Viticulture in West Virginia

West Virginia
Official name:	State of West Virginia
Appellation type:	State
Year of establishment:	1863
Country:	United States
Sub-regions:	Kanawha River Valley AVA , Ohio River Valley AVA , Shenandoah Valley AVA
Recognized cultivation area:	62,792 km² (24,244 sqmi)
Grape varieties:	Aurore , Baco Noir , Cabernet Franc , Cabernet Sauvignon , Catawba , Cayuga , Chambourcin , Chancellor , Chardonel , Chardonnay , Concord , DeChaunac , Fredonia , Maréchal Foch , Niagara , Norton , Petite Sirah , Pinot Noir , Riesling , Seyval Blanc , St. Pepin , St. Vincent , Van Buren , Vidal Blanc , Vignoles
Number of wineries:	11

Viticulture in West Virginia describes viticulture in the American state of West Virginia . Under US law, every state and county is by definition a protected designation of origin and does not need to be recognized as such by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives .

The 11 wineries (as of 2008) are divided into 3 designations of origin , which enjoy the status of an American Viticultural Area . Because of the harsh winters, the winegrowers concentrate on growing French hybrid vines . The most important grape variety from the Vitis vinifera family (the so-called European noble grapes ) is the hardy Riesling , which is mainly grown in the northeast of the state.

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b Appellation America (2007). "West Virginia: Appellation Description" . Last page view on October 20, 2008.

André Dominé (Ed.): Wine . Tandem Verlag, Königswinter 2007, ISBN 978-3-8331-4344-1 .
Bruce Cass, Jancis Robinson : The Oxford Companion to the Wine of North America . Oxford University Press, Oxford et al. 2000, ISBN 0-19-860114-X .