The California Shenandoah Valley AVA is an

American Viticultural Area An American Viticultural Area (AVA) is a designated wine grape-growing region in the United States, providing an official appellation for the mutual benefit of wineries and consumers. Winemakers frequently want their consumers to know about th ...

that includes portions of

Amador County Amador County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California, in the Sierra Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,474. The county seat is Jackson. Amador County, located within California's Gold Country, is known as ...

and

El Dorado County El Dorado County (), officially the County of El Dorado, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 191,185. The county seat is Placerville. The County is part of the Sacramento-Roseville-Ar ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, United States. It is a sub-region of the

Sierra Foothills AVA The Sierra Foothills AVA (established in 1987) is an American Viticultural Area in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in the U.S. state of California in the United States. Wine grapes were introduced to the area in the nineteenth century during the ...

, and close in proximity to the

Fiddletown AVA The Fiddletown AVA is an American Viticultural Area in Amador County, California, United States. The region was first settled in 1849, during the California Gold Rush. Settlers who stayed in the area eventually planted grape vines, which became ab ...

. The region was settled by non-indigenous peoples during the California Gold Rush in the nineteenth century, and settlers in the region began planting grapevines and producing wine soon thereafter. In the 1970s,

Sutter Home Winery Sutter Home Winery is one of the largest family-run independent wineries in the United States, and is the estate known for the creation of White Zinfandel. It is located in St. Helena, Californiacalwineries.coBob Trinchero/ref> and owned by Trinc ...

began bottling varietal

Zinfandel Zinfandel (also known as Primitivo) is a variety of black-skinned wine grape. The variety is grown in over 10 percent of California vineyards. DNA analysis has revealed that it is genetically equivalent to the Croatian grapes Crljenak Kašte ...

wines made from Shenandoah Valley grapes, and in 1983 the region became a designated AVA. The most important grape variety in the region is Zinfandel, with Primitivo and Barbera close behind.

References

{{Coord, 38.53, -120.8, region:US-CA_type:adm2nd, display=title Geography of Amador County, California American Viticultural Areas American Viticultural Areas of California Geography of El Dorado County, California 1982 establishments in California