State-of-the art wineries give way to Italianate villas, all interspersed with top restaurants in California’s Napa Valley. The razzmatazz aside, this is a serious and mature industry stuffed with winemakers trying to make world class wines, and mostly succeeding. The only trouble about these top wines is that British consumers have to compete with American collectors who, more often than not, have deeper pockets. But there is good value to be had, our new Angel’s Flight wines being great examples, and we are constantly on the lookout for tempting wines while avoiding the confected mega-blends which buy space on UK shelves. Also keep an eye on our Oddments list for interesting small parcels.

Central Coast is a large area which stretches from Bridgehead in Costa Contra County just by San Francisco to Santa Barbara, two hours short of Los Angeles. This is the home of the Rhône Rangers although sea fogs protect Burgundy emulators from the worst of the sun.