Two kinds of “local”
When people say a wine is local, they might mean the winery is nearby, or that the grapes grew nearby. Those are different things. Grapes are an agricultural crop, and some places grow them more easily than others. Urban wineries often bring in fruit from established growing regions, then ferment, age and bottle it close to the people who will drink it. That is a legitimate, and often very good, way to make wine. The point is simply to describe it accurately.
In the Craft & Cork Guide, every wine profile separates where it is made from where the fruit comes from, so you always know which kind of local you are looking at.
What an AVA on the label tells you
An American Viticultural Area is a grape-growing region defined by the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) based on features like climate, soil and elevation. Examples include Napa Valley, the Willamette Valley, the Texas High Plains and the Upper Mississippi River Valley. When a label names an AVA, federal rules generally require at least 85 percent of the grapes to come from that area.
State and county names
A label that names only a state, such as “Illinois” or “Colorado,” generally means at least 75 percent of the grapes were grown in that state (some states set stricter rules). A label that says “American” wine can blend grapes from several states. None of these labels tells you how good the wine is. They tell you where the fruit came from.
What “estate bottled” means
“Estate bottled” is a regulated term in the U.S. It generally means the winery grew all the grapes on land it owns or controls, in the same viticultural area where the winery is located, and that it crushed, fermented, finished, aged and bottled the wine without the wine leaving the premises. By contrast, phrases like “estate grown” or “vineyard designate” may be used more loosely, so look for the details on the producer’s site.
Questions worth asking in a tasting room
- Where were the grapes for this wine grown?
- Do you grow any of your own fruit?
- What made you choose this vineyard or region?
Winemakers are usually glad to answer. The story of where fruit comes from often explains why a wine tastes the way it does.
Questions people ask
Is a wine made from out-of-state grapes still a “local” wine?
It is a locally made wine. Whether you call it local depends on what you value. The Guide describes both facts so you can decide.
Do the same rules apply to beer?
Beer labels do not have an equivalent to AVAs. Breweries often name hop or grain sources when they matter to the beer, and the Guide records those details where producers share them.
Where can I check what an AVA covers?
The TTB publishes the official list and boundaries of approved AVAs on its website.