Since a California Chardonnay shook the wine world by winning the gold medal in a Paris tasting in 1976, the quality of California wine has never been in question. In fact, California varietals consistently match – or exceed – the quality of the best French varietals.

One reason for this consistent quality is the stringent regulations which the State of California imposes on the wine industry – regulations which are often tougher than the federal regulations imposed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

A good example is “appellations,” the geographical names of regions under which winemakers are authorized to identify and market their wines. BATF says a winemaker can use the name of a particular state to identify his wine if 75% of the grapes used to produce the wine were grown in that state. But California regulations, which always supersede the federal regulations, say that 100% of the grapes used to produce a wine must be grown in California in order for it to be called “California wine.”

When you buy wine that is labeled “California,” you can be assured that you are buying a pure grape product, with no unknown additives..”