Those of us who live in California tend to believe that our views and preferences are shared by people in the rest of the country. The wake-up call usually comes when we travel to the Midwest or the East, where we're suddenly reminded that not everyone votes Democrat/supports gay marriage/eats raw fish. As it turns out, the same applies to wine: While we Californians assume that consumers in Illinois and New York share our preference for Napa Valley Cabernets and Sonoma Coast Pinots, it ain't necessarily so.

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