Lake County Vineyard Land: Red Hills, Big Valley and Clear Lake

By Matthew Martinez, Founder, CEO & Managing Broker, Diamond Real Estate Group. California DRE #01869679.

Lake County’s vineyard land surrounds Clear Lake, north of Napa County, and falls within nine federally recognized wine regions, from the regional Clear Lake AVA to the hillside Red Hills Lake County AVA between Kelseyville and Lower Lake. The county is part of the North Coast AVA alongside Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino. The 2025 state crush report counted about 42,900 tons of Lake County grapes, most of them Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Buyers look at Lake County for planted vineyards, bare land to develop and rural acreage with a house. The questions are different from Napa or Sonoma: which AVA the parcel sits in, whether the county’s agricultural zoning fits your plans, where the water comes from, and how the property fared in past fires. This guide works through each, and it sits under our vineyard and winery services.

Lake County’s wine regions

American Viticultural Areas are federal labeling boundaries set in 27 CFR part 9. An AVA name on a label tells the buyer of your fruit where it was grown; it doesn’t change what the county will let you build. Our overview of California wine regions explains how AVAs, county rules and crush districts fit together.

AVA	27 CFR section	Notes from the federal rule
Clear Lake	9.99	Regional AVA; Red Hills lies entirely inside it
Red Hills Lake County	9.169	Between Lower Lake and Kelseyville on the lake’s southwestern shore; recognized in 2004
High Valley	9.189	Listed in subpart C
Big Valley District-Lake County	9.232	Listed in subpart C
Kelsey Bench-Lake County	9.233	Listed in subpart C
Upper Lake Valley	9.286	Listed in subpart C
Long Valley-Lake County	9.289	Listed in subpart C
Guenoc Valley	9.26	Located within Lake County; recognized in 1981
Benmore Valley	9.138	In the southwest corner of Lake County
North Coast	9.30	Multi-county AVA covering Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties

Red Hills in more detail

The Red Hills boundary is drawn largely on elevation contours, from about 1,400 feet up to 2,800 feet around Boggs Lake. It names Mt. Hannah, at 3,978 feet, and Seigler Mountain, at 3,692 feet. Roads along the line include State Highway 175, Highway 29/175, Bottle Rock Road and Big Canyon Road.

For a buyer, that means a Red Hills parcel is usually a hillside parcel. Slope, access and soil depth will drive development cost more than they would on the valley floor near the lake. Our guide to developing a vineyard covers planting costs and timelines.

What the 2025 crush numbers show

The state’s grape crush report groups prices and tonnage by crush district, and District 2 is Lake County. The 2025 final report lists 42,874.8 tons crushed in the district. Sauvignon Blanc accounted for 21,237.2 tons and Cabernet Sauvignon for 15,646.8 tons, about 86% of the total between them.

That concentration matters when you value a vineyard. A block planted to a variety that local buyers want, with a current contract, is a different asset from one with no buyer lined up. Ask for the grape contracts, the last three years of tonnage and price by block, and the buyer’s history with the fruit. Our pages on grape purchase agreements and vineyard valuation explain how those records turn into a price.

We haven’t quoted Lake County’s average price per ton here because we couldn’t extract it reliably from the 2025 report. Use Table 6 of the report, or a current appraisal, for that figure.

Zoning: the Agricultural Preserve Zone and beyond

Lake County’s zoning ordinance includes an Agricultural Preserve Zone, or APZ district, in Article 4. Its development standards set a 40-acre minimum lot size, a 500-foot minimum average lot width and a maximum length-to-width ratio of five to one. The article separates uses permitted outright from those that need a minor use permit or a major use permit.

Agricultural land can also sit in other zones, so confirm the zoning of each parcel rather than assuming. Before you write an offer, ask the Lake County Community Development Department three questions:

What is the parcel’s zoning, and is it under a Williamson Act contract?
Is a winery, tasting room or event use allowed, and at what permit level for the size you have in mind?
Can you build or keep a residence, farmworker housing or a second unit on the parcel?

A Williamson Act contract lowers property taxes in exchange for keeping the land in agriculture, and it runs with the land. Our Williamson Act guide explains what a buyer inherits. The ordinance text we read is an unofficial online copy, so rely on the county’s adopted code.

Water: wells, groundwater basins and Clear Lake

Vineyard and rural parcels here may draw on wells, surface diversions, ponds or a mix. Each source carries its own paperwork, and a parcel near the lake doesn’t automatically have a right to take water from it.

The Big Valley (Lake County) groundwater basin is number 5-015 in the state’s basin list. The state Department of Water Resources ranks it a medium-priority basin under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The Lake County Watershed Protection District, acting as the groundwater sustainability agency, prepared the basin’s plan, and the California Water Library lists it as approved by DWR on April 27, 2023.

A medium-priority basin can see reporting requirements, fees or pumping limits as its plan is carried out. Ask the agency whether any apply to the parcel, and get well logs, pump tests and irrigation records from the seller. Our guides to vineyard water rights and vineyard ponds and reservoirs cover diversions and storage.

Fire history and smoke

Lake County’s recent fire history is part of any purchase there. CAL FIRE records that the Valley Fire started on September 12, 2015 in southern Lake County. It burned 76,067 acres and destroyed 1,958 structures, including 1,280 homes, and four people died.

For a vineyard buyer, fire raises three questions. Has the property burned, and what was rebuilt with permits? How has smoke affected the fruit and its contracts in fire years? And can the buildings be insured at a workable cost? Our guides to wildfire smoke taint, vineyard and winery insurance and the California FAIR Plan cover each.

A due diligence list for Lake County parcels

AVA and maps. Plot the parcel against the AVA boundaries in 27 CFR part 9, not a marketing map.
Zoning and contracts. Confirm zoning, any Williamson Act contract, and the permit level for any winery or event plans.
Water. Collect well logs, pump tests, any water-right filings, and the groundwater agency’s rules for the basin.
Vineyard condition. Get block maps with variety, clone, rootstock, planting year and recent yields; walk the blocks with a vineyard manager.
Frost and climate. Ask how frost is managed and what water and equipment that uses.
Fire and insurance. Review fire history, rebuild permits, defensible space and quotes before you remove contingencies.
Contracts. Read grape contracts for term, price, assignment and smoke provisions.
Access and utilities. Check legal access, power for pumps, and septic for any house.

Our full vineyard due diligence guide goes deeper on each item. Diamond may refer you to partners we work with; you’re free to choose any provider.

How Diamond works on Lake County property

Lake County is one of the counties Diamond serves, and vineyard and winery property of all types is a core part of our work. For buyers, that means a search across the MLS and our own client database, plus targeted off-market campaigns to owners who may be willing to sell. We can’t offer access to other brokerages’ private or office-exclusive listings, and MLS rules such as NAR’s Clear Cooperation policy govern how listings are marketed.

For sellers, we prepare the vineyard records a buyer from Napa or Sonoma will ask for, and price the property from comparable sales and the fruit’s track record. If you’re comparing Lake County with a Napa search, our guide to buying a vineyard covers the process in both places.

This is general information, not legal advice; confirm zoning with Lake County and water rights with a California water-rights attorney before you commit to a parcel.

Questions people ask

What AVAs are in Lake County?

The federal rules list nine: Clear Lake, Red Hills Lake County, High Valley, Big Valley District-Lake County, Kelsey Bench-Lake County, Upper Lake Valley, Long Valley-Lake County, Guenoc Valley and Benmore Valley. The county is also part of the multi-county North Coast AVA.

Where is the Red Hills Lake County AVA?

On the southwestern shore of Clear Lake, between the towns of Lower Lake and Kelseyville. It lies entirely inside the Clear Lake AVA, and its boundary follows elevation contours up to about 2,800 feet.

How many tons of grapes does Lake County produce?

The 2025 final grape crush report lists 42,874.8 tons for District 2, which is Lake County. Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon made up about 86% of that.

What is the minimum parcel size in Lake County’s agricultural preserve zone?

The APZ district’s development standards set a 40-acre minimum lot size, with a 500-foot minimum average width. Other zones have their own standards, so check the parcel’s zoning.

Is groundwater regulated in Big Valley?

The Big Valley (Lake County) basin is a medium-priority basin under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, with a groundwater sustainability plan prepared by the Lake County Watershed Protection District. Ask the agency what applies to a specific well.

Did the Valley Fire affect Lake County vineyards?

The 2015 Valley Fire burned 76,067 acres in southern Lake County and destroyed 1,958 structures, according to CAL FIRE. Whether a particular vineyard was affected is a question for the seller’s records and a site visit.

Can I build a winery on Lake County vineyard land?

It depends on the zoning and the size of the operation. The county’s zoning divides uses into those permitted outright and those needing a minor or major use permit, so confirm with the Community Development Department before you buy.

If you’re weighing Lake County vineyard land or rural acreage, contact Diamond to talk through the parcels you’re considering and the records to request first.

Sources & notes

Last reviewed October 2026 by Matthew Martinez.