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Crystal Springs of Napa Valley

Wine region
Type	American Viticultural Area
Year established	2024
Years of wine industry	154
Country	United States
Part of	California, North Coast AVA, Napa County, Napa Valley AVA
Other regions in California, North Coast AVA, Napa County, Napa Valley AVA	Los Carneros AVA, Howell Mountain AVA, Wild Horse Valley AVA, Stags Leap District AVA, Mt. Veeder AVA, Atlas Peak AVA, Spring Mountain District AVA, Oakville AVA, Rutherford AVA, St. Helena AVA, Chiles Valley AVA, Yountville AVA, Diamond Mountain District AVA, Coombsville AVA, Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley AVA, Calistoga AVA
Soil conditions	Weathered and eroded igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks made of tuff
Total area	4,117 acres (6.4 sq mi)
Size of planted vineyards	230 acres (93 ha)
No. of vineyards	30
Grapes produced	Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc

Crystal Springs of Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Napa County, California within the boundaries of the prestigious Napa Valley AVA. The 4,117 acres (6 sq mi) region was recognized on November 15, 2024 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), Treasury after reviewing the petition from Steven Burgess, president of Burgess Cellars, Inc., submitted on behalf of local vineyard owners and winemakers proposing to establish a viticultural area named "Crystal Springs of Napa Valley."

Crystal Springs is the 17th viticultural area established as a parcel of the 120,000 acres (188 sq mi), 40-year-old, world-renown Napa Valley viticultural area that lies within the expansive multi-county North Coast appellation. Crystal Springs does not overlap with any of the surrounding viticultural areas. TTB modified the proposed Crystal Springs and the existing Calistoga AVA boundaries responding to comments received during the petition review period. To accommodate an existing vineyard whose terroir matches the proposed AVA, approximately 11 acres of the Crystal Springs Vineyard, previously within the Calistoga AVA, and the its remaining 6 acres were placed entirely within the proposed Crystal Springs AVA borders. The comment noted the vineyard’s name displays association with the "Crystal Springs" name and shares a similar climate, hillside topography and soils of the AVA. The vineyard elevations are between 500 and 1,200 ft (152 and 366 m), which is within Crystal Springs' range of elevations above the floor of the Calistoga Valley and below the 1,400 ft (427 m) mountainous levels of the adjacent Howell Mountain AVA. At TTB's announcement, Crystal Springs contained approximately 30 commercial vineyards with about 230 acres (93 ha) under vine.

Name Evidence

Crystal Springs of Napa Valley is locally referred to simply as "Crystal Springs." The petitioner added the phrase "of Napa Valley" to distinguish the viticultural area from the numerous locations in the United States that are also named "Crystal Springs." The appellation gets its name from the dozens of crystal springs in local hillsides and describes the west-facing slopes of the Vaca Range from Mount Saint Helena to Soda Springs. In the 1870's, the Crystal Springs Rural Health Retreat was founded and built by Dr. John Kellogg and others in the St. Helena locale as a sanitarium promoting various types of water treatments. The modern hospital, Adventist Health St. Helena, currently sits on the former sanitarium property on which Crystal Springs Resort still stands. One of the buildings on the hospital campus is named Crystal Springs Manor.

The petition also included several additional examples of current use of the term “Crystal Springs” within the area. For example, Crystal Springs Road and North Fork Crystal Springs Road both run through the region. Also, the Crystal Springs Vineyard is resident in the AVA. An article about biking in the region lists the “Silverado–Howell Mountain–Crystal Springs–Franz Valley–Ida Clayton” route. A 2016 article in the Napa Valley Register about a conflict between residents in the proposed AVA and the owner of a winery was titled, “Crystal Springs neighbors trying to stop Woodbridge's winery project”. Finally, a real estate video for an estate in the proposed AVA is titled “North Crystal Springs Estate, Napa Valley”.

The new AVA encompasses only 4,117 acres (6.4 sq mi), with 30 vineyards covering about 230 acres (93 ha), making it one of the smallest AVAs in the country.

History

Viticulture in the Crystal Springs region goes back to circa 1870s. 1884 was when the Rossinis purchased the property that became Souverain, and is now Burgess Cellars. Albino Pestoni immigrated from a small Swiss village and established a vineyard in the 1898 and currently many vintners are sourcing fruits from the Crystal Springs area. The Crystal Springs region was the origin of the 2020 Glass Fire.

Terroir

Topography

The distinguishing feature of the Crystal Springs viticultural area in Napa Valley is its topography. The petition describes the AVA as an “all hillside” region with no flat areas or natural lakes exist along the western face of the Vaca Range. However, being hillside, there are springs and seasonal creeks as well as drainages. Slopes are generally west-to-southwesterly facing, and slope angles range from 15 to 40 percent. Elevations range from 400 to 1,400 ft (122–427 m). According to the petition, the reason for limiting the AVA to this range of elevations is that the 400 ft (122 m) contour generally marks the transition point between the foothills of the Vaca Range and the floor of the Napa Valley. Additionally, the 1,400 ft (427 m) contour along the northern boundary of the AVA coincides with the southern boundary of the established Howell Mountain AVA. To the north of the AVA, the elevations rise up to 2,200 feet within the established Howell Mountain AVA. The topography of the Howell Mountain AVA contains hillsides, like Crystal Springs of Napa Valley AVA, but also has a rolling, plateau-like feature at the summit. The region to the east of the AVA has elevation similar to those of the AVA, but the slopes have a more easterly-to-northeasterly exposure. South and west of the AVA are the established St. Helena and Calistoga AVAs, which have lower elevations and include the flat lands along the floor of the Napa Valley. The petition describes slope angles within the established St. Helena AVA as mostly less than 5 percent, while the established Calistoga AVA is described as having “a multitude of slopes, from steep mountains to benchlands to fans, to flat valley floors to riparian habitats.” According to the petition, the topography of the Crystal Springs of Napa Valley AVA has a major effect on viticulture. For instance, the western and southwestern aspects of the slopes within the AVA receive larger amounts of solar radiation than slopes with northern or eastern aspects, allowing grapes to mature easily each growing season. Additionally, the petition states that the soils within the AVA are shallower than the soils in the neighboring valleys because natural weathering processes have moved the soils downhill and into the valleys.

Crystal Springs of Napa Valley AVA now officially describes most of the lower elevations of the Howell Mountains, from 400 to 1,400 ft (120–430 m), while the elevated area above is the Howell Mountain AVA. Below 400 ft (120 m) is mostly the Calistoga and St Helena AVAs.

Geology

The Vaca Range in Crystal Springs is volcanic in origin. From the palisades made of igneous rocks, to metamorphic and sedimentary rocks made of tuff. Some areas also have obsidian and red volcanics.

Climate

The most significant effect of topography is on the climate of the AVA. The topography contributes to a frost-free and reliable growing period for grapes grown in the AVA. First, the cold air does not remain on its hillsides. Instead, cold air flows downhill and pools in the lower elevations of the floor of the Napa Valley, including the neighboring St. Helena and Calistoga AVAs, making frost more common in those regions. Due to the threat of frost on the valley floor and higher elevations, vineyards within the adjacent Calistoga, Saint Helena and Howell Mountain AVAs require frost protection measures such as orchard fans, heaters, sprinklers, or misters. By contrast, vineyards in the Crystal Springs AVA do not require frost protection. Additionally, because elevations within the Crystal Springs are below 1,400 ft (427 m), the region is not as susceptible to frost caused by adiabatic cooling, also known as elevation cooling. According to the petition, adiabatic cooling can lower temperatures by 3 to 6 °F (−16 to −14 °C) per 1,000 feet of elevation. As a result, higher elevations such as the adjacent Howell Mountain AVA are at a higher risk for damaging frosts. In fact, the petition notes that the use of frost protection measures in vineyards within the Howell Mountain AVA commonly continues into June. By contrast, Crystal Springs of Napa Valley AVA does not have frost concerns during the bud break period. Also, the AVA's boundaries encompass a generally southwestern exposure where solar radiation is high allowing for mature fruit for every vintage.

Soil

Weathering and erosion over millions of years has left little top soil, and therefore exposed rocks including parent material are common. Uplifting and weathering has made the available soils quite varied even within a parcel. Soils are important, but they are tertiary concern compared to climate, exposure and slope in viticulture. The hills are covered mostly with drought-tolerant species such as oaks, chaparral, ghost pines and manzanita.

Viticulture

Topography is the key distinguishing feature of Crystal Springs of Napa Valley, according to petition details filed with the TTB. It sits adjacent to the borders of St. Helena and Calistoga AVAs and in the foothills below Howell Mountain. Vineyards here are also often mistaken for being located within the Howell Mountain AVA where the elevation begins at the 1,400 ft (427 m) level above the maritime fog, whereas Crystal Springs vineyards are often shrouded in it, which makes a crucial difference in the taste of the wines. They’re two totally different growing regions,” said Burgess.

The new region, which was the origin of the 2020 Glass Fire, can finally help consumers understand what distinguishes Crystal Springs wines from others in Napa Valley, Burgess said. It could also command higher bottle prices. Burgess described the Crystal Springs wines, mostly Cabernet Sauvignon, as having “extremely dark, complex flavors and rich aromatics.” The Crystal Springs appellation located in the foothills of Howell Mountain is Napa’s first new AVA in 13 years.

Napa Valley itself got AVA status more than 40 years ago, in 1981, and today it encompasses 16 official sub-zones, or ‘nested’ AVAs, according to Napa Valley Vintners. Coombsville is the newest of these, created in 2011.

‘The recognition of our sites with a formal AVA would make us proud and satisfied,’ said Steven Burgess, who submitted the application for Crystal Springs of Napa Valley to the TTB. ‘Our choices to be hillside vintners where expenses are higher, [and] yields are lower would be recognised,’ he told Decanter.

External links

• Napa Valley Vintners
• TTB AVA Map