The county of Napa is segmented into 14 AVAs, or American Viticultural Areas. These are recognized by the U.S. government as geographical boundaries of wine regions (but unlike France's appellations, the government doesn't dictate grape varietals, growing conditions, etc.). I'm a fan of Rutherford in particular for the earthiness its soil lends to the wines, especially Cabs.

Below I will show, in addition to photos of wineries, delightful towns that punctuate the valley as well as a couple other unique attractions.

Best of Napa

• The wines of Beaulieu Vineyards
• The view from Sterling Vineyards
• The SmellaVision in St. Supéry Winery
• The olive oil of Olivier, in the town of St. Helena
• Old Faithful of California, if you've never seen a geyser

Wineries

Chateau Montelena Calistoga AVA, pending. You've heard of the 1976 Paris Tasting where, in a blind taste test, a California wine finally outperformed French wines, putting Napa Valley firmly on the international wine map? That was Chateau Montelena's 1973 vintage Chardonnay. The winery was built in 1882 with 3-foot thick walls to act as a consistently-cool man-made cave. Despite the Chardonnay fame, most of their estate is devoted to growing Cabernet Sauvignon. The wide range of soils (alluvial and volcanic, with a touch of sedimentary) imparts complexity to their wines.

Peju Province Winery Rutherford AVA. Although the winery is physically located in Rutherford, most of Peju's grapes are grown in Pope Valley, further to the north. Peju practices organic and sustainable farming. The wines are good but somewhat subdued in my opinion. Production is limited; you are unlikely to find Peju's wines in stores or restaurants. The winery and the grounds are gorgeous.

St. Supéry Winery Rutherford AVA. If you enjoy learning about wines (not just drinking them), you must visit St. Supéry. I mean it; book a trip to Napa right now and go experience the one and only SmellaVision. It will teach you about the olfactory components present in wine. St. Supéry's wine tastes superb, too. If, for you, as for me, Enjoyment = Quality + Beauty + Learning, this is the winery for you.

Clos Pegase Calistoga AVA, pending. The wines are good and the art is spectacular — an intriguing mixture of classic and contemporary. The building design itself resulted from an architects' competition. A resident artist (when I visited, it was Jim Stallings, who creates uplifting, music-themed paintings) greets visitors between brushstrokes.

Darioush Oak Knoll AVA. Breathtakingly beautiful, Persian-themed winery. However, the tasting room is pretentious, more like a place to see and be seen than a place that is serious about wine. Did not taste wines there.

Benessere Vineyards St. Helena AVA. Boutique winery. Very good Italian-style wines, including Sangiovese. In fact, they graft vines from Italy onto California rootstock. They also make their own version of a Super Tuscan, which they jokingly refer to as a "Super Napan."

Domaine Chandon Yountville AVA. Known for its sparkling wines — white, red, and rosé. Its wines are good, though I'm not convinced this winery lives up to its exalted reputation. The mushroom-rock garden is cool.

Freemark Abbey St. Helena AVA. Although physically located in St. Helena, Freemark Abbey makes extraordinary Cabernets using grapes from two Rutherford vineyards with whom they have long-standing relationships: Bosché and Sycamore. These two vineyards are in different parts of the Rutherford AVA, the former being on the dusty Rutherford Bench, imparting a delectable earthiness to the wine.

Sterling Vineyards Calistoga AVA, pending. You cannot beat the view from Sterling Vineyards. You arrive at the vineyard via aerial tram and then experience a carefully choreographed tour intermingled with wine tasting, ending on a relaxing, idyllic outdoor patio high above the rest of Napa Valley. The wines are good, but grapes are sourced from all over California — making it easy to enjoy the wines but difficult to understand the terroir that influenced those wines.

Beaulieu Vineyard Rutherford AVA. BV is old school. To be more precise, one might say that BV displays European sensibilities in its style, unsurprising given that the winery was begun by Georges de Latour. Its wines are well-integrated and, while they can be full-bodied, they don't kick you in the face like some of the more blatantly New World wines. I do enjoy a good (metaphorical) kick in the face sometimes, but a beautifully-crafted, balanced, classic BV Cabernet Sauvignon is a special treat.

Zahtila Vineyards Calistoga AVA, pending. Boutique winery, owned by a female former Cisco employee. Grows estate Zinfandels; other varietals are sourced elsewhere. Fun to visit the tasting room because you can test your knowledge and preferences through a blind tasting.

Napa County Towns

Calistoga Calistoga, the furthest north of Napa Valley's towns, is known for two things: mud baths and mineral water. Of course, these are related as natural springs supply the minerals for each. The main drag, Lincoln Ave., has kind of a western feel to it.

Napa Napa is the biggest town in the area and is less quaint and more spread out than the others.

St. Helena St. Helena has not one, but two, establishments on Main St. where you can enjoy complementary olive oil tastings: Olivier and St. Helena Olive Oil Company. Both are good but Olivier is better. At Olivier, you can taste oils from single olive varietals, try their Napa Valley House blend, balanced between fruity and buttery, and even mix your own blends. St. Helena Olive Oil Company is more about tasting varietally-indistinct oils that have been adulterated — I mean infused — with other flavors. I must admit, though, that some of these other flavors, e.g., white truffle, are pretty tasty.

Napa County Sights

Old Faithful Geyser of California This geyser, which reliably shoots 60-100 feet into the air every 40 minutes, is worth a visit, especially if you've never before seen a geyser. But, for me, the goats and four-horned sheep residing on the premises steal the show.

Petrified Forest The Petrified Forest contains trees that were petrified, or turned into stone, 3.4 million years ago as a result of a volcanic eruption. Almost all the trees were large redwoods, one of which was 2000 years old at the time of the eruption. While I'm glad these stone trees have been preserved for posterity, I can't honestly claim that a visit here is entirely enthralling.