Petaluma Gap

Clary Ranch is located about 5 miles west of Petaluma, in Sonoma County, California. There are a number of vineyards producing winegrapes in the area, but Clary Ranch is on the edge - the edge of the Sonoma Coast appellation, the edge of the county line, indeed, the edge of the continent.

There is a map of the area known as the Petaluma Gap. Clary Ranch is marked just below the "A" in "Gap". I like to say we're in the middle of the gap.

The Petaluma Gap is a low-lying area of the coastal range that sits right over Bodega Bay. To the north rise the hills of Sonoma County, and to the south, the hills of Marin County continue the range. As the inland areas of California heat up in summer, the rising hot air draws in the cool, moist air from over the Pacific. This cooling air rushes in through the path of least resistance, the Petaluma Gap.

This morning, a blanket of cool fog hung over the vineyard, but as I write, the temperatures have risen, providing an ideal climate for Pinot Noir and, surprisingly, for Syrah. The cool evening temperatures are critical for the maintenance of higher acid levels in the grapes. Warm tempertures encourage acid levels to drop, and in other warmer areas, the result is a lackluster, flabby wine. The higher acid levels that we get here produce wines that balance with food perfectly.

The other unique aspect of the Petaluma Gap is, simply, Wind. The winds of early summer actually shut down the vines, preventing photosynthesis that generates the sugar in the grape. Winds over 8 mph will induce the stomata (the openings in the leaves that allow gas exchange) to close. Without the gas exchange, no sugar is produced. With winds over 25 mph, the stomata will remain closed for up to 72 hours!
So sugar development is naturally delayed. But flavor development continues!

This is why Pinots from the Petaluma Gap are so luscious and flavorful. Other less favored areas will continue to produce sugar and to metabolize acid, resulting in a flabby, alcoholic, grape-based beverage - hardly the elixir that is possible with the right grape in the right place.

Now, we can't ripen a Cabernet Sauvignon. I wish we could. But for Pinot and Syrah, the Petaluma Gap can't be beat.