American Viticultural Area · CA
Los Carneros
Los Carneros is a federally-designated American Viticultural Area in CA, established in 1983. The map below shows its official TTB boundary alongside nearby AVAs.
The Los Carneros boundary is highlighted. Nearby AVAs are rendered in gray — click any of them to view that AVA's page.
At a glance
Established
1983
State
CA
Climate
Cool maritime
Signature varietals
Boundary recorded in 27 CFR Part 9 · Source: TTB
About the Los Carneros AVA
Los Carneros, designated 1983, straddles the Napa–Sonoma county line at the southern tip of both valleys, opening directly onto San Pablo Bay. It is the most-cited example of an AVA that breaks the assumption that AVAs nest cleanly inside each other: part of Carneros is inside the Napa Valley AVA, part is inside the Sonoma Valley AVA, and there is no single "parent" the region belongs to. Software vendors who model AVAs as a tree are forced to pick a side and misclassify the rest.
Cool-climate by California standards — sea fog, bay winds, and a generally maritime influence keep temperatures down — Carneros is best known for Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and traditional-method sparkling wine. Producers like Domaine Carneros and Gloria Ferrer established the regional sparkling reputation in the 1980s and 1990s. Still-wine Pinot from the higher Carneros benchlands has been ascendant since the early 2000s.
Nearby AVAs
Other American Viticultural Areas closest to Los Carneros — useful when a vineyard sits inside more than one AVA at once.