WA, OR, NY, MEX, CAN Flashcards
Which state is the U.S.’s second largest producer of premium wines? What percent of the nation’s total production comes form here?
Washington
5%
Where are a majority of Washington’s vineyards located?
95% of its vineyards are east of the Cascade Mountains
What is the name of the mountain range in Washington that creates a rain shadow effect and turns the land arid east of it? What vineyard practice is necessary here due to this?
Cascade Mountains
Irrigation is necessary.
What kind of climate does eastern Washington experience?
Continental climate with hot summers and cold winters
What are the major seasonal concerns or hazards to the vines of eastern Washington?
frost and winter freezes are serious concerns for growers
What is the soil like east of the Cascade Mountains? What catastrophic event led to the formation of this soils structure?
Basalt overlaid by sediments deposited by the Missoula Floods, a catastrophic cycle of massive floods that occurred repeatedly at the end of the last ice age.
What is the largest AVA in Washington and how large is it? (acres) What three AVAs are nested within it?
Columbia Valley (11 million acres)
Nested AVAs include:
Yakima Valley
Walla Walla Valley
Horse Heaven Hills
Which AVA was Washington’s first-approved? When was this? What fraction of the state’s vineyards is planted here? What three AVAs are nested within it?
Yakima Valley
(1983)
1/3 of the state’s vineyards are planted here.
Nested AVAs within Yakima Valley include:
Snipes Mountain
Red Mountain
Rattlesnake Hills
What is the name of Washington’s warmest growing region which is also the smallest and most densely-planted? What is the star grape here?
Red Mountain
Cabernet Sauvignon is the star grape here.
Which AVA is south of Yakima Valley and Red Mountain AVA along the Oregon border and what is the nested AVA within it? What is peculiar in regards to the soil of this nested AVA and also its location? When did it receive AVA status?
Walla Walla Valley
Rocks of Milton-Freewater (2015) is the nested AVA here and is entirely located in Oregon
The soil is of basalt cobblestones that draw comparisons to Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Name three major white international varieties of Washington.
Riesling
Sauvignon Blanc
Gewürztraminer
Name three major red international varieties of Washington.
Cabernet Sauvignon
Syrah
Merlot
What two mountain ranges is Willamette Valley located between?
Cascade Mountains and the Coastal Range
Who were the first two people to explore the potential of Pinot Noir in Willamette Valley? When was this?
David Lett of Eyrie Vineyards and Charles Coury were the first to explore the potential of Pinot Noir
This happened in the 1960s
What are the six nested AVAs within Willamette?
Nested AVAs within Willamette include: Dundee Hills Eola-Amity Hills Ribbon Ridge McMinnville Yamhill-Carlton District Chehalem Mountains
What is the name of the gap in the Coastal Mountains, which separates the Willamette Valley from the Pacific Ocean, that directly impacts the AVAs of McMinnville and Eola-Amity Hills by funneling Pacific winds into the area? What styles of Pinot Noir are produced as a result of this?
Van Duzer Corridor
More tannic styles of Pinot Noir are produced in McMinnville and Eola-Amity as a result.
Which AVA within Willamette Valley is known for its leaner, fresher Pinot Noir due to its north-facing vineyards and cool microclimates?
Chehalem Mountains
What are the two major soil types of the Willamette Valley? Describe them and how they influence the wines produced from vines grown on them.
Jory: well-drained soils of volcanic origin that produce wines with more elegance. Commonly found in the “red hills” of Dundee Hills AVA
Willakenzie: Marine sedimentary soils that produce a denser style of wine and darker fruit. Commonly found on the valley’s westernmost slopes such as in Ribbon Ridge AVA
What is the star white grape of the Willamette Valley and what styles is it fermented in?
Pinot Gris
Fermented dry and off-dry
What is the name of David Lett’s Pinot Noir that achieved outstanding results in French competitions and brought vindication to the efforts of early trailblazers? (vintage, wine name, and producer name)
1975 Eyrie Vineyards “South Block Reserve”
Which Burgundian producer is producing high quality Pinot Noir in the Willamette Valley? What is the name of the estate and what AVA is the property situated in?
Joseph Drouhin
Domaine Drouhin situated in Dundee Hills
Describe how Pinot Noir from Willamette compares stylistically with California and Burgundy.
Steppingstone between California and Burgundy. Lighter and earthier than the former, riper and more forward than the latter.
What are the five nested AVAs within Southern Oregon AVA?
Nested AVAs include: Umpqua Valley Elkton Oregon Rogue Valley Applegate Valley Red Hill Douglas County
