I’ve always focused more on wine regions outside the United States. It’s not that I don’t like American wines, but I find foreign wines and labels more of a challenge. I also feel I have a better understanding of American regions, climates and all the things that go with them than I do of other places such as South Africa, France and New Zealand. However, I decided I needed to take a look at some of the wine regions closer to home.

 

The Willamette Valley is Oregon’s leading wine region. Nearly two-thirds of the state’s wineries and vineyards call the Willamette Valley home. It is the largest American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Oregon, covering 3,438,000 acres. The Willamette Valley has become a premier producing region for Pinot Noir in the United States.

 

The wine industry took root in Oregon in 1961, when Richard Sommer planted Reisling and other grapes at Hillcrest Vineyard in the Umpqua Valley. Five years later, David Lett planted the state’s first Pinot Noir in the Willamette Valley at The Eyrie Vineyards. The boundaries of the Willamette Valley AVA were established in 1984. Since that time, six sub-appellations within the Willamette Valley were designated to recognize the unique hillsides inside the valley. The six sub-appellations include: Chehlem Mountains, Dundee Hills, Eola-Amity Hills, McMinnville, Ribbon Ridge and Yamhill Carlton.

 

The Willamette Valley AVA follows the Willamette River north to south for more than a hundred miles from the Columbia River near Portland to just south of Eugene. The Oregon Coast Range forms the boundary in the west and the Cascade Mountains form the eastern boundary. The Coast Range blocks the worst of the rain and cold weather from the vineyards in the Willamette Valley. At it’s widest point, the valley spans sixty miles.

 

Overall, the Willamette Valley has the coolest climate of all the Oregon AVAs. Winters are cool and wet, while summers are dry and warm. Temperatures above 90 degrees only occur about 5-15 days per year. Most of the rainfall occurs November to April, when temperatures are coolest. The valley only receives 5-10 inches of snow per year, but about 50 inches of rain per year. In general, the Willamette Valley features a long, cool growing season, ideal for Pinot Noir. The climate of the Willamette Valley compares favorably with the Burgundy and Alsace regions in France.

 

The valley floor features rich alluvial soils and sedimentary soils on hillsides of varying mesoclimates. Vineyard elevation vary from 250 – 750 feet in the Willamette Valley. Grapes grown in the valley include Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah and some Cabernet Sauvignon and sparkling wine.