High Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in the eastern part of Lake County,

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 m ...

. True to its name, the valley is situated on high elevations ranging from to , but it actually encompasses two distinct growing regions, the valley floor and the hillsides. The cool marine breezes are consistently sifting into the valley, keeping the valley cooler than the other

appellations 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 ...

in Lake County. Red volcanic soils can be found on the hillsides while

alluvial fans An alluvial fan is an accumulation of sediments that fans outwards from a concentrated source of sediments, such as a narrow canyon emerging from an escarpment. They are characteristic of mountainous terrain in arid to semiarid climates, but a ...

and benches on the valley floor provide well-drained beds for the vines. Red Bordeaux

varietals A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

and Syrah can be found planted along warmer ridges, while the cooler valley floor contains

Pinot grigio Pinot Gris, Pinot Grigio (, ) or Grauburgunder is a white wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. Thought to be a mutant clone of the Pinot Noir variety, it normally has a grayish-blue fruit, accounting for its name, but the gra ...

, Pinot noir, Chardonnay,

Riesling Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling wh ...

and Sauvignon blanc.

Geography

The valley itself is long and wide, with an east–west orientation unusual in the Californian coastal range, a result of volcanic activity of Round Mountain, an extinct volcano lying within the valley. The AVA contains , and about are currently planted in

vineyards A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...

. Most are relatively new, but within the area are some of the oldest vines in California. There are 15 struggling Zinfandel and

Muscat Muscat ( ar, مَسْقَط, ) is the capital and most populated city in Oman. It is the seat of the Governorate of Muscat. According to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the total population of Muscat Governorate was ...

vines planted by the Ogulin family, which brought them from

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

around 1875. Since Slovenia borders

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, where cousins of Zinfandel vines are found, this suggests significance in the history of California Zinfandel. The old vines shouldn't be a surprise, for before

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 alcohol ...

, Lake County was producing reputable wines before the vineyards were replaced with other crops.

References

{{coord, 39.0480 , -122.7073, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-CA_dim:27000 American Viticultural Areas American Viticultural Areas of California Geography of Lake County, California 2005 establishments in California