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California Wine Atlas

Chiles Valley

Sub-AVA · Napa County · District 4

27 CFR 9.154 · established 1999-02-17

Heat class IV · 1991-2020 normals

Climate normals in three numbers

3,585°F-days

, Apr 1 – Oct 31

9 GridMET cells cover this region

IV

144mm

season rain, Apr 1 – Oct 31

46 mm of it in the , Sep 1 – Oct 31

Warm and cool vintages since 1980

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Rain across the season, and at harvest

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The boundary

This boundaryClick to open

Hovering a shaded region names it; a click opens its page.

Measured vineyard area

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Drought categories, year by year

Napa County — not Chiles Valley

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What's in the ground

6.6

pH, 1:1 water

15.2cm

, whole profile

106cm

to

Well drained

, dominant condition

Distribution across 20 · mean ◆, median │, p10–p90 bar

6.6
2.1%
22.7%
available water
15.2cm
depth to restriction
106cm

Dominant

  • 39.1%
  • 17.9%
  • 16.4%
  • 9.2%
  • 6.9%

20 map units · soil described over 99.4% of the region’s area · 0.6% is water, rock outcrop or other non-soil · 72% of the described area has a restrictive layer within the profile.

Sand, silt and clay, against every other appellation

CLAYSANDSILT

Loam

32% sand · 46% silt · 23% clay

Sandier than 9% of California appellations and clayier than 51%. Each grey point is one appellation’s topsoil; appellations nest, so this is a distribution of places rather than of land.

Plus 12% rock fragments by volume, which the triangle does not describe — the three fractions are of the fine-earth material only.

Elevation, slope and aspect

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Bearing acreage by variety

Napa County · District 4

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Price per ton

Napa County · District 4

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The appellation in federal law

The boundary, in the government’s own words (551 words)

(c) Boundary. The Chiles Valley viticultural area is located in the State of California, entirely within the Napa Valley viticultural area. The boundaries of the Chiles Valley viticultural area, using landmarks and points of reference found on appropriate U.S.G.S. maps follow. The local names of roads are identified by name. (1) Beginning on the St. Helena, CA quadrangle map at the northernmost corner of Rancho Catacula in Section 34, Township 9 North (T9N), Range 5 West (R5W), Mount Diablo Base and Meridian (MDBM); (2) Then in southwesterly direction along the Rancho Catacula boundary line to its intersection with the Rancho La Jota boundary line; (3) Then in a south-southeasterly direction approximately 3,800 feet along the Rancho Catacula/Rancho La Jota boundary line to the point where the Rancho Catacula boundary separates from the common boundary with Rancho La Jota; (4) Then in a southeasterly direction continuing along the Rancho Catacula boundary approximately 23,600 feet to a point of intersection, in the NE 1/4 Sec. 19, T8N, R4W, on the Chiles Valley quadrangle map, with a county road known locally as Chiles and Pope Valley Road; (5) Then in a southwesterly direction along Chiles and Pope Valley Road to a point where it first crosses an unnamed blueline stream in the SE 1/4 Section 19, T8N, R4W; (6) Then following the unnamed stream in generally southeast direction to its intersection with the 1200 foot contour; (7) Then following the 1200 foot contour in a northeasterly direction to a point of intersection with the Rancho Catacula boundary in section 20, T8N, R4W; (8) Then in a southeasterly direction along the Rancho Catcula boundary approximately 17,500 feet to the southwest corner of Rancho Catacula in section 34, T8N, R4W on the Yountville, CA, quadrangle map; (9) Then in a northeasterly direction along the Rancho Catacula boundary approximately 650 feet to its intersection with the 1040 foot contour; (10) Then along the 1040 foot contour in a generally east and northeast direction to its intersection with the Rancho Catacula boundary; (11) Then in a northeasterly direction along the Rancho Catacula boundary approximately 1100 feet to its intersection with the 1040 foot contour; (12) Then along the 1040 foot contour in an easterly direction and then in a northwesterly direction to its intersection of the Rancho Catacula boundary; (13) Then in a southwesterly direction along the Rancho Catacula boundary approximately 300 feet to a point of intersection with a line of high voltage power lines; (14) Then in a westerly direction along the high voltage line approximately 650 feet to its intersection with the 1000 foot contour; (15) Then continuing along the 1000 foot contour in a generally northwesterly direction to the point of intersection with the first unnamed blueline stream; (16) Then along the unnamed stream in a northerly direction to its point of intersection with the 1200 foot contour; (17) Then along the 1200 foot contour in a northwesterly direction to its points of intersection with the Rancho Catacula boundary in Section 35, T9N, R5W on the St. Helena, CA, quadrangle map; (18) Then along the Rancho Catacula boundary in a northwesterly direction approximately 5,350 feet to a northernmost corner of Rancho Catacula, the beginning point on the St. Helena quadrangle map a the northernmost corner of Rancho Catacula in Section 34, T9N, R5W, MDBM.