The strikingly red color of the hills in the region is the reason the name "Red Hills" has come to be associated with the area. The red, stony soils are the primary attraction that motivated the dramatic growth of viticulture in the area. The appellation, part of the Mayacamas Range, separates Excelsior Valley to the east from the Big Valley basin to the west. The terrain is rolling hills with elevations between 1,400 and 3,000 feet (427–914m)above sea level at the foot of Mount Konocti, a dormant cinder cone in the Clear Lake Volcanic Field that last erupted about 11,000 years ago and still listed as active.[10] Red Hills receives an average of 35to 65 inches (889–1,651mm) of rainfall annually.[1][6] At the outset, there were 3,100 planted acres (1,255ha).[1] The plant hardiness zone ranges from 8b to 9b.[11]
In order to raise the profile of the appellation, David and Andy Beckstoffer launched a program in 2016 to incentivize local winemakers to feature their Red Hills fruit. Beckstoffer had acquired a 1,618-acre (3sqmi) plot in 1997, named Amber Knolls, and planted 1,025 acres (415ha).[12]). Each participant would receive 1 ton of Cabernet Sauvignon for free on the condition the resulting wines use the AVA and their Amber Knolls or Crimson Ridge vineyards on their labels, and market the brand in the luxury wine segment.[13] Participating winemakers included Spoto Wines's Stuart Spoto and Lake County Brassfield Estate Winery's Matt Hugues.
The boundaries of the AVA were modified with the establishment of the Kelsey Bench-Lake County AVA in 2013, expanding it to the northwest by seven acres (2.8ha).[2] In March 2024, following a petition on behalf of local vineyard owners, the AVA was officially expanded again, this time by 679 acres (1sqmi).[3]
History
Lake County's rugged terrain, agricultural and urban development in the 1800s was concentrated in the valleys. Other small settlements grew up around tourist attractions, the lake itself, the many mineral and hot springs found in the region, stagecoach resting places, while plentiful timber and wildlife resources attracted early pioneers to homesteads in the mountains. The mountainous landscape isolated individual settlements from each other and made travel relatively slow and arduous. Because of the high expense and time involved in transporting goods around the county and to the outside world, perishable agricultural crops were grown primarily to meet domestic needs and the local demands of the early settlers, the miners, and the tourists. Livestock raising (including dairying) was the major agricultural pursuit.
The first pioneer families and their wagon trains came into Lake County in 1854 through Napa Valley. Some settled in the more level lands in the lower end of the county, in Loconoma Valley, where Middletown is located; in Lower Lake Valley, home of Lower Lake; and several smaller valleys nearby. Others sought to establish homesteads in the Big Valley, at the far end of Clear Lake. The major emigrant routes between these most populous parts of the county crossed the Red Hills area. These roads were also used by travelers seeking refreshment at the many hot springs resorts located around the periphery of the area. Carlsbad Springs, Hoberts Resort, Harbin Springs, Seigler Springs, Glenbrook Resort, Bonanza Springs, and Adams Springs were all clustered in the more mountainous areas surrounding Red Hills.
The Lower Lake area was among the first to be populated in Lake County, because of its relative proximity to the settlements of Sonoma and Napa County, and the earliest vineyards were planted there. Agriculture later spread from there to the many valleys surrounding Lower Lake to the south and east, to the large fertile expanse of Big Valley at the west end of the Lake, and to the many small valleys in the west and north parts of the state, but remained concentrated in valley terrains until the second half of the 1900s. The S-Bar-S Ranch, located northwest of the intersection of Highway 29 and Soda Bay Road, was originally a stagecoach stop-over on the road between Lower Lake and Kelseyville. In the 1880's a school, the Ely Post Office, a hotel, and commercial lumbering formed the nucleus of a small town located there. The town disappeared when timber in the area eventually ran out and road improvements eliminated the need of a rest stop on the ranch. Prior to 1870, Boggs Lake was on the route between Middletown and Kelseyville which followed Wildcat Road and McIntire Creek. In 1870, a more direct route, known as the Boggs Toll Road, was constructed. This route was accepted by the state as Highway 29 in 1924 and was designated as Highway 175 in 1963.
The Boggs Lake area has been used for a number of purposes over the years. The early pioneers of Big Valley traveled to the areas around Boggs Lake and Salminas Ranch to hunt for elk, but this attraction lasted only until 1858, when the more accessible elk herds had been killed. A lumber and grist mill was operated on the south shores of Boggs Lake from 1860 to 1866, when the operation was moved to Boggs Mountain. In the winters between 1869 and 1876, ice was manufactured on the lake and stored in sawdust for summer use. In 1878 an attempt was made to raise [Commom carp|German carp]] in the lake; this operation, however, proved noncompetitive and subsequently failed. Boggs Lake is currently recognized and protected as a vernal pool natural area.
The Perini Hill area, as well as Perini Road and Perini Creek, are named after the Perini family who originally settled that area of the county. Joe Perini, a former chef, came to California from Europe. While working as a cook near Lower Lake, he discovered the ranch one day while hunting. He and his wife bought the place for purposes of cattle raising and moved to it about 1901. Perini Ranch soon became a popular Lake County destination, and remained so for many years. Inspired by the proximity of several hot springs resorts, the Perinis started serving special Italian dinners to the public at their ranch. The family also built cabins to cater to the summer tourist trade. "Perini's Italian Gardens" proved so popular that the tradition was continued by the family for seven decades. Other historical uses of the Perini Ranch area are varied. These uses have included timber harvesting and walnut production. The Perini property was the site of a sawmill which utilized logs from the ranch and the surrounding region until the late 1930's. Timber harvesting occurred over most of the Perini Hill area beginning around the 1870's and continuing until the Second World War. In 1945, a major forest fire in the area destroyed most of the remaining pine trees. A hilly region, the Red Hills AVA did not attract settlement in any large scale. Livestock raising and home production of fruits and vegetables were the primary agricultural pursuits. Timbering was also practiced until trees were depleted.
Historically, walnuts were the predominant agricultural crop in the Red Hills viticultural area. The Red Hills area boasted the county's largest commercial plantings of walnuts. These orchards, many of which persisted to modern times, were centered near the heart of the Red Hills appellation, along Highway 175 in the vicinity of Red Hills Road. The rolling terrain and deep red soil have been long recognized for their value in fruit production. There were also walnut plantings in the Perini Hill/Snows Lake area. Walnuts were first planted there in the 1920's and 1930's. In 1946 and 1947, the Teichert Dried Fruit Company cleared the remaining native vegetation and planted approximately 1,100 acres (445ha) of walnuts. Unfortunately, the company experienced financial difficulties and as a result abandoned the orchards after a few years. Much of the cleared acreage subsequently reverted to native vegetation.
The existence of established walnut orchards was an incentive to the growth of viticulture in the Red Hills area. Current county development policies make it much easier for a grower to convert acreage from walnuts to grapes, than to clear uncultivated acreage to establish a new vineyard. Therefore, many existing walnut groves may soon be targeted to be replanted with vines. Historical accounts document the presence of at least two small vineyards in the area prior to Prohibition. It is likely that other local residents also cultivated vineyards for home or local wine production, but no records of these smaller operations persist. The Snow Ranch, encompassing the area south of Snows Lake, a vernal lake named after Sam Snow, was also planted in walnuts in the 1930's. Today both the Perini Ranch and the Snow Ranch are owned by Snows Lake Vineyard Co. The Diener family, who still farm lands located on Diener Drive near the center of the appellation, had a 15-acre (6ha) vineyard in the late 1800's, growing a mixture of red, white, and Muscat grapes used for brandy production. The vines were pulled out during or shortly after Prohibition and replaced with walnuts. Wine grapes were replanted on Diener Ranch in 1996. The Perini family, whose lands were located on Perini Road in the southeastern portion of the appellation, also had a vineyard, of unrecorded acreage, whose grapes were used for processing into wine for catered meals at "Perini's Italian Gardens." Although the family carried on the dinner house tradition from 1905 into the l970's, the grape vines were removed in the 30's and replaced with walnut orchards.
As of 2004, the Red Hills District was the second largest wine grape growing area in Lake County, second only to Big Valley. All of the wine grape acreage cultivated in the Red Hills District were planted 20 years prior, mostly in previous decade. Beringer Vineyards was the first company to establish a large vineyard in the Red Hills area, planting 120 acres (49ha) in 1987. Two other vineyards were planted in 1990, and the rest of the current acreage has been planted since 1996. Vineyard development in the area continued; with several significant new vineyard blocks being planned.[4]
Terroir
Topography
Lake County is generally mountainous, with protected, fertile valleys allowing agriculture. Clear Lake, a large lake running northwest to southeast, and Mt. Konocti, a volcanic mountain to the lake's east, are two of the county's dominant geographical points. A field of volcanic hills lies southwest of Clear Lake and south of Mt. Konocti. These red, rolling hills contrast with the wider valleys and higher mountains of the surrounding regions. The Red Hills Lake County viticultural area lies within this rolling terrain, which is covered with rocky, red volcanic soils. The viticultural area's boundaries are based on a combination of geography, terrain, soil, and climate factors that contrast with the surrounding area. These geographical elements promote the moderating microclimate and wind patterns that allow for favorable grape-growing conditions without damaging frosts within the area. Mt. Konocti and the southwestern shore of Clear Lake border the Red Hills Lake County viticultural area on the north. To the south, the Mayacmas Mountains, part of California's Coast Ranges, border the area, while various ridges on the east and west defines the boundaries. The northern boundary line excludes Mt. Konocti above its 2,600-foot (792m) elevation and Clear Lake at its shoreline. On its eastern side, the area excludes, at the southeastern end of Clear Lake, all of Anderson Flat with its different soils, the town of Lower Lake, which sits on an alluvial fan, and a steep ridge with older bedrock and different soils. The Red Hills Lake County viticultural area's southern boundary generally coincides with the Clear Lake viticultural area's boundary line and also excludes the higher Mayacmas Mountains. These peaks share a common volcanic heritage with the rolling hills, but the steep slopes and high elevations are unsuitable for commercial viticulture. The area's southwestern corner skirts Boggs Lake, while the western boundary excludes Camel Back Ridge and some lower elevations south and southeast of Kelseyville.[1]
Climate
Rainfall in the Red Hills Lake County viticultural area is influenced by its location between the Mayacmas Mountains and Clear Lake. The mountainous region to the area's south gets about 80 inches (2,000mm) of rain a year, while Clear Lake to the north averages 22 inches (560mm). The Red Hills area lies between these two places and receives from 25to 40 inches (640–1,020mm) annual precipitation. Fifty miles (80km) inland, the Red Hills Lake County viticultural area's relative lack of maritime influence greatly affects its microclimate, as does its hilly terrain and location between Clear Lake and the Mayacmas Mountains. The unique wind patterns in the Red Hills area result from the lake-land effect, driven by temperature contrasts between the large lake and the adjacent land, as well as the mountain-valley effect that pushes air either upward or downward in the valleys depending on temperatures. The combination of the lake-land and the mountain-valley effects creates the area's perpetual motion wind machine, creating the unique wind systems that blow through its open terrain. These constant winds provide natural frost protection for the area's grapevines. Local residents confirm that in the early morning hours of cold spring days, when temperatures dip below the freezing point, the naturally generated winds keep frost from forming on grape shoots, while other Lake County viticultural areas require frost protection measures.[1]
Soils
Red, volcanic soils cover over 90% of the Red Hills Lake County viticultural area and are primarily composed of Glenview-Bottlerock-Arrowhead, Konocti-Benridge, and Collayomi-Aiken soil types. These reddish-brown soils are high in gravel content and are a primary factor for the recent growth of viticulture in the Red Hills Lake County area. While the foothills of Mt. Konocti are within the area's northern boundary line, this volcanic mountain is not considered part of the Red Hills area and serves as a dividing point for several distinct geographical areas. A narrow border of red volcanic soils without significant gravel content helps define the new area's northern boundary along Mt. Konocti's 2,600-foot (792m) elevation line. Clear Lake's shoreline and marshy terrain have different soils as well. The area's eastern boundary follows the edge of its defining volcanic field. Beyond this field the red soils lack the rock content typical of the Red Hills Lake County viticultural area. Even though the red volcanic soils of the viticultural area extend south of its boundary line, the mountainous terrain to the south precludes commercial viticulture. While Salminas Meadow and Seigler Valley are within the larger Clear Lake viticultural area, they are excluded from the Red Hills area due to their different soils and terrain. The area's southwestern corner follows the shoreline of Boggs Lake, while the western boundary generally follows Bottle Rock Road along the base of Camel Back Ridge and then runs north and then west to incorporate Benson Ridge at the base of Mt. Konocti. The ridges beyond the southwestern boundary line represent the approximate western extent of the prehistoric volcanic flows that form the area's soils and mark a change to steeper terrain. The land inside the boundary is geologically younger and has more porous volcanic rocks and soils that contrast with the bedrock of Franciscan formation beyond the western boundary area.[1]
The most planted (and lucrative) variety in the Red Hills is by far Cabernet Sauvignon, but Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Petite Sirah are also represented,[6] as well as Sauvignon Blanc, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Syrah and Zinfandel.[14] Major vineyard holders in the Red Hills include Beckstoffer Vineyards, with a 4,172-acre (7sqmi) plot primarily cultivating Cabernet Sauvignon with some Sauvignon Blanc and Malbec.[15] In 2014, E&J Gallo acquired the 800-acre (324ha) Snows Lake Vineyard.[16]; Shannon Family of Wines the 236-acre (96ha) Vigilance vineyard[17]; and Obsidian Wine Company their Obsidian Ridge vineyard. As of May 2024, the Red Hills AVA contained three bonded wineries, Gregory Graham Wines, Laujor Estate, Boatique Winery and 3,250 acres (1,315ha) under vine.[7]
↑"Clear Lake Volcanic Field". U.S. Geological Survey. U.S. Department of the Interior. Archived from the original on November 10, 2013. Retrieved November 9, 2013.
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