Appellation of origin

An appellation of origin is a where on a wine label. TTB, citing 27 CFR 4.25: it can be a country; a U.S. state or foreign equivalent; up to three contiguous states; a U.S. county or foreign equivalent; up to three counties in the same state; or a government-recognized delimited grape-growing area — in the U.S., a viticultural area listed in 27 CFR part 9 ¹. Appellations are defined for wine. They are not a cellar method.

It is not Terroir. Terroir is an argument about climate, soil, and habit. An AVA answered a labeling rule.

Percentages are the rule #

For U.S. wine labeled with an American, state, or county appellation, not less than 75% of the volume must come from grapes (or other agricultural commodity) grown there, and the wine must be fully finished in that geography — with a state appellation allowed to finish in an adjacent state ¹. For an American viticultural area, not less than 85% of the volume must come from grapes grown in that AVA, and the wine must be fully finished in the state (or one of the states) where the AVA sits ¹. Multi-state and multi-county names have their own 100% and percentage-on-the-label rules.

Imported wine labeled with a foreign appellation must conform to the origin country’s composition, production, and designation laws for wine consumed there ¹.

What to notice #

A Napa Valley or Sonoma County AVA on a label is a grape geography under TTB, not a promise of a grape variety or a barrel. Vineyard is the planted place. Vintage is the year. Grape is the fruit. Return to Wine for the drink.