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An American Viticultural Area (AVA) is a designated wine grape-growing region in the United States, providing an official appellation for the mutual benefit of wineries and consumers. Winemakers frequently want their consumers to know about the geographic pedigree of their wines, as wines from a particular area can possess distinctive characteristics. Consumers often seek out wines from specific AVAs, and certain wines of particular pedigrees can claim premium prices and loyal customers. If a wine is labeled with an AVA, at least 85% of the grapes that make up the wine must have been grown in the AVA, and the wine must be fully finished in the state where the AVA is located.
The Willamette Valley AVA, is an American Viticultural Area which lies in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. The AVA is the wine growing region which encompasses the drainage basin of the Willamette River. It stretches from the Columbia River in the north to just south of Eugene in the south, where the Willamette Valley ends; and from the Oregon Coast Range in the west to the Cascade Mountains in the east. At 5,360 square miles (13,900 km2), it is the largest AVA in the state, and contains most of the state's wineries; approximately 200 as of 2006.
The Rattlesnake Hills AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Yakima County, Washington. United States Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) awarded Rattlesnake Hills its appellation status on March 20, 2006, making Rattlesnake Hills Washington's ninth federally recognized American Viticultural Area. The Rattlesnake Hills AVA is entirely contained within the Yakima Valley AVA, which is in turn is entirely contained within the larger Columbia Valley AVA. The hills form the northern boundary of Yakima Valley, and the AVA includes land between the north bank of the Sunnyside Canal and the entirety of the southern slopes of the Rattlesnake Hills between Outlook and the Wapato Dam. The AVA is centered on the city of Zillah. With elevations ranging from 850 feet (259 m) to 3,085 feet (940 m), this AVA contains the highest point in the Yakima Valley AVA.
Santa Maria Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) which straddles the boundary of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties in California's multi-county Central Coast AVA. It was established on August 5, 1981 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) as California's second oldest AVA. A portion of the AVA crosses the Cuyama River into the southernmost corner of San Luis Obispo County. The east–west orientation of the 152.3 square miles with a wide, open valley and rolling hills means cool winds and fog flow in freely from the Pacific Ocean, settling most noticeably in lower-lying areas. The result is a Mediterranean climate that lengthens the growing season and contributes to the eventual sugar/acid balance in the grapes from Santa Maria Valley's 7,500 acres (3,000 ha) cultivated vineyards. On January 28, 2011, the AVA was granted an 29.4 square miles expansion to its southern boundary.
The Petaluma Gap is a geographical region in Sonoma County, California which extends in a band from the Pacific Ocean to San Pablo Bay. It is an area of low land 22 to 31 miles wide in the coast ranges of the northern San Francisco Bay Area. The western edge of the gap is located in the coastal lowlands between Bodega Bay and Tomales Bay. The eastern edge of the gap is located at San Pablo Bay around the mouth of the Petaluma River. The city of Petaluma is near the center of the gap.
The Niagara Escarpment AVA is an American Viticultural Area in Niagara County, New York along the Niagara Escarpment. Certified by the United States Department of the Treasury's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau on October 11, 2005, it covers an area of 18,000 acres (7,284 ha).
The Northern Neck George Washington Birthplace AVA is an American Viticultural Area in eastern portion of the state of Virginia. Wines made from grapes grown in Westmoreland, King George, Northumberland, Lancaster, and Richmond counties may use this appellation. The area is located on a peninsula of land between the Potomac and Rappahannock rivers in the Tidewater region of Virginia and known as the Northern Neck. This provides a climate which features more frost free days than the rest of Virginia. The tip of the Northern Neck is located at the Chesapeake Bay. The hardiness zone is 7b.
Leona Valley AVA is an American Viticulture Area (AVA) in northeastern Los Angeles County, California. It is located in Leona Valley within the Sierra Pelona Mountains of Southern California.
The Leelanau Peninsula AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Leelanau County, Michigan. This Michigan wine region includes all of Leelanau County, which forms a peninsula between Lake Michigan on the west and Grand Traverse Bay on the east. Being surrounded by water helps to moderate the climate of the region, which is generally cold for viticulture. Frost can occur on all but about 145 days of the calendar year. The soil in Leelanau Peninsula is complex, with glacial deposits of clay, sand, and loam on top of bedrock of granite and limestone. The hardiness zones are 6a and 6b.
The Outer Coastal Plain AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in southeastern New Jersey. The recently expanded 2,250,000 acres (911,000 ha) wine appellation includes all of Cumberland, Cape May, Atlantic, and Ocean counties and portions of Salem, Gloucester, Camden, Burlington, and Monmouth counties. The region is characterized by well-drained sandy or sandy loam soils of low to moderate fertility, and a relatively long growing season. The climate is moderated by the influence of the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay. The region is in hardiness zones 6b, 7a, and 7b. The AVA contains one sub-region, the Cape May Peninsula AVA, which was established in 2018.
The Upper Mississippi River Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area covering 29,914 square miles located along the Upper Mississippi River and its tributaries in northwest Illinois, northeast Iowa, southeast Minnesota and southwest Wisconsin. Certified by the United States Department of the Treasury's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau on July 22, 2009, it is the largest AVA in the United States. The AVA encompasses an area 50 times larger than the Bordeaux wine regions of France.
The Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Santa Barbara County, California. It was designated officially by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) in November 2009 and is the smallest AVA in Santa Barbara County covering 37 square miles with 492 acres (199 ha) of planted vine. The area comprises canyon terrain, hills, and river and creek basins to the east and south of the San Rafael Mountains, northwest of Lake Cachuma and north of the Santa Ynez River. Elevations within the AVA range from 500 feet (150 m) in the southwest corner to 3,430 feet (1,050 m) in the northeast corner, in the foothills of the San Rafael Range. It is home to six major vineyards and one active winery.
The Swan Creek AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in the northwestern portion of North Carolina, in the Piedmont region. The appellation is distinguished by its loamy soil with schist and mica. Established May 27, 2008, it is the second AVA to be established in North Carolina. It is a sub-appellation of the Yadkin Valley AVA.
The Wisconsin Ledge AVA is an American Viticultural Area in northeast Wisconsin along the Niagara Escarpment in Door, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Sheboygan, Ozaukee, Washington, Dodge, Fond du Lac, Calumet, Outagamie, and Brown counties. Certified by the United States Department of the Treasury's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau on March 22, 2012, it covers an area of 3,800 sq mi (9,800 km2) and is the second AVA designation wholly in Wisconsin, following the Lake Wisconsin AVA established in 1994. The state's third is the gargantuan Upper Mississippi River Valley AVA which also covers land in Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois. After 7 long years, and 4000 hours, Steven J. DeBaker of Trout Springs Winery was granted his petition to the TTB for establishment of the Wisconsin Ledge AVA. It became the 203rd AVA in the US, including just under 2.5 million acres making it the 12th largest AVA in the US. Today, there are 24 bonded wineries that lie within the AVA with over 400 acres of vines planted.
Big Valley District-Lake County AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Lake County, California. There was 6 wineries within the viticultural area, as well as 43 commercially-producing vineyards covering approximately 1,800 acres (728 ha) when officially established by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) in October 2013 alongside the adjacent Kelsey Bench AVA.
Kelsey Bench-Lake County AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Lake County, California. The area is home to some 900 acres of vines in 27 vineyards, and was officially established as an AVA by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) in October 2013. Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Viognier and Riesling are the principal white grape varieties within Kelsey Bench and its neighbor the Big Valley District AVA. The Zinfandel, Merlot and Cabernet Franc varieties make up the majority of red grape plantings in the area.
Loess Hills District is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in western Iowa and northwestern Missouri established on April 4, 2016 by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). TTB received a petition from Shirley Frederiksen, on behalf of the Western Iowa Grape Growers Association and the Golden Hills Resource Conservation and Development organization proposing the establishment of the “Loess Hills District” AVA. The district is a long, narrow north–south orientated swath of land along the Big Sioux and Missouri Rivers, covering 12,897 square miles from Hawarden, Iowa, to Craig, Missouri. There are approximately 66 commercially-producing vineyards covering a total of 112 acres (45 ha) distributed throughout the AVA, along with 13 wineries. Loess Hills District is not a sub-region within any established AVA.
Lamorinda AVA is an American Viticultural Area in the San Francisco Bay Area located due east of the Berkeley Hills in Contra Costa County encompassing the region around the cities of Lafayette, Moraga and Orinda. The name Lamorinda is a portmanteau from the names of the three locales defining the region: Lafayette, Moraga, and Orinda. The AVA is a sub-region within the existing San Francisco Bay AVA and the larger, multicounty Central Coast AVA stretching approximately 30,000 acres (47 sq mi) with 46 commercially-producing vineyards that cover approximately 139 acres (56 ha). The USDA plant hardiness zone for the AVA is 9b. The AVA was proposed as the growers in the area found the wider San Francisco Bay and Central Coast AVA titles too generic and not indicative of its terroir. The Lamorinda AVA was officially established in February 2016 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB).
Moon Mountain District Sonoma County is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) within Sonoma Valley and North Coast viticultural areas, just north of the city of Sonoma. This mountainous region on the very eastern edge of Sonoma County has a historic reputation for producing rich, intensely-flavored wines from Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah varietals since the 1880s. The District was established on November 1, 2013 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Its designation covers 17,663 acres (28 sq mi) of land stretching north-south along the western slopes of the Mayacamas mountains between Sugarloaf Ridge State Park and Los Carneros viticultural area with the Napa Valley’s Mount Veeder viticultural area outlining the eastern slopes. Its name is derived from Moon Mountain Road, which traverses through the area and itself a reference to Sonoma, which means 'valley of the moon' in the local Native American dialect. A clear view to San Francisco 50 miles (80 km) south is not uncommon from Moon Mountain District vineyards.
Alisos Canyon is an American Viticultural Area (AVA), located in Santa Barbara County, California due east outside the small town of Los Alamos on U.S 101 and about 20 miles (32 km) south of Santa Maria, was established on August 25, 2020, by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Alisos Canyon stretches west to east over 9 square miles with one bonded winery and nine commercially-producing vineyards cultivates on approximately 238 acres (96 ha). Alisos Canyon Road bisects the region accessing many of its vineyards. The USDA plant hardiness zone for the AVA is 7b.
References
- ↑ "§9.257 Tip of the Mitt" (Title 27: Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; Part 9 — American Viticultural Areas; Subpart C — Approved American Viticultural Areas). Code of Federal Regulations (e-CFR). Retrieved February 5, 2008.
- ↑ "American Viticultural Areas by State". Wine Institute. 2008. Archived from the original on January 27, 2008.
- ↑ "Establishment of the Tip of the Mitt Viticultural Area". Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau . Retrieved March 21, 2017.
- ↑ "Petoskey Wine Region" . Retrieved May 22, 2019.
- ↑ "Our Mission". Straits Area Grape Growers Association. Retrieved March 21, 2017.
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