically has also been detected biologically on the palate of winemaker Rob Davis, who has been with Jordan since 1976—many harvests ago.

Davis can walk through a vineyard block tasting grapes from each vine and at some point he might stop, tying a green ribbon on a vine. The marker is placed where he

begins to taste a difference in the grape, explained Greg Miller, Director of Wine at Jordan. Remarkably, comparing where Davis stops correlates with a change in the soil on the map.

“While the soils on the Jordan property as well as throughout the AVA vary considerably from one location to the next (and many being “hybrid soils” resulting from tectonic shifting and erosion, which further complicates things), the soils of the Alexander Valley are largely alluvial from the flood plains of the Russian River, volcanic ash, and silty sediment,” explained Miller.

A handful of different soils are present on Jordan’s 1,000-acre property. Yolo, Cortina, Diablo and Toomes are a few of the different soil classes that hold their own unique characteristics and compo-sitions. “Merlot does well in a clay soil,” said Miller. But he went on to explain that

34 Summer 2013

Cabernet Sauvignon or Petite Verdot tend to thrive on Toomes, which is a gravelly loam, well-drained soil typically found on the ridges and foothills of volcanic flows and uplands on the Jordan property.

Science tells us that long ago Sonoma County was covered with water and existed as an inland sea. Active tectonic shifting of the coastal plates throughout history created the present day Mayacamas Mountains that form the eastern boundary of the county and are a geological factor that distinguishes the Alexander Valley AVA, affecting its climate and soil composition. Providing further evidence of volcanic activity, and adding a little extra beauty and mystery to the Jordan property, are large outcroppings of basaltic rocks (boulders).

Getting back to the idea of care and compassion, attention to the needs of the plant or vine is of grave concern at Jordan. “Each vine is coached on an individual basis,” said Miller.

Sonoma County is famous for grow-ing all kinds of crops throughout histo-ry. In past years it was dubbed “the little Yellowstone” by nature enthusiasts around

the globe who came to enjoy the hot springs, hiking trails, and visual wonders of land and sea. The county contains count-less microclimates—temperatures and soil

conditions can change drastically within mere miles, which works to the advantage of wine grape growers interested in plant-ing more than one varietal.

The maritime influences of the Pacific Ocean include fog that cools the summer nights, creeping in through valleys like the Petaluma Gap. Some areas receive more

fog than others and those that are just above the fog-line and tend to be a little warmer. Parts of Alexander Valley would fall into this category, and that’s one of the

reasons why Cabernet grows well here. But Chardonnay also requires warmer temperatures in order to express the fa-vored stone-fruit flavor characteristics of white peach.

Even before the Alexander Valley Winegrowers applied for AVA status from the government, it was a recog-nized and renowned growing region for wine grapes.

Much of this was due to the 1976 Judgment of Paris, a wine competition organized by Steven Spurrier, a British wine merchant. It was a blind tasting in which French judges compared top-quality California Chardonnays to the best French whites from Burgundy.

The competition also included reds, with Cabernets from California going up against red wines from the Bordeaux re-gion in France. At the time, it came as a sur-prise to many that California rated the best in each category.

“Overnight it shocked the nation and put California on the map as a legiti-

…long ago Sonoma County was covered with water and existed as an inland sea. Active tectonic shifting of the coastal plates throughout history created the present day Mayacamas

Mountains that form the eastern boundary of the county and are a

geological factor that distinguishes the Alexander Valley AVA, affecting its

climate and soil composition.

Left— Rob Davis holds a sample of soil in his hand, illustrating the diversity of soil types in just one vineyard; top—providing

further evidence of volcanic activity, and adding a little extra beauty and mystery to the Jordan property, are large

outcroppings of basaltic rocks (boulders).

Discoveries 35

mate wine-growing area,” said Miller. The majority of the fruit used in mak-ing the winning Chardonnay at the 1976 Judgment in Paris came from Alexander Valley.

Other crops like prunes and walnuts were also big in Alexander Valley be-fore the mass planting of grapevines. “Alexander Valley has had lots of incar-nations,” said Tancer, who remembers it being prune country during his years growing up here.

“Becoming an AVA was an import-ant effort, as the Valley was making a transition from prunes to grapes,” said Tancer, who farmed a 65-acre vineyard in Alexander Valley during that time. But defining the area as a unique growing appellation was also about preserving its agricultural heritage that was being threatened with plans for housing devel-opments and other interests.

“There was uniform support through-out the Valley to hold the line and not allow the property there to be chopped up and sold,” explained Tancer.

The Alexander Valley Winegrowers were successful in their mission to preserve the agricultural heritage of Alexander Valley and paved the way for the sprouting of new wineries and vine-yard plantings. Today it is home to more than 40 wineries and 200 grape growers. The annual “Taste of the Valley” event is held each May and gives wine lovers a chance to visit wineries here not usually open to the public.

For more information, contact Alexander Valley Winegrowers at 707-431-2894 or visit alexandervalley.org. •

Cutting-edge technology provides a soils map of the land at Robert Young Winery, showing the different types and boundaries of soils contained

within the vineyards.

Experience desiredMaking, and enjoying, great wine is a hands-on experience. Join us for a taste of our Single Vineyard Cabernets.

A wine experience made for you.

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