Carmel Valley Wineries, CA

Wine Tasting in Carmel’s Wine Country

Sep 17, 2009

One of nine AVAs in Monterey County, the Carmel Valley is a less well-know wine region, but well worth the trip for anyone travelling California's Central Coast.

Twenty miles southeast of Monterey California, and just inland from Carmel-by-the-Sea, the traveler along California’s Central Coast will find the Carmel Valley wineries. Best known for Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the Carmel Valley wineries have steadily gained appreciation and respect, although they are still not regarded on the same tier as the better-known California wine regions.

Monterey County’s American Viticultural Areas

Carmel Valley is located within Monterey County, California, where there are nine American Viticultural Areas, or AVAs. The other eight are:

Monterey County is home to Big Sur, which has been called the most dramatic meeting of land and sea anywhere on earth. This cacophonous confluence of powerful maritime forces and rugged landscape is what is responsible for the quality of wine produced in Monterey County. Wines from Monterey are complex yet balanced, and the additional two months it takes for many of the grapes to ripen when compared to other regions means that Monterey wines exude a distinctive maturity and richness.

The Carmel Valley AVA

The Spanish planted the first vineyards in the Carmel Valley, but today’s Carmel Valley wines only trace their antecedents back to the middle of the twentieth century. While it’s true that upwards of 50 percent of the Monterey AVA is planted to chardonnay, Carmel Valley AVA, approved in 1983, is best known its red Bordeaux varietals. The characteristics that make wines from the Carmel Valley distinctive include steep, well-drained slopes and a somewhat warmer climate (average summer high temperature of 71°F) than the northern Salinas Valley. While the area is large, a relatively small percentage is planted (less than 300 acres).

Visiting the Carmel Valley Wineries

It is easy to visit the Carmel Valley wineries while staying in nearby Carmel-by-the-Sea or in Monterey. There are also some accommodations located right in the Valley itself. To reach the Carmel Valley, the visitor staying in Carmel-by-the-Sea may take the 4 or 22 bus from Mission and Sixth to Taste Morgan at The Crossroads and then connect with Monterey-Salinas Transit bus 24, the Grapevine Express, which stops at many of the wineries. For visitors staying in Monterey, the Grapevine Express may be boarded at the Monterey Travel Plaza. Once in the Carmel Valley, many of the wineries are within walking distance of one another.

Expect many of the Carmel Valley tasting rooms to be more expensive (up to $15 as of this writing) than adjacent regions, although there are still many free tours that include free tastings.

The copyright of the article Carmel Valley Wineries, CA in California Travel is owned by Ret Talbot. Permission to republish Carmel Valley Wineries, CA in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.