Oregon wine

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Oregon
Varietals produced82
No. of wineries908 (2019)[4]

The state of Oregon in the United States has established an international reputation for its production of wine, ranking fourth in the country behind California, Washington, and New York. Oregon has several different growing regions within the state's borders that are well-suited to the cultivation of grapes; additional regions straddle the border between Oregon and the states of Washington and Idaho. Wine making dates back to pioneer times in the 1840s, with commercial production beginning in the 1960s.

American Viticultural Areas entirely within the state are the Willamette Valley AVA (with 10 nested AVAs) and the Southern Oregon AVA with (5 nested AVAs). Parts of the Columbia Gorge, Walla Walla Valley, and Snake River Valley AVAs lie within Oregon. Pinot noir and Pinot Gris are the top two grapes grown, with over 59,452 short tons (53,934 t) harvested in 2016.[4] Oregon winemakers sold just under 3.4 million cases in 2016.[4]

With 908 wineries

Yamhill Valley southwest of Portland. It is estimated that enotourism contributed USD $207.5 million to the state economy in 2013[5]
excluding sales at wineries and tasting rooms.

History

Eyrie Vineyards
.

Wine has been produced in Oregon since the

St. Louis World's Fair. Wine production stopped in the United States during Prohibition. As in other states, the Oregon wine industry lay dormant for thirty years after Prohibition was repealed.[9][10]

The Oregon wine industry started to rebuild in the 1960s, when California winemakers opened several vineyards in the state.[10] By 1970, there were five commercial wineries, with 35 recorded acres (14 ha).[11]

This included the planting of Pinot noir grapes in the Willamette Valley, a region long thought too cold to be suitable for viticulture. In the 1970s, more out-of-state winemakers migrated to the state and started to organize as an industry. The state's land-use laws had prevented rural hillsides from being turned into housing tracts, preserving a significant amount of land suitable for vineyards. In 1979, The Eyrie Vineyards entered a 1975 Pinot noir in the Wine Olympics; the wine was rated among the top Pinots in the world, thus gaining the region its first international recognition.[10]

The accolades continued into the 1980s, and the Oregon wine industry continued to add both wineries and vineyards. The state industry continued to market itself, establishing the first of several AVAs (

Burgundy region of France, as Oregon's governor Neil Goldschmidt paid an official visit to Burgundy and a leading French winemaking family bought land in Dundee.[9][10]

In the early 1990s, the wine industry was threatened by a Phylloxera infestation in the state, but winemakers quickly turned to the use of resistant rootstocks to prevent any serious damage. The state legislature enacted several new laws designed to promote winemaking and wine distribution. The state found a newfound focus on "green" winemaking, leading the global wine industry into more environmentally friendly practices. In 2005, there were 314 wineries and 519 vineyards in operation in Oregon.[9][10] By 2014, the a number of wineries in the state has increased to 676, the 3rd most behind California and Washington. Oregon remains the 4th largest wine producer in the country in cases produced behind New York.[12]

Varieties of wine

Like other wines produced in the United States, Oregon wines are marketed as varietals. Oregon law requires that wines produced in the state must be identified by the grape variety from which it was made, and for most varietals, it must contain at least 90% of that variety. The exceptions to the 90% law are the following varietals: Red and White Bordeaux varietals, Red and White Rhône varietals, Sangiovese, Tempranillo, Zinfandel and Tannat. For these wines, they follow the Federal guidelines of 75%.[13] Oregon law has long forbidden the use of place names,[14] except as appellations of origin. Oregon is most famous for its Pinot noir, which is produced throughout the state. Pinot noirs from the Willamette Valley have received much critical acclaim from wine connoisseurs and critics, and Oregon is regarded as one of the premier Pinot-producing regions in the world.[15]

In 2016 the top five varieties produced in Oregon were:[4]

  • Pinot noir 17,744 acres (7,181 ha), 45,851 short tons (41,595 t)
  • Pinot gris 3,705 acres (1,499 ha), 13,601 short tons (12,339 t)
  • Chardonnay 1,482 acres (600 ha), 4,359 short tons (3,954 t)
  • Riesling 713 acres (289 ha), 3,095 short tons (2,808 t)
  • Cabernet Sauvignon 626 acres (253 ha), 1,652 short tons (1,499 t)

Other varieties with significant production by harvested acres in 2016

Petite Syrah, Sangiovese, and Sémillon. The state also produces fruit wine, sparkling wine, late harvest wine, ice wine, and dessert wine.[17]

Facts and figures

Oregon wine statistics 1995–2016[18][16][4]
Year Planted

Vineyard Area

# Wineries
crushing
grapes
Grapes crushed,
tons (US)
Sales, cases
1995 7,100 acres (2,873 ha) 92 14,280 short tons (12,955 t) 734,437
1996 7,500 acres (3,035 ha) 94 15,191 short tons (13,781 t) 741,953
1997 7,800 acres (3,157 ha) 94 18,669 short tons (16,936 t) 827,312
1998 9,000 acres (3,600 ha) 103 13,265 short tons (12,034 t) 894,386
1999 9,800 acres (3,966 ha) 102 16,523 short tons (14,989 t) 777,890
2000 10,500 acres (4,249 ha) 122 17,663 short tons (16,024 t) 991,770
2001 11,100 acres (4,492 ha) 131 22,163 short tons (20,106 t) 1,082,058
2002 12,100 acres (4,897 ha) 150 20,905 short tons (18,965 t) 1,073,177
2003 13,400 acres (5,423 ha) 170 21,860 short tons (19,831 t) 1,199,086
2004 13,700 acres (5,544 ha) 193 18,620 short tons (16,892 t) 1,286,128
2005 14,100 acres (5,706 ha) 215 23,450 short tons (21,273 t) 1,591,330
2006 15,600 acres (6,300 ha) 236 33,300 short tons (30,200 t) 1,628,608
2007 17,400 acres (7,000 ha) 254 37,000 short tons (34,000 t) 1,711,532
2008 19,300 acres (7,800 ha) 274 34,700 short tons (31,500 t) 1,748,282
2009 19,400 acres (7,900 ha) 275 40,200 short tons (36,500 t) 1,660,202
2010 20,500 acres (8,300 ha) 315 29,800 short tons (27,000 t) 1,930,763
2011 20,400 acres (8,300 ha) 350 42,033 short tons (38,132 t) 2,040,698
2012 22,880 acres (9,260 ha) 379 50,186 short tons (45,528 t) 2,379,165
2013 23,955 acres (9,694 ha) 370 52,588 short tons (47,707 t) 2,678,807
2014 27,390 acres (11,080 ha) 412 70,112 short tons (63,605 t) 2,864,963
2015 28,034 acres (11,345 ha) 71,849 short tons (65,180 t) 3,093,661
2016 30,435 acres (12,317 ha) 424 67,918 short tons (61,614 t) 3,390,958

As of the 2015 wine growing season, the state of Oregon has 702

vineyards growing Vitis vinifera, composing a total of 28,034 acres (11,345 ha) of which 24,742 acres (10,013 ha) were harvested. Out of all US wine growing regions, Oregon ranks third in number of wineries and fourth in production. Nearly 3 million cases of Oregon wine were sold in 2015. The retail value of these cases was $470,650,919 a 9% increase over the previous vintage.[17]

The industry has had a significant economic impact on the state. The industry contributed a total of US$3.35 billion to the Oregon economy. 17,100 people participate in the wine industry with $527 million in wages.[5] In 2014 70% was sold to US markets outside Oregon and 4% was sold internationally.[19]

Oregon produces wine on a much smaller scale than the

King Estate, ships only 401,400 cases per year and most produce under 35,000 cases. The state features many small wineries that produce less than 5,000 cases per year.[10][20] In contrast, E & J Gallo, the United States' largest winery with more than 50 different brands including Washington's Columbia Winery and Covey Run holds a 22.8% share of the US market.[21] The majority of wineries in the state operate their own vineyards, although some purchase grapes on the market. Oregon contains a significant number of independent vineyards.[10]

The Oregon wine industry focuses on the higher-priced segments of the wine market. Oregon growers receive a higher average return per ton and a higher average revenue per case than do growers in other wine-producing regions in the United States. Despite producing a much smaller volume of wine, Oregon winery revenues per capita are comparable to those of New York and Washington.[5]

Major wine-producing regions

There are, loosely speaking, three main wine producing regions with a major presence in the state of Oregon, as defined by non-overlapping

Milton-Freewater area. The Southern Oregon AVA was recently created as the union of two Southern Oregon winegrowing regions long considered distinct, the Rogue Valley and the Umpqua Valley. Several other smaller AVAs are found within some of these larger regions.[22] The Snake River Valley AVA, which straddles Oregon's border with Idaho along the Snake River, is the first AVA to include a part of Eastern Oregon.[23]

Willamette Valley AVA

The Willamette River Valley.

The

Cascade Mountains in the East. At 5,200 square miles (13,500 km2), it is the largest AVA in the state, and contains most of the state's wineries; with 545 as of 2016.[4]

The climate of Willamette Valley is mild year-round, with cool, wet winters and warm, dry summers; extreme temperatures are uncommon. Most rainfall occurs outside the growing season and the valley gets relatively little snow.

The region is best known for its Pinot noir, and also produces large amounts of Pinot gris, Chardonnay, Pinot blanc, and Riesling. The region also produces Cabernet Sauvignon, Gewürztraminer, Müller-Thurgau, Sémillon, and Zinfandel grapes, but in far smaller quantities.

The region is divided into 10 nested AVAs:

Yamhill-Carlton District AVA. Ribbon Ridge AVA and Laurelwood District AVA are nested within the Chehalem Mountains AVA. In addition, many wine connoisseurs further divide the Willamette Valley into northern and southern regions approximately at the latitude of Salem
.

Southern Oregon AVA

The Southern Oregon AVA is an AVA formed as the union of two existing AVAs—the Rogue Valley AVA and the Umpqua Valley AVA. (A small strip of the connecting territory is included in the Southern Oregon AVA to make it a contiguous region; however, this strip passes through mountains regions not suitable for vineyards.) This AVA was established in 2004 to allow the two principal regions in Southern Oregon to jointly market themselves.[26]

As the Rogue Valley and Umpqua Valley regions produce different grapes and different varietals, they are examined separately.

Umpqua River with tributaries

Umpqua Valley AVA

The Umpqua Valley AVA contains the drainage basin of the Umpqua River, excluding mountainous regions.[27] The Umpqua Valley has a warmer climate than the Willamette Valley, but is cooler than the Rogue Valley to the south. It is the oldest post-prohibition wine region in Oregon. Grapes grown here include Tempranillo, Baco noir, Pinot noir, Pinot gris, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, and Riesling, Grüner Veltliner, and a host of lesser-known Vitis vinifera. The region includes two sub-AVAs, the Red Hill Douglas County, Oregon AVA, a single vineyard AVA, as well as the Elkton Oregon AVA, which was established in early 2013.[28]

Rogue Valley AVA

The

Bear Creek. Most wineries in the region are found along with one of these three tributaries, rather than along the Rogue River itself. The region is 70 miles (110 km) wide by 60 miles (100 km) long (although much of the land within the AVA is not suitable for grape cultivation); there are currently 32 wineries with only 1,100 acres (445 ha) planted. The three valleys differ greatly in terroir, with the easternmost Bear Creek valley being warmest and driest, and the westernmost Illinois River valley being coolest and wettest.[29] Each river valley has a unique climate and grows different varieties of grapes. Overall, however, this region is the warmest and driest of Oregon's wine-growing regions.[30] The region has one sub-AVA, the Applegate Valley AVA.[31]

Columbia Gorge AVA