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Wind Swept Vineyards of the Santa Lucia Highlands

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Wind Swept Vineyards of the Santa Lucia Highlands

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Mira Advani Honeycutt · Napa Valley Register · July 7, 2021

1 min read

Mira Honeycutt shares her experience from the first time she set foot in the wind-swept vineyards of the Santa Lucia Highlands in the Napa Valley Register.

The 18-mile stretch of Santa Lucia Highlands (SLH) appellation is a seriously wind-swept region. Like clockwork, during the growing season, the coastal breeze arriving daily from Monterey Bay sets in around mid-afternoon and builds up to a gusty wind up to 25 miles-per-hour and continues through after dusk.

Needless to say, these wuthering heights love Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. So intense is the wind’s role, the region might as well be noted for its “aeroir” instead of terroir....

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