Columbia Valley AVA

This article or the following section is not adequately provided with supporting documents ( e.g. individual evidence ). Information without sufficient evidence could be removed soon. Please help Wikipedia by researching the information and including good evidence.

Columbia Valley AVA
Columbia Valley AVA
Appellation type:	American Viticultural Area
Year of establishment:	1984
Country:	United States
Part of the wine-growing region:	Viticulture in Oregon , Viticulture in Washington
Sub-regions:	Ancient Lakes AVA , Horse Heaven Hills AVA , Lake Chelan AVA , Naches Heights AVA , Rattlesnake Hills AVA , Red Mountain AVA , The Rocks AVA , Snipes Mountain AVA Wahluke Slope AVA , Walla Walla Valley AVA , Yakima Valley AVA
Growing period:	180-200 days
Cultivation climate:	continental / mediterranean
Single-variety wines:	Barbera , Black Muscat , Cabernet Franc , Cabernet Sauvignon , Carmenere , Chardonnay , Chenin Blanc , Counoise , Gamay Beaujolais , Gamay noir , Gewürztraminer , Grenache , Lemberger , Malbec , Marsanne , Merlot , Morio-Muscat , Mourvèdre , Muscadelle , Muscat Canelli , Nebbiolo , Orange Muscat , Petit Verdot , Petite Sirah , Pinot blanc , Pinot gris , Pinot Meunier , Pinot noir , Riesling , Roussanne , Royalty , Sangiovese , Sauvignon Blanc , Semillon , Siegerrebe , Syrah , Viognier , Zinfandel

The Columbia Valley AVA is an American wine-growing region , which is located on the Columbia River Plateau and takes up much of the south and central part of Washington State . The catchment area of ​​the American Viticultural Area (AVA) includes the Columbia River with its tributaries.

The Columbia Valley AVA is the largest wine region in the US state of Washington. Theoretically, it covers more than 4,500,000 hectares of cultivation area, of which 16,000 hectares are planted. Mostly Cabernet Sauvignon , Merlot , Chardonnay , Riesling , Syrah , Pinot Gris and Sauvignon Blanc are grown here. The region's unique climate enables the Columbia Valley to produce wines that are very fruity, like California wine , but also maintain the balance and structure of European wine .

climate

Because the Columbia Valley AVA extends over an enormous area, it has different microclimates . Nevertheless, the entire region shares a cold winter and long dry growing seasons with low humidity. The region's warm days and cool nights help maintain the balance between acidity and sugar content in the grapes , giving Washington wines their characteristic flavor balance. The top ripening of the grapes takes place in the last four to six weeks of the growing season, with the grapes hanging on the vines a little longer than, for example, in California . This gives the grape more time to develop other aroma and profile characteristics that come into play in the resulting wines. Due to the longer vegetation period, the grapes can also be harvested at a lower temperature, which is usually not possible in other more southern wine regions.

Ancient Lakes of the Columbia Valley AVA

The Ancient Lakes of the Columbia Valley AVA is a separate wine-growing region that is completely enclosed by the Columbia Valley AVA. Due to the geological history there are completely different soil conditions.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Code of Federal Regulations. "Section 9.74 Columbia Valley." Title 27: Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; Part 9 - American Viticultural Areas; Subpart C - Approved American Viticultural Areas. Last access to this page January 30, 2008.
2. ^ ^{A b c} T. Parker Discovering: Washington Wines . Ed .: Parker Discovering. Raconteurs Press, 2002, ISBN 0-9719258-5-2 , pp. 22 .