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The Dry Creek Valley AVA is an
At the turn of the 20th century, Dry Creek Valley was one of California's most prominent producers of
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 winery, wineries and consumers. Winemakers frequently want their consumers to know abo ...
in Sonoma County, California
Sonoma County () is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 488,863. Its county seat and largest city is Santa Rosa, California, Santa Rosa. It is to the n ...
, located northwest of the town of Healdsburg. The valley is formed by Dry Creek, a tributary of the Russian River, and is approximately long and wide. The appellation
An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...
benefits from the proximity of the Lake Sonoma reservoir for irrigation
Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow Crop, crops, Landscape plant, landscape plants, and Lawn, lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,00 ...
in this relatively dry area.
History
At the turn of the 20th century, Dry Creek Valley was one of California's most prominent producers of 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 Kaštel ...
. During Prohibition
Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...
, much of the valley was converted to plum, pear, and prune trees, and much of the fruit was processed by Sunsweet Growers in Healdsburg. Since the resurgence of wine grape production in the 1970s, Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebanon' ...
and Zinfandel have become the most planted varieties, and Dry Creek Valley AVA has become one of the state's top Zinfandel producers. Sauvignon blanc
is a green-skinned grape variety that originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French words ''sauvage'' ("wild") and ''blanc'' ("white") due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in ...
has become the most important white grape varietal produced in the valley.
Wineries
Over 50 wineries are resident in Dry Creek Valley AVA, and over 160 wineries produce wines that bear a Dry Creek Valley AVA designation. Dry Creek Valley AVA is home to the majority of the Sonoma vineyards ofE & J Gallo Winery
E & J Gallo Winery is a winery and distributor headquartered in Modesto, California. It was
founded in 1933 by Ernest Gallo and Julio Gallo, and is the largest exporter of California wines. E & J Gallo Winery is the largest family-owned wine ...
, who established winery facilities in the valley in the early 1990s.
See also
* Sonoma County wine * Wine Country (California)References
External links
* * {{Coord, 38, 42, N, 122, 58, W, region:US-CA_type:landmark, display=title American Viticultural Areas American Viticultural Areas of the San Francisco Bay Area Geography of Sonoma County, California 1983 establishments in California