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83 Cards in this Set
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The state of Washington is the ________ largest producer of Vinifera wines in the USA, but only accounts for ___% of U.S. domestic wine output. |
The state of Washington is the SECOND largest producer of Vinifera wines in the USA, but only accounts for 5% of U.S. domestic wine output. (It lacks the giant bulk wine industry that CA has. The entire state of WA has about 5,000 acres more vines planted than Napa Valley) |
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Who is the largest producer in Washington? |
Ste. Michele Wine Estates is the largest producer in Washington state with over 7m cases of production and numerous brands (Columbia Crest, Chateau Ste. Michele, etc). They are also the world's largest producer of Riesling. |
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Why has Phylloxera never been an issue in Washington? |
It has not. It is virtually unknown. 1. Lots of sandy soil 2. Large Distance between vineyards 3. Cold Winters |
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What are the major viticultural challenges in Washington east of the Cascades? |
1. Dry Farming impossible and water rights are difficult 2. Winter freezes/frosts Arid Climate eliminates mildew and fungal pressures. |
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What are two vine training methods used in Washington to combat freeze? |
1. Dual Trunk Training 2. Buried Canes You can also plant at higher altitudes along the anticline ridges and choose south facing sites so mitigate frost and freeze pressures. |
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Associated Vintners, a group of aspiring home winemakers, with the help of the father of Washington Wine, _____________, went on to form a winery called ______________. |
Associated Vintners, a group of aspiring home winemakers, with the help of the father of Washington Wine, WALTER CLORE, went on to form a winery called COLUMBIA WINERY. |
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American Wine Growers, with the help of the father of California wine, ____________, went on to form a winery called _____________. |
American Wine Growers, with the help of the father of California wine, ANDRE TCHELISTCHEFF, went on to form a winery called CHATEAU Ste. MICHELE. |
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What are the only two Washington AVAs not nested within the Columbia Valley AVA? |
1. Puget Sound 2. Columbia Gorge |
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What is the most planted white grape in Washington? |
Riesling (though neck and neck with Chardonnay, in 2014 it took a strong lead) |
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What is the most planted red grape in Washington? |
Cabernet Sauvignon
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What was the first AVA in Washington?
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Yakima Valley AVA (1983) |
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Explain the Yakima Fold Belt and how it creates Temperature inversion layers. What does this mean for Washington wine? |
The Yakima Fold Belt is a series of East-West ridges formed during the Miocene Epoch via tectonic compression. The result was a series of alternating ridges and small valleys known as anticlines and synclines respectively. The ridges, or anticlines, restrict air flow and trap cold air in the valleys which causes a temperature inversion layer. This means that the valley floors, or synclines, are cooler, have larger diurnal variations, and are more frost prone than the ridges. This creates a situation where vineyards grown at altitude (sometimes up to 3-4000ft) are more warm than those in the valley, particularly those of Red Mountain, Wahluke Slope, and Horse Heaven Hills. This is why those sites are so warm. |
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What is Dual Trunk Training? |
With dual-trunk training, used throughout Washington, growers train two separate trunks on the same vine in parallel, just an inch or two apart, from the ground up. According to winemaker Brian McCormick of Memaloose, “statistically, you can get winter damage to one but not the other, even though they are growing in the same spot.” Vines are particularly susceptible to severe crown gall affliction after a hard freeze—with two trunks one’s chances of losing an entire vine canopy is halved. |
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What are Buried Canes and what would this technique be used for in Washington? |
Growers may bury fruiting canes over winter in Washington's harsh winters. If the canopy dies over winter, the grower can pull the fruiting cane up from under the soil and still get a crop the following year. This technique is typically employed with low-trained cordon vines. |
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Name two major geological forces that shaped Eastern Washington's soils. |
First, there was a period of enormous volcanic explosions during the Miocene Epoch, around 6-17m yrs ago that layed a basalt bedrock that in some places extends 12000ft deep. Second, around 18,000 - 12,000 years ago, as the last Ice Age receded, the massive Cordilleran Ice Sheet receded towards the giant Lake Missoula in Western Montana and what was left formed an ice dam holding the waters back. This dam repeatedly broke over the next few thousand years several times a century. This flooded Eastern Washington with gravel and sediment and carving deep channels in the basalt in some places. This is why basalt content is always much closer to the surface of the soil at higher elevations. |
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Describe the general soil profile of the Columbia basin. |
Basalt bedrock and flood-deposited sedimentary layers beneath a windblown loess that forms the region’s silt loam topsoils. Silt Loams have high percentages of silt and sand. |
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What is the WSLCB and how did it impact Washington's wine history? |
As Washington exited Prohibition, its legislature opted to regulate alcoholic beverages as a control state. With its passage in 1934, the Steele Act established the Washington State Liquor Control Board to act as sole wholesaler of all wines and spirits. The bill was modified one year later to allow Washington-made wines to be sold by private distributors, generally at a lower cost. While a modern advocate of “buying local” might applaud the decision, the protectionist measure insulated Washington wines from out-of-state competition and decreased the need for winemaking improvements. Tax breaks for in-state wines followed while quality flat-lined. The WSLCB maintained its monopoly over out-of-state wine distribution until 1969, when the privilege of private distribution was finally extended to all wines, regardless of place of origin. The resulting influx of competitively priced wines from other states and countries, coupled with important research in areas suitable for vinifera grapegrowing, spurred Washington’s wine industry with an immediate need to improve and the tools to do so. |
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What three AVAs in Washington contain land in both Oregon and Washington? |
Columbia Gorge Columbia Valley Walla Walla Valley |
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The majority of Columbia Valley AVAs vineyards are located within other sub-AVAs, but 7,000 acres remain outside any other AVAs. Name some famous vineyards that belong to the Columbia Valley AVA alone. |
Sagemoor Vineyard Cold Creek Vineyard Stillwater Creek Vineyard |
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Tell me about Sagemoor Vineyard. |
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Tell me about Cold Creek Vineyard |
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Tell me about Stillwater Creek Vineyard |
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Union Gap, Zillah, Sunnyside,and Prosser are located in what Washington state AVA specifically? |
Small communities in Yakima Valley (also listed from West to East) |
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What are the three nested AVAs of Yakima Valley AVA? |
Rattlesnake Hills AVA Snipes Mountain AVA Red Mountain AVA |
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What other crops are competitive for Yakima Valley AVA sites? |
Apples, Concord grapes, Stonefruit, and hop fields. Usually, apples, concord grapes, and orchard fruit in cooler lower valley sites where grapes would not survive |
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Tell me about Boushey Vineyard |
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Where is Otis Vineyard? |
Yakima Valley near Snipes Mountain |
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Where is Red Willow Vineyard? |
Yakima Valley Home of the state's first Syrah grapes in 1986 |
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Which two vineyard sites are the oldest in Red Mountain AVA? |
Kiona and Ciel du Cheval, both established within weeks of each other in 1975. |
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Col Solare is located in what Washington AVA? What two estates collaborated to create it? |
Red Mountain AVA Antinori and Chateau Ste Michelle |
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Col Solare, Force Majeure, and Upchurch are located within what AVA? |
Red Mountain AVA |
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Force Majeure is located within what AVA? |
Red Mountain AVA Former Harlan winemaker |
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Where is Snipes Mountain AVA? What are its elevation requirements? |
Snipes Mountain AVA is an anticline in central Yakima and its borders are defined by elevation. Just slightly larger than Red Mountain. 750 ft. on the southern slope and 820 ft. on the northern slope mark the low end of the growing region, and vines drape the hillsides almost all the way up to the mountain’s summit at 1,310 ft. |
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Where are the oldest vineyards in Washington? |
William Bridgeman's old plot of Muscat de Alexandria vines in Snipes Mountain AVA. Planted in 1917. Currently located on the Upland Vineyards property. |
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What is Upland's significance with Snipes Mountain? |
Todd Newhouse, owner of Upland, farms 750 acres of the 900 acres of wine grapes in the appellation, including a 1963 block of Cabernet Sauvignon vines known as Harrison Hill, and he drafted the AVA petition. The own the old Muscat de Alexandria block from 1917, the oldest vineyard in Washington. He is the only estate producer in Snipes Mountain to date in 2019, but sells to Chat Ste Michelle, Maison Bleu, and Smasne |
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When was Snipes Mountain approved for AVA status? |
2009 |
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When was Rattlesnake Hills approved for AVA status? |
2006 |
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Name two vineyards in Rattlesnake Hills AVA. Why don't they label as such? |
Andrew Will's Two Blondes Vineyard Côte Bonneville's DuBrul Vineyard There was a lot of local opposition to the Rattlesnake Hills AVA (likely because it dilutes the Yakima Valley brand), so they label as Yakima Valley AVA. |
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Describe the Rattlesnake Hills AVA |
The region fans out North of Zillah and the Yakima River in the Yakima Valley. It is larger than both Red Mountain and Snipes Mountain AVAs. Vineyards start around 850ft and climb to 1600ft like on Snipes or Red Mountain. Slightly cooler than Red Mountain or the Southern slope of Snipes so focus is on white varieties. |
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What is the easternmost of Columbia Valley's nested AVAs? |
Walla Walla Valley AVA |
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What portion of Walla Walla's vineyards lie in Oregon? |
One Third |
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Are the following areas also towns of the same name? Walla Walla Yakima Wahluke |
Walla Walla: Yes Yakima: Yes Wahluke: No, the only population center along this slope is Mattawa, Washington, a small town of several thousand people |
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What is the origin of "Walla Walla"? |
"Many Rivers" in a local native tongue |
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Walla Walla Valley lies to the east of the confluence of what three rivers? |
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Where are Mill Creek? |
Unofficial but potentially future subzone of Walla Walla Valley further east towards Blue Mountains. Rainfall increases significantly as you move eastward as another sort of rainshadow is formed. North Fork of Walla Walla Valley is another potential subzone. |
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What is the mountain range that lies immediately east of Walla Walla Valley? How do they affect winemaking here? |
Blue Mountains, they offer elevation and protection from frost and freeze pressures like the rest of Washington. However, they also serve as a rain backdrop/shadow and you gain 1 inch of annual rainfall for every mile you go eastward. |
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With the exception of The Rocks at Milton-Freewater AVA in Walla Walla Valley, what are the soils like? |
Almost uniformly windblown loess. Though a fertile soil, this isn't a problem because annual rainfall is so low it reduces vigor. |
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Who was the first person to plant in Walla Walla Valley? |
Gary Figgins for Leonetti winery in 1974, then the winery was founded in 1977 |
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When was Walla Walla Valley AVA founded? |
1984, WA's second AVA |
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Who are the "Founding Fathers" of viticulture in Washington state? |
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What Washington wine region is located in Umatilla County in Oregon? |
The Rocks at Milton-Freewater AVA |
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What year did The Rocks at Milton-Freewater AVA receive its status? |
Early 2015 |
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Give two famous wineries founded in the 1990s in Walla Walla Valley? |
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Name important, quality wineries founded in the early 21st century in Walla Walla Valley. |
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Where is Pepper Bridge Vineyard? |
Walla Walla Valley AVA 200 acre site on the valley floor |
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Where is Seven Hills Vineyard? |
Walla Walla Valley AVA 235 acre site overlooking The Rocks in Oregon |
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What other crops are competitive with grapes in Walla Walla Valley? |
Particularly wheat, but also sweet onions, asparagus, and garbanzo beans |
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What is Sevein? |
Walla Walla Valley's largest new development Currently developing 2,000 continuous acres of vines in the Oregon part of WWV |
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What is VINEA? |
In 2004, a group of Walla Walla wineries founded Vinea, the Winegrowers’ Sustainable Trust, an organization committed to promoting sustainability—if not wholly organic practices—amongst its members. Vinea provides guidelines and guideposts to move toward sustainable, environmentally friendly practices in the vineyard, and the organization collaborates with Oregon’s LIVE (Low Input Viticulture and Enology) to conduct certification. In turn, LIVE certification is accredited by the International Organization for Biological Control of Noxious Plants and Animals (IOBC), and its standards embrace those of Salmon-Safe, a group dedicated to the protection of Pacific Northwest watersheds. Over two-thirds of Walla Walla’s wine grape acreage is currently under the Vinea umbrella, if not yet actually certified. |
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What region borders Horse Heaven Hills AVA to the north? Where precisely is Horse Heaven Hills? |
Yakima Valley AVA Horse Heaven Hills AVA begins at the southern end of Yakima Valley and ends at the Columbia River. It runs Westward from the Wallula Gap halfway to the Columbia Gorge |
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Where is Tapteil Vineyard? |
Red Mountain |
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Where is Champoux Vineyard? |
Horse Heaven Hills, by far the most famous vineyard here, planted in 1972 and supplying fruit to Quilceda Creek and Andrew Will |
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Where is Alder Ridge vineyard? |
Horse Heaven Hills AVA fairly close to the river and downslope from Champoux and Phinny Hill |
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Where is Phinny Hill Vineyard? |
Horse Heaven Hills adjacent to Champoux vineyard |
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What Horse Heaven Hills vineyard site houses Chateau Ste Michelle's red winemaking facilities? |
Canoe Ridge Vineyard |
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What are the three largest AVAs in Washington based on land under vine? |
1. Columbia Valley AVA 2. Yakima Valley AVA 3. Horse Heaven Hills AVA |
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What wine region of Washington is defined by the Saddle Mountains to the North? |
Wahluke Slope AVA |
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What is the driest AVA in all of Washington? |
Wahluke Slope |
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What was the first commercial vineyard of Wahluke Slope? |
Weinbau Vineyard, planted in 1981 by Germany’s F.W. Langguth Erben, a company best known today for its “Blue Nun” brand. The company hoped to capitalize on the early interest in Washington Riesling, but sold its shares in the vineyard not long after entry into the state. |
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Who owns Weinbau vineyard in Wahluke Slope today? |
Sagemoor vineyards as part of its four site portfolio of Dionysus, Bacchus, Sagemoor and Weinbau |
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Where is Milbrandt Vineyards? |
Founded in 1997 in Wahluke Slope and they now grow over 700 acres here of the 7,000 acres |
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Where is Ancient Lakes of Columbia Valley AVA? What is significant about it? |
AVA approved in 2012 Contains 1332 acres of vines North of Wahluke Slope but despite its proximity is much cooler because of 35 glacial lakes within the zone therefore the name and why they grow a lot of white varieties. Milbrandt is the largest farmer here, but they are a winery in Wahluke Slope. |
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What is the most planted variety in Ancient Lakes of Columbia Valley AVA? |
Riesling, due to the 35 glacial lakes running through this zone it is cooler than Wahluke Slope and grows white grapes |
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What is Columbia Valley's northernmost nested AVA? What is significant about it? |
Lake Chelan (2009) Located 75 miles North of Ancient Lakes The glacial Lake Chelan moderates sumertime highs and winter lows but it is cooler here and they are focusing on Riesling and Pinot Noir |
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Where is Naches Heights AVA? |
Just Northwest of Yakima Valley AVA. The least significant of the appellations East of the Cascades as it has less than 50 acres of vines |
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Syncline, Memaloos, and Analemma are located in what AVA? |
Columbia Gorge AVA |
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What is the climate like in Columbia Gorge AVA? |
Likely the coolest climate in both Washington and Oregon as cool winds rush through the gorge all summer long drying out the extensive rainfall this region receives as you move westward through the Cascade Range |
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Where is Underwood Mountain? |
Columbia Gorge AVA Home of the 75 acre Celilo Vineyard, one of the region's most promising fruit sources |
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What is the most planted grape variety in Columbia Gorge? |
Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, and Pinot Noir are impressive, but Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Gamay, Zinfandel, and others all show promise too. White grapes outnumber Red. |
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What region of both Washington and Idaho lies in the Bitterroot Mountains? |
Lewis and Clark AVA Which contains land in both Washington and Idaho, but 73% is in Idaho Currently farms only 83 acres A lot of Columbia Valley AVA was removed in order that the AVA was not overlapping. Thus it is the easternmost AVA in Washington. |
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What AVA lies at the confluence of the Snake and Clearwater Rivers? |
Lewis and Clark AVA |
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Within what AVA is Woodinville located? |
Puget Sound AVA A small town just northeast of Seattle—home to Chateau Ste. Michelle, Columbia Winery, and a growing bevy of tasting room outposts for wineries located in the more remote eastern reaches of the state |
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Where are the Frenchmen Hills? |
A region in Columbia Valley but not its own AVA where Novelty Hil/Januik own and cultivate the Stillwater Creek Vineyard, a 245 acre vineyard planted in 2000 that supplies a couple dozen WA wineries. This area is an anticline zone whose Northern border touches the Ancient Lakes of Columbia Valley AVA north of Wahluke Slope |
