Anderson Valley

Overview

Anderson Valley is a cool, narrow coastal valley in Mendocino County, California, approximately 130 miles north of San Francisco. The valley runs from the town of Boonville in the inland southeast to Navarro on the Pacific coast. Cool ocean influence (fog and wind channeled through the valley) creates growing conditions among the most marginal in California for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, producing wines of natural elegance, low alcohol, and genuine terroir expression. Benchmarked in California as one of the two or three finest regions for Burgundian varieties alongside Santa Cruz Mountains and select Sonoma Coast sites. The northernmost end of the valley (where Rhys Vineyards’ Bearwallow Vineyard sits) is the coolest and most Burgundian of all.

Key Producers

• Rhys Vineyards — Bearwallow Vineyard (northernmost valley; 14+ ha; Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Syrah); largest in the Rhys portfolio; cornerstone of their sparkling program
• Littorai Vineyards (Ted Lemon) — Wendling Vineyard Pinot Noir (adjacent to Bearwallow)
• Copain (Wells Guthrie era) — Kiser Vineyard (neighbor of Bearwallow; now under different management)

Grape Varieties

• Pinot Noir — primary; highly site-expressive; Rhys Bearwallow among the finest in California
• Chardonnay — Rhys Bearwallow (94 pts, 2017, Gilman); Littorai also relevant
• Syrah — Rhys Bearwallow (planted 2015); small quantities; northern Rhône inspiration
• Pinot Gris / Gewurztraminer — Alsatian varieties historically successful here (Navarro Vineyards)

Style Notes

Anderson Valley Pinot Noir is defined by: cool temperatures (rarely above 86°F even in summer), significant diurnal swings (daytime 80s–90°F, evenings drop to 50°F), maritime influence, and varied soils (thin shale and sandstone at Bearwallow; ranging to alluvial valley floor). The best wines from the northern valley are precise, mineral-driven, and structured for 10–20+ years of aging — closer to Burgundy in inspiration than Napa Valley. The Bearwallow Vineyard’s topsoil depth (10–25 inches over fractured shale and sandstone) is deeper than Rhys’s Santa Cruz Mountains sites but still very shallow by California standards.

My Tastings

(none yet)

Sources

• VFTC #117 (John Gilman, May-June 2025), pages 1–32 — Bearwallow Vineyard detailed profile within the Rhys Vineyards feature; also Bearwallow chardonnay 2017 (94 pts) and pinot noir tasting notes