AVA: What’s in a Name?
We rounded a bend and the verdant panorama of the Napa Valley, where 34,000 acres of land are planted to grapevines, spread out before us.
“Is this the best place in the world to grow wine grapes?” my friend asked.
I said the Napa Valley was one of the blessed places in the world where Cabernet Sauvignon grows well, but other grape varieties make good wine too. There’s equally wonderful Riesling. Chardonnay, of course, thrives and there’s plenty of Pinot Noir. Even within Cabernet Sauvignon there is tremendous variety. Wine made from Rutherford Bench grapes tastes scarcely like wine made from Stag’s Leap. And Howell Mountain is different from both.
In short, when you see the name Napa Valley on a bottle of wine, that tells you its geographical origin but not what sort of wine it is.
This is fundamentally different from the “appellation” system in other wine-growing countries. Where the grape has a long tradition, fine wine is generally considered to come from a small area and having a unique character, and laws are passed to protect and nurture it.
The Appellation d’Origine Controlee laws of France are some of the strictest. They define which grapes may be grown to what quantity of grapes may be harvested. For instance, wine labeled “Le Corton” may come only from one 28 1/2-acre vineyard, and the only grape that may be used is Pinot Noir. Moreover, since excessive harvests make for lackluster wine, the amount of grapes that may be harvested from an acre of the Le Corton vineyard is controlled by law.
Germany, Italy and Spain have similar systems. In the case of something as simple as Chianti Classico, the law specifies four permitted grape varieties and the percentage in which they must be mixed, the alcohol level the wine must reach and how long it must be aged in cask.
In the United States, a rudimentary appellation system went into effect in 1980, but it differs greatly from the European model.
To date, the Treasury Department’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms has designated 115 areas around the country as American Viticultural Areas, 63 of them in California. However, there are no certified grape varieties in any of the AVAs (nor is any grape variety prohibited from being grown in a region or used in wines bearing the AVA designation). There are no regulations regarding tonnage per acre or winemaking procedures.
In short, an AVA does not protect any presumed regional character. Nor does it even imply a certain level of quality. The BATF specifically says it “does not wish to give the impression that it is approving or endorsing the quality of a wine from this region.”
As the most extreme example, the BATF has approved an AVA for the Texas Hill Country--an area larger than nine states, covering 15,000 square miles. Obviously, little regional identity can be assumed from an area so large.
Of course, not all AVAs are so meaningless. There are nearly two dozen that are less than 10 square miles in size, including, in California, Sonoma Mountain and Anderson Valley (a sub-appellation within Napa Valley). And within these smaller regions, certain wine types are developing, which can help the consumer determine what sort of wine is likely to be found inside the bottle. Cole Ranch in Mendocino County is the smallest viticultural area designated as an AVA, covering less than a quarter of a square mile.
And there is a growing movement among growers and wineries to form small AVAs within the larger districts--so-called sub-appellations. For example, Green Valley in Sonoma County is located within the larger Russian River AVA, and the Stag’s Leap District is part of Napa Valley.
Theoretically, these smaller areas share uniform soil types and weather patterns, but business considerations often enter the picture. Whether the BATF intends it or not, being recognized as part of a well-known wine region can have serious economic impact on a winery. And when a winery or grower left out of an AVA applies to get in, the BATF usually grants the wider boundary, even though this dilutes the AVA’s meaning for the consumer.
In fact, one of California’s most famous wine-growing areas--Napa Valley’s Rutherford Bench--has so many people opposing the various proposed boundaries that it may never be approved.
Wine of the Week
1989 Santino Winery Zinfandel “Grandpere Vineyard” ($11)-- The oldest producing grapevines in California are Scott Harvey’s 120-year-old Zinfandels in Amador County, his Grandpere Vineyard. In 1989, this vineyard produced some of the most classical Amador Zinfandel flavors I have ever tasted, with an aroma of blackberries, jam, violets, pepper and a load of lush fruit. The wine isn’t excessively tannic and tastes great now, but will show expansive flavors with a few years in the bottle. If you plan any heavily seasoned dishes, especially with garlic, this is the wine that will stand up to it.
