Sarah Cahn Bennett winemaker at Pennyroyal Farm in Anderson Valley.
Anderson Valley / Photo by Gabriela Hasbun
Tucked between the rugged ridges and redwood trees of Mendocino County, Anderson Valley has a well-deserved reputation for wine quality thanks to pioneering wineries like Navarro Vineyards & Winery, Husch Vineyards & Winery, Handley Cellars and Roederer Estate.
This 15-mile-long valley and its surrounding hills, just 2.5 hours north of San Francisco, are both a paradise for growing wine grapes and a quiet, counter-culture community in which to live. The valley’s cool-climate suitability for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay has also made it irresistible to wine companies based elsewhere who have bought grapes, vineyards and wineries here. In contrast to them, however, is a new generation of small-scale, top-quality winemakers who call Anderson Valley home as they pursue their own elegant styles of Pinot Noir.
