If there’s one hallmark of Napa Valley living, it’s cooking and eating outdoors. Some home chefs get by with simple gas or charcoal grills, but many others enjoy elaborate outdoor cooking areas, some almost as complete as the kitchens inside their homes.

In Napa Valley's mild climate, outdoor kitchens mirror those throughout the Mediterranean, where few homes have air conditioning to cool hot kitchens and grilled meats and vegetables are daily fare.

Many homeowners prepare and serve virtually every lunch and dinner outside during the majority of the year when the weather encourages outdoor living, and many people add fireplaces, chimneas and heaters to ward off chills in the cool evenings in Napa Valley.

The appeal of outdoor cooking isn’t just keeping the kitchen cool, however. Grilling food or roasting it in a wood-burning oven lends special flavors that seem particularly compatible with our signature wines. Many food writers find big Chardonnays and Cabernets difficult to match with food, but those reservations vanish with outdoor cooking.

Intense heat enhances and caramelizes sugars in food, and that complements the caramel and vanilla flavors characteristic of wine aged in oak. Likewise, smoky tannins from toasted oak match that from the fire. The subtle sugar in many wines also pairs well with caramelization, as it does with sweet marinades, rubs and sauces.

Even asparagus and artichokes, two vegetables notoriously hostile to wine, surrender gracefully when grilled. Other vegetables and fruit are simply better when fire roasted or grilled than steamed or boiled.

Flavors aren’t the only appeals of grilling or roasting outside, however. Outdoor cooking evokes primeval memories of cavemen throwing a pig on a fire. It’s axiomatic that men cook outside, providing relief to their wives and helping keep the kitchen clean for at least one night. And guests love to stand around watching and even helping as they nibble on appetizers ― perhaps from the grill ― and sip wine.

The focus of outdoor cooking is naturally the grill. Many firms produce elaborate self-contained grilling centers, but a built-in barbecue is de rigueur for true outdoor kitchens.

These days, most homeowners opt for gas grills that can be started and controlled as easily as a kitchen range. Fats flaming as they hit hot surfaces and contact with hot grills lend smoky flavors and characteristic grid marks, but real connoisseurs still prefer hardwood charcoal like hot-burning mesquite. Some homeowners install both gas and charcoal grills for convenience plus authenticity.

The most popular high-end grills come from DCS and FireMagic, but K&W makes less expensive durable drop-in Flame Broil Barbecues. TEC produces an unusual infrared gas grill that cooks very quickly.

Whether they cook with gas or wood, most home chefs add gas side burners so they can cook a whole meal outside and not have to run inside to check on the rice or beans. A rotisserie over a grill is popular for luscious poultry and roasts.

Everyone has a grill, but the sign of a true aficionado is the wood-burning oven. Though they’re heavy, expensive to buy and install, and time-consuming and tricky to use, these beehive ovens bake not only perfect pizzas, but great bread, roasts, casseroles, potatoes and other vegetables.

Designing a good wood-burning oven requires expertise, and most people buy a refractory clay insert that is incorporated into a substantial but cosmetic masonry shell.

The most popular ovens are Mugnaini, which imports ovens from Italy, and Renato, which makes similar units in Texas. Both companies offer small ovens for home use as well as commercial versions suitable for restaurants. Renato’s smallest is 24 by 29 inches inside, while Mugnaini’s Picolo is about 31 by 37 inches inside, and its Medio is 43 by 49 inches.

Many homeowners have both a wood-burning oven and an elaborate grill, but you can cook whole meals from appetizers and pizzas to rack of lamb or turkey and the accompaniments, even dessert.

You usually have to start a fire in a wood-burning oven three or more hours in advance. You also need to monitor things carefully since they can easily reach temperatures over 1,000 degrees; that’s enough to quickly turn a prime roast into charcoal.

The rest of the kitchen follows naturally. A sink with running water is invaluable, and if you don’t have hot water handy, a flash heater works fine ― but it needs electric power. People often include refrigerators, but they’re really not necessary unless you’re far from the kitchen. What is vital is a smooth work surface that can be cleaned easily, plus adequate storage. Often forgotten is a serving area near the grill, a huge convenience.

An outdoor kitchen can be as simple as a grill or as elaborate as a $30,000 masterpiece, but few home additions return so much to their owners.

Sidebar: Suppliers of ovens and grills

Mugnaini Imports, Watsonville, Calif.; 888.887.7206; www.mugnaini.com.

Renato Specialty Products, Garland, Texas; 800.876.9731; www.renatos.com.

DCS Dynamic Cooking Systems, Huntington Beach, Calif.; 800.433.8466; www.dcs-range.com.

K & W Manufacturing, Corona, Calif.; 909.277.3300; hometown.aol.com//kandwmfg.

TEC Thermal Engineering Corp., Columbia, S.C.; 800.331.0097; www.tecinfrared.com/grills.

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