Wine: El Dorado, elevated taste

Shortly after graduating from UC Davis in 1983 and working at wineries in Napa Valley and the Santa Lucia Highlands, Jonathan Lachs and Susan Marks took desk jobs in Silicon Valley. High-tech was the couple's ticket to their dream vineyard and winery -- but it wouldn't be in Napa or Monterey.

While at Davis, Lachs had tasted a 1980 Madrona Vineyards Chardonnay from the El Dorado Hills -- a wine so pure it sealed his fate.

"The wine was so refreshing, bright and true to character compared to the big oaky wines that were popular at the time," he recalls.

Many attribute that freshness to high elevation grape-growing, a hallmark of the appellation, which is nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, between Sacramento and South Lake Tahoe. In 1995, when Lachs and Marks purchased property for their brand, Cedarville Vineyard, in the Gold Rush-era mining town of Fair Play, there were 16 wineries in El Dorado. Today, the region is home to 70 wineries and nearly 2,000 vineyard acres perched at the highest grape-growing elevations -- up to 3,500 feet -- in California.

The growing conditions are rare, something the pioneers behind Madrona, Boeger and Sierra Vista knew when they settled in the 1970s and began experimenting with vineyard sites and varietals. In addition to the high altitude, which gives the fruit its power, intense color and tannins, the soils are decomposed granite, the ideal match for Rhone varieties, such as Cedarville's grenache. The zinfandel that comes from El Dorado tends to yield earthy, powerful red fruit notes. Cabernet, petite sirah and tempranillo grow well there, too.

Mike and Carey Skinner also came to El Dorado Hills to grow Rhones. They were drawn to the region in 2006, after learning that a branch of their family had opened a winery here in 1861.

The rest of the story >>