Napa Valley

Napa Valley's rolling hills, covered with wildflowers in springtime and growing golden as the vineyards come to bear, are home to dozens of hot springs with alleged curative powers, beautiful hiking and biking trails, and colourful towns known for their rural elegance.

Best of all, however, are the 300-plus opportunities to get either absolutely sloshed, or just taste some of the world's best wines. Nearly 60% of California's wineries are located in Napa and the parallel Sonoma Valley, together the traditional heart of California's 'Wine Country'.

Napa Valley's excellent wines didn't make their mark until a 1976 blind wine-tasting competition in France. Though there's no single wine associated with the Wine Country, typical whites include Fumé Blanc, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Chenin Blanc and California Chardonnay. Reds include Pinot Noir, Merlot and Beaujolais; the robust Cabernet Sauvignon and peppery Zinfandel are probably the premier California reds. Ports (red and white) and sweet Muscats are also gaining popularity among local vintners.

Napa County has a population of about 110,000 people, and five incorporated cities. North to south, they are: Calistoga, St. Helena, Yountville, Napa and, at the southern end, American Canyon. Angwin, Deer Park, Lake Berryessa, Rutherford and Oakville are communities with post offices but aren't actual towns.

The county's primary industries are winegrape growing, wine production and tourism. Thanks to stringent and ongoing efforts by the vast majority of the voters, there is little development in the county itself; most commercial and residential development is in the cities. This preserves a huge amount of agricultural land, allowing Napa County to avoid the urban sprawl that has affected almost all other San Francisco Bay Area counties. The result is an attractive place for residents to live and tourists to visit.