2011 A Great Year for Sonoma County Wines

2009 Sonoma County Pinot Noir vintage and other accolades keep region in the spotlight

SONOMA COUNTY, CALIF. - 2011 was a great year for Sonoma County wines, as the wine
industry's top publications and wine competitions honored many of the region's
top producers, and the 2009 vintage of Sonoma County wines, most notably Pinot
Noir, garnered outstanding coverage.

The 2011 San
Francisco Chronicle's Top 100 American Wines report featured 27 Sonoma County
wines, significantly more wines than any other region in the report. Sonoma
County wineries were prominent among the sparkling wine, chardonnay, pinot
noir, zinfandel and cabernet sauvignon categories, a testament to the diversity
of the region's appellations and climates.

In the Wine
Spectator's October 15, 2011 California Pinot Noir issue, the cover story
headline proclaims "How Pinot Became Sonoma's Signature", a huge coup
acknowledging the evolution taking place as vintners and growers learn more
about their sites, clones and nuances in winemaking. Senior editor James
Laube's story, entitled "California's Burgundy" chronicles the wine's evolution
in Sonoma County from the 1980s to the 2009 vintage and highlights 20 Sonoma
County producers and 15 great vineyard sites before extolling the virtues of
the critically acclaimed 2009 vintage. "In terms of the number of great wines,
'09 is head and shoulders above any other vintage in California Pinot Noir history,"
Laube writes.

In another
exciting acknowledgement of Sonoma County's Pinot Noir quality, 2009 Kosta
Browne Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir was ranked the number one wine in the Wine
Spectator Magazine's Top 100 Wines of 2011, a huge accomplishment considering
that over 16,000 wines from all over the world are reviewed each year by the
publication. Ten Sonoma County wines were in the Wine Spectator Top 100 for
2011 from regions throughout the county, including Russian River Valley, Sonoma
Coast, Alexander Valley, and Knights Valley.

The Wine
Enthusiast honored Pinot Noir from Sonoma County in 2011 by naming Joseph Swan
Vineyard's 2007 Trenton Estate Pinot Noir the number two wine of the year in
their annual "Enthusiast 100 Must-Have Wines of the Year". Editors of the
publication also lauded Bob Cabral from Williams Selyem, one of Russian River
Valley, Sonoma County's pioneering wineries, as Winemaker of the Year in their
2011 Wine Star Awards. Russian River Valley was nominated this year as the top
region of the year, as well.

Sonoma County
Chardonnay also earned kudos from top wine publications. The October 2011 issue
of Wine & Spirits "Best Chardonnays of 2011" featured 2009 Flowers Sonoma
Coast Camp Meeting Ridge and 2009 Flowers Sonoma Coast Chardonnay in the top
two spots among  579 wines reviewed. Two
wines from Iron Horse Vineyards, 2009 Green Valley Native Yeast Chardonnay and
2009 Green Valley Heritage Clone Chardonnay, took two more of the top six slots
in the review.

Diane Wilson, of
Wilson Winery in Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, won several awards including
"Best Wine by a Woman Winemaker" at the 2011 International Women's Wine
Competition.

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Sonoma County,
located 50 kilometers/30 miles from San Francisco, is America's premier wine,
spa and coastal destination, featuring more than 300 wineries and 80 kilometers
/50-plus miles of stunning Pacific coast.

For a free
visitors guide or information on hotels, wineries, events, spas, attractions,
and dining in Sonoma County, visit www.sonomacounty.com or call (800) 576-6662.