Napa Valley wine: an expert guide and the best bottles to buy

In 1976 Stephen Spurrier, a British wine merchant based in France, organised what became known as the Judgement of Paris. This was a blind tasting by renowned industry professionals, comparing top chardonnays from Burgundy and cabernet sauvignons from Bordeaux alongside those from California. To everybody’s great surprise, the wines from California’s Napa Valley scooped top marks in both categories.

Napa Valley still produces some of the world’s most prestigious (and costly) wines, and nowadays is a playground of many delights for the millions of well-heeled, wine-loving tourists who visit each year. In 1976 there were only around 50 producers in the region. Since then, money poured in, new vineyards and wineries sprung up, and now there are more than 400, many of which have their own tasting rooms to welcome visitors.

Which grapes are grown the most in Napa Valley?

Cabernet sauvignon and chardonnay are the king and queen of the grapes here. These make Napa’s most famous wines from producers such as Stag’s Leap and Chateau Montelena (the winners of the Judgement of Paris and both still going strong) as well as Opus One, Robert Mondavi, Ridge Vineyards and many other jewels in Napa’s winemaking crown.

What style are Napa Valley wines?

While many French winemakers are making lighter, more elegant wines these days, those in Napa have generally stuck to the style that made their region famous 50 years ago – sleek, well-polished wines usually with very ripe fruit and relatively high alcohol due to the warm climate, as well as extensive oak ageing, often in expensive new barrels, which gives the wines the characteristic bold, buttery and/or spicy notes.

Best Napa Valley wines to buy

Bread & Butter ‘Winemaker’s Selection’ pinot noir

• Available from Majestic (£16)

Established in 2014 by winemaker Linda Trotta, Bread & Butter is a reliable brand for approachable, well-made wines that won’t break the bank. Pinot noir is relatively rare in Napa because it prefers a cooler climate, but this shows how good the grape can be here when made with careful hands. Ripe and fruity but not overly jammy; excellent value for money.

Trefethen Family Vineyards chardonnay 2021

• Available from Waitrose (£35)

Gene and Katie Trefethen founded this winery way back in 1968 and were ahead of their time for realising the importance of sustainability in all they do, and their success was sealed when they won Best Chardonnay in the World in 1979. Now run by the third generation of the family who carry on their good work, and still their chardonnays are rightly considered to be benchmark Napa wines.

Frog’s Leap Rutherford Estate Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon 2019

• Available from Cambridge Wine Merchants (£53.99)

Frog’s Leap is one of Napa’s iconic producers, with roots going back to 1838 and the earliest plantings in the region, and the first to be certified with organically grown grapes. This is plush and concentrated with blackcurrant and plummy fruit layered with mocha and tobacco notes, velvety tannins and a sleek elegance that’s so appealing to modern drinkers.

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