United States Flashcards
Name some native grapes to the US
Vitis labrusca (the Concord grape) Vitis rotundifolia (the Scuppernong grape) Vitis aestivalis (the Norton grape)
Agoston Haraszthy
Hungarian-born, Agoston Haraszthy arrived in Sonoma in 1849, where he founded Buena Vista, one of California’s oldest commercial wineries. Dubbed the “father of California wine,” the colorful Haraszthy introduced more than 300 varieties to the state, collected as vine cuttings during his European travels.
Charles Krug
Founded his eponymous St. Helena winery in 1861, the oldest in the valley.
Jacob Schram
Schramsberg in 1862
Beringer
Napa’s oldest and continuously operating winery, founded in 1876
Gustav Niebaum
Finnish immigrant Gustav Niebaum founded the legendary Inglenook Winery in 1880
André Tchelistcheff
Russian winemaker trained in France, who oversaw the production at Beaulieu (1938). He introduced the Georges de Latour Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, a new benchmark in quality for American wine, and brought new standards of hygiene and techniques to California, including temperature-controlled fermentations and controlled malolactic fermentation.
Robert Mondavi
First harvest in 1966. 1968, Mondavi singlehandedly made Sauvignon Blanc saleable by renaming it “Fumé Blanc” and aging it in oak
Dr. Konstantin Frank
Formerly a janitor at Cornell University, demonstrated in the face of tremendous skepticism that Vitis vinifera could grow successfully in the Finger Lakes. His Vinifera Wine Cellars, founded in 1962, achieved praise with Riesling and sparkling wines and ignited a new interest in noble varieties in New York
David Lett
In 1965 he planted his first Pinot Noir grapes in the Willamette Valley, pioneering the varietal style for which the valley would become internationally known.
Labeling laws in the US
If labeled by country, state, or county: 75%
If labeled by AVA: 85%
If labeled with a single vineyard: 95%
Vintage laws
If an American or imported wine in the US uses a vintage date, the wine must carry an appellation smaller than a country. For wines labeled with an AVA, a minimum 95% must come from the stated vintage; for wines labeled with a state or county, the minimum is relaxed to 85%. Wine with a varietal designation must contain a minimum 75% of the stated variety
Five major grape growing AVAs of California
North Coast Central Coast South Coast San Francisco Bay Sierra Foothills
What are the counties of the North Coast AVA
Napa Sonoma Mendocino Lake Solano Marin
What are the AVAs of Napa County?
Napa Valley Calistoga Diamond Mountain District Chiles Valley District Spring Mountain District Howell Mountain St. Helena Rutherford Oakville Yountville Wild Horse Valley Carneros Mount Veneer Stags Leap District Atlas Peak Oak Knoll District Coombsville
Mountains of Napa Valley
Mayacamas Mountains to the west
Vaca Mountains on the east
What is unique about Howell Mountain AVA?
Howell Mountain is the wettest and coolest of the mountain appellations and the first sub-appellation wholly within Napa Valley to receive its own AVA. Its high-altitude, west-facing vineyards produce benchmark mountain wines. This is the only appellation that is elevation specific, beginning at 1,400 feet.
What are the AVAs of Sonoma County?
Alexander Valley Dry Creek Valley Rockpile Bennet Valley Knights Valley Chalk Hill Russian River Valley Sonoma Valley Moon Mountain Green Valley of Russian River Sonoma Mountain Sonoma Coast Northern Sonoma Pine Mountain Cloverdale Peak Fort Ross Seaview Fountain Grove District Petaluma Gap Carneros
What are the AVAs of Mendocino County?
Anderson Valley Cole Ranch Covelo Dos Rios Eagle Peak Mendocino County McDowell Valley Mendocino Mendocino Ridge Potter Valley Redwood Valley Yorkville Highlands
What are the AVAs of New York?
Cayuga Lake Champlain Valley of New York Finger Lakes Hudson River Region Lake Erie (shared with Ohio and Pennsylvania) Long Island Niagara Escarpment North Fork of Long Island Seneca Lake The Hamptons, Long Island Upper Hudson
What are the AVAs of Washington?
Ancient Lakes of Columbia Valley Columbia Gorge (shared with Oregon) Columbia Valley (shared with Oregon) Horse Heaven Hills Lake Chelan Lewis-Clark Valley (shared with Idaho) Naches Heights Puget Sound Rattlesnake Hills Red Mountain Snipes Mountain Wahluke Slope Walla Walla Valley (shared with Oregon) Yakima Valley
What are the AVAs of Oregon?
Applegate Valley Chehalem Mountains Columbia Gorge (shared with Washington) Columbia Valley (shared with Washington) Dundee Hills Elkton Oregon Eola-Amity Hills McMinnville Red Hill Douglas County Ribbon Ridge Rogue Valley Snake River Valley (shared with Idaho) Southern Oregon The Rocks of Milton-Freewater Umpqua Valley Van Duzer Corridor Walla Walla Valley (shared with Washington) Willamette Valley Yamhill-Carlton District
North to South, name the sub-AVAs of the Willamette Valley
Chehalem Mountains Yamhill-Carlton District McMinnville Ribbon Ridge Dundee Hills Eola-Amity Hills
What are the sub-AVAs of Sierra Foothills AVA?
Fair Play El Dorado Fiddletown North Yuba California Shenandoah Valley
