Sonoma County · Appellation

Petaluma Gap

The only AVA in the United States defined by wind rather than soil or elevation, Petaluma Gap was established in 2017 around a literal break in the coastal hills where Pacific breezes pour through with enough consistency — averaging at least 8 mph on summer afternoons — to qualify. That wind, combined with the fog it pulls in behind it, keeps ripening slow and grape skins thick, producing Pinot Noir with more structure and savory tension than the variety typically shows elsewhere in California. Syrah and Chardonnay do well here too, but Pinot Noir has become the appellation's calling card.