Domaine Carneros

The French heritage of one of California’s premier champagne houses is obvious when you see the glistening chateau and its formal gardens on the hill. The Domaine Carneros chateau was built in the style of the 18th-century Chateau de la Marquetterie, home of one of the winery’s principal founders, Champagne Taittinger.

When it opened in 1990 it was the first Carneros winery devoted to champagne production and now produces more than 40,000 cases a year of sparkling wines, including a brut cuvée, brut rosé, and the 100 percent chardonnay blanc de blancs flagship bubbly.

In 2003 it achieved another first, opening the first Carneros wine-making facility dedicated to pinot noir production right behind the chateau. On its roof, the facility has the largest solar panel array at a winery in the U.S.; it provides about 40 percent of the power to the entire winery. The new building was designed to look like a carriage house to fit with the chateau theme, and it produces about 15,000 cases of the winery’s three pinot wines.

All the wines are made using grapes from the 110 acres of vineyards around the winery and range in price from $18 for the cheapest pinot to $55 for the blanc de blanc sparkler. On the hour (until 4 p.m.) there are free, informative tours that let visitors peer into the squeaky-clean, modern production and bottling areas. Alternatively, just chill on the huge patio area around the chateau and let the bubbles do their work. There is no traditional tasting of multiple wines here. Instead, when you buy a glass of any of the champagnes ($5–10) you get a few morsels to eat, too (1240 Duhig Rd., Napa, 707/257-0101, www.domainecarneros.com, open 10 a.m.–6 p.m. daily).