Do Appellations Mean Anything Anymore?
With 288 U. S. Wine Growing Appellations at Last Count, What Does an AVA Show?
Jul 7, 2009
The rationale for the appellation system of identifying superior or distinctive winegrowing sites was handed down by the French. The French Appellation d’Origine system was introduced in 1935 and new appellations have been continually added. The latest, Bugey, was added in 2009, bringing the current count to 289. New appellations in the U. S. are pending. Most major wine producing countries follow a similar system of geographical identification for their wines and often other agricultural products.
The French Appellation System
The French system is far more restrictive than the American AVA (American Viticultural Area) system. It limits grape varieties and sets winemaking rules as well as geographical reference. And the reference is usually restricted to small designated areas, but not always. Large appellations include Anjou, Alsace, Beaujolais, Bordeaux, Bourgogne, Côtes-du-Rhône, and a handful of others. But more often the appellation is granted for a specific wine from a specifically designated and delimited area. Blanquette de Limoux, Crémant d’Alsace, Banyuls, Meursault, and Sauternes are examples of French appellations that require the wine to be of a specified type and alcohol level.
The American Appellation System
American appellations carry no restrictions at all other than a geographical reference. Like the French system, they are concentric. The smaller appellations, such as Chalk Hill AVA, usually represent a higher quality product than a larger appellation that contains it—in this case, Sonoma County. And a Sonoma County appellation will usually be preferred to an even larger appellation in which it is contained, such as North Coast, California, or the largest and most meaningless appellation of all—America.
What Appellations Can Tell Us
Appellations are intended to provide the consumer with information that should lead to a more refined expectation of what the bottle contains. For example, America’s newest appellation (July 2009), Upper Mississippi River Valley, includes portions of ten states. A defining characteristic of this entire region is its suitability for French-American hybrid grapes such as Marechal Foch, Chardonnel, Saint Croix, Edelweiss, and Vignoles. So if you’re looking for a fine Vignoles, you may prefer one from this new appellation than one from other regions where international varieties are widely grown. But again, the best products will come from the smaller appellations contained within the larger one. A Vignoles from Hermann (MO) AVA is to be preferred over one that carries only the larger Mississippi River Valley appellation.
The larger the appellation, the less specific and less meaningful the information it gives. Wines labelled only California convey almost no useful information at all except that the product is not entitled to a more restrictive designation. A Pinot Noir with a California appellation will almost always be strikingly inferior to one from the small Sta. Rita Hills AVA or Santa Lucia Highlands AVA.
A small appellation, however, is no guarantee of a wine’s distinctive character. The York Mountain AVA, one of America’s smallest, produces wine grapes that are difficult to distinguish from neighboring Paso Robles.
Every vineyard owner would like to think its grapes carry a distinction not shared by his neighbors and therefore entitled to a unique appellation. The TTB (Tax and Trade Bureau) which oversees the American appellation system has made the process of filing for appellation status costly, time consuming and difficult. It is unlikely that new appellations will be affordable for very small regions that may well deserve the distinction.
