What was the best Napa Valley vintage?

There is no single answer, because Napa vintages suit different tastes. Recent seasons widely regarded as outstanding include 2023 for its long mild growing season and generous yields, 2018 for its combination of quality and quantity, and 2016 for near-ideal conditions from start to finish. Older reference points include 2012, 1997 and 1990.

Does vintage matter in Napa Valley?

Less than in cooler wine regions, but it still matters. Napa's reliable sunshine means the valley rarely produces a failed year, so vintage variation shows up as differences in style rather than quality - cooler years like 2025 lean toward balance and lower alcohol, while warm years give riper, more powerful wines.

What is a Napa vintage chart?

A vintage chart records the key stages of a growing season, including daily high and low temperatures, rainfall and the timing of bloom and harvest. The Napa Valley Vintners publishes these charts for every year from 1990 onward, and growers use them to compare seasons and plan harvest logistics.

When is harvest in Napa Valley?

Most years, sparkling wine grapes are picked first from late July or early August, white varieties follow through August, and Cabernet Sauvignon runs from late September into October or early November. Cool years push the whole sequence later, and warm years pull it earlier.

Reference

Lodi Sweeps the 2026 California State Fair

182 medals to Napa's 54, a perfect 100-point red, and a white wine stealing Best of Show - the August 2026 results read like a Lodi coronation. Here is what won, and where to taste it.

The headline: a 100-point Cabernet Franc

Michael David Winery's 2023 Inkblot Cabernet Franc scored a perfect 100 and swept Best of Show Red, Best of Region and Best of California - the competition's top red honor. The same house added a 98-point Best of California for its 2024 Earthquake Zinfandel. For a winery already famous for approachable Lodi reds, the Inkblot line's serious-cellar turn is the story of the fair.

The upset: a white takes Best of Show

Acquiesce Winery & Vineyards - Lodi's all-white Rhone specialist - won Best of Show White and Best of California with its 2025 Grenache Blanc at 99 points. In a competition Lodi's reds dominated, the fair's single most decorated white came from a winery that does not make a red at all. If you have never done a white-only tasting in red country, this is the invitation.

The rest of the Best of California class

Three more Lodi houses took Best of California honors: Peltier Winery for its 2023 Red Wagon Pinot Noir (97), Oak Farm Vineyards for the 2024 "The Corset" red blend (96), and Macchia Wines for its 2024 "Delicious" Barbera (96) - a classically Lodi trio of Pinot ambition, blend polish and Italian-variety conviction. From the Sierra Foothills, Vina Moda's 2023 Grenache joined the Best of California list, a small-producer standout worth watching.

What 182 medals actually means

Medal counts are imperfect instruments - entry volume matters - but 182 to Napa's 54 is not noise. Lodi's case has been building for years: old-vine Zinfandel as a genuine heritage asset, the state's most interesting Spanish, Portuguese and Italian variety plantings, and tasting rooms that still pour generously without appointment theater. The 2026 fair results put competition hardware behind what Lodi visitors already know.

Plan a day around the winners with our Lodi wine country guide, or browse every Lodi tasting room we track on the winery finder.

Every 2026 State Fair winner we track

Michael David Winery - 100-pt Inkblot Cabernet Franc, Best of Show Red; 98-pt Earthquake Zinfandel
Acquiesce Winery & Vineyards - 99-pt Grenache Blanc, Best of Show White
Peltier Winery - 97-pt Red Wagon Pinot Noir, Best of California
Oak Farm Vineyards - 96-pt "The Corset," Best of California
Macchia Wines - 96-pt "Delicious" Barbera, Best of California

Results as posted August 2-6, 2026. Scores and awards belong to the California State Fair Commercial Wine Competition; always confirm current releases with the winery.