AVAs for Solano County

Solano County (County Appellation)

Solano County itself is recognized by the TTB as a "...separate county that does not specifically include the following AVAs." The proposed project would fall into this category, unless another petition was made to create an AVA in that specific area. This would be a far reaching goal, creating more value to the vineyard.

Though its 2,000 acres of grapes do not make much of a splash in the California wine pool, and the places where grapes are grown lie mostly at the fringes of the county rather than at its heart, Solano County nonetheless can claim three separate and distinct Viticultural Areas within its borders. Solano´s Green Valley and Suisun Valley areas lie on the western edge of the county, near the eastern borders of Napa County, while the Clarksburg appellation sits astride the Delta area at Solano County´s easternmosst boundaries, where it runs into Yolo and San Joaquin counties.

There are about 700 acres of Chardonnay and 350 acres each of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

The current trend for higher returns in Solano County favors smaller specialty crop varietals. These may be planted speculatively by the vineyard owner, or under special contract with wineries called 'forward contracting'. Forward contracting reduces the price and income volatility over time, thus reducing producers' risk exposure. That enables more producers to accept the risks inherent in high-value commodity production.  

Solano County Green Valley (AVA)

Solano County Green Valley AVA was included in the 1983 formation of the North Coast AVA, combining Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino counties, together with Suisun Valley and Green Valley (with elements of Lake and Marin Counties) into one overarching ultra premium growing region, now recognized world-wide.

Green Valley's 1982 Appellation Petition

 ATF has received a petition from Mr. Ben A. Volkhardt, president of the West Solano County Grape Growers Association, proposing an area in Solano County, California, as a viticultural area to be known as "Green Valley." The proposed area is located in the southwestern portion of the county adjacent to the Napa County line and west of Suisun Valley. Green Valley lies within the southern end of two ranges of the Coast Range, the Vaca Mountains on the east and the Mount George Range on the west. The valley terminates in the south at the marshlands of Suisun Bay.

Geographical/Viticultural Features

The petitioner claims that the proposed viticultural area is distinguished from surrounding areas by climatic variances and by the soil. The petitioner bases these claims on the following:

• The Green Valley grape area lies within the Coastal area climate and is characterized by cool, moist winds blowing inland from the ocean and bay almost continuously from May through early Fall.
• The climate in Green Valley is mid-region III as classified by the University of California at Davis system of heat summation by degree-days.
• The season totals for degree-days above 50 degrees Fahrenheit for Green Valley were 3,683.9 in 1973 and 3,498.2 in 1974. In comparison, the season totals for upper Suisan Valley were 3,768.4 in 1973 and 3,700.5 in 1974. In mid-Suisun Valley the season totals were 3,460.4 in 1973 and 3,256.3 in 1974. Suisun Valley lies directly east of Green Valley.
• Due to Green Valley's proximity to the Pacific Ocean, fog is very prevalent in the valley during the months of May, June, July and August. In contrast, fog hardly ever penetrates into the nearby Suisun Valley or into the Vacaville-Dixon area which lies to the east of Suisun Valley.
• The soil in Green Valley consists of Conejo clay loam.
• The watershed in Green Valley drains southward into the Suisun Bay. In the Vacaville-Dixon area, the watershed drains eastward into the Sacramento River.

Historical Background

According to information provided by the petitioner, Green Valley is a small valley approximately one mile wide and four miles long. Grapes have been grown commercially in the valley since the late 1800's. As early as 1909, over 2,000 acres were recorded by the Bureau of the Census. Since that time, a small but stable wine grape acreage has been continuously maintained. Currently, about 400 acres of grapes are under *1150 cultivation within the proposed area. Also, a winery is scheduled to begin operations within the area in the near future.

The principal varieties of grapes grown in Solano County in decreasing order of acreage are: Gamay, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignane, Zinfandel, French Columbard, Chenin Blanc, Early Burgundy, Gamay Beaujolais, and Gray Riesling.

The petition claims that grapes from western Solano County have been well received by Napa-Solano vintners, and growers have experienced no difficulty in meeting the minimum acid and sugar requirements for north-coast grapes.

Proposed Boundaries

The boundaries of the proposed Green Valley viticultural area may be found on two U.S.G.S. 7.5 minute quadrangle maps ("Mt. George Quadrangle, California", and "Cordelia Quadrangle, California"). The specific description of the boundaries of the proposed viticultural area is found in the proposed regulations.

Suisin Valley AVA

Benefiting from a Mediterranean climate, properly fertile soils and significant marine air influences during summer months, Suisun Valley growers have incorporated new trellising systems with changes in varietal and clone selections, to continue quality enhancement in wine grape production.

Twenty varieties are grown in the confines of the Suisun Valley: Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Gamay, Grenache, Merlot, Mouvedre, Muscat Canelli, Petite Sirah, Petite Verdot, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Primitivo, Rousanne, Sauvignon Blanc, Sangiovese, Shiraz, Viognier, White Riesling,and Zinfandel.

In 1982, growers of the Western Solano County Grape Growers Association successfully petitioned the BATF, and received formal designation of Suisun Valley as an identified AVA.

The 15,000 acre Suisun Valley AVA was subsequently included in the 1983 formation of the North Coast AVA, combining Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino counties, together with Suisun Valley and Green Valley (with elements of Lake and Marin Counties) into one overarching ultra premium growing region, now recognized world-wide.

Suisin Valley's 1982 Appellation Petition

ATF has received a petition from Mr. Ben A. Volkhardt, president of the West Solano County Grape Growers Association, proposing an area in Solano County, California, as a viticultural area to be known as "Suisun Valley." The proposed area is located in the southwestern portion of the county adjacent to the Napa County line and east of Green Valley. Suisun Valley lies within the southern end of two ranges of the Coast Range, the Vaca Mountains on the east and the Mount George Range on the west. The valley terminates in the south at the marshlands of Suisun Bay.

Geographical/Viticultural Features

The petitioner claims that the proposed viticultural area is distinguished from surrounding areas by climatic variances and by the soil.

The petitioner bases these claims on the following:

(a) The Suisun Valley grape area lies within the Coastal area climate and is characterized by cool, moist winds blowing inland from the ocean and bay almost continuously from May through early Fall.

(b) The climate in Suisun Valley is mid-region III as classified by the University of California at Davis system of heat summation by degree-days. Over a 14-year period, the University of California weather station in mid- Suisun Valley averaged an accumulation of 3,368 degree-days.

(c) The season totals for degree-days above 50 degrees Fahrenheit for upper Suisun Valley were 3,768.4 in 1973 and 3,700.5 in 1974. In mid-Suisun Valley the season totals were 3,460.4 in 1973 and 3,256.3 in 1974. In comparison, the season totals for Green Valley, which lies directly west of Suisun Valley, were 3,683.9 in 1973 and 3,498.2 in 1974.

(d) Fog hardly ever penetrates into the Suisun Valley due to its distance from the Pacific Ocean. In contrast, fog is very prevalent in Green Valley due to its proximity to the ocean.

(e) The soils in Suisun Valley consist of Brentwood clay loam, Sycamore silty clay loam, San Ysidro sandy loam and Rincon clay loam.

(f) The watershed in Suisun Valley drains southward into the Suisun Bay. In the Vacaville-Dixon area, which lies to the east of Suisun Valley, the watershed drains eastward in to the Sacramento River.

Historical Background

According to information provided by the petitioner, Suisun Valley is approximately three miles wide and eight miles long. Grapes have been grown commercially in Solona County since the late 1800's. As early as 1909, over 2,000 acres were recorded by the *1154 Bureau of the Census. Since that time, a small but stable wine grape acreage has been continuously maintained. Currently, about 800 acres of grapes are under cultivation within the proposed area. Also, two wineries are operating within the area.

The principal varieties of grapes grown in Solano County in decreasing order of acreage are: Gamay, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignane, Zinfandel, French Columbard, Chenin Blanc, Early Burgundy, Gamay Beaujolais, and Gray Riesling. The petitioner claims that grapes from western Solano Conty have been well received by Napa-Solano County vintners, and growers have experienced no difficulty in meeting the minimum acid and sugar requrements for north-coast grapes.

Proposed Boundaries

The boundaries of the proposed Suisun Valley viticultural area may be found on four U.S.G.S. 7.5 minute quadrangle maps ("Mt. George Quadrangle, California", "Fairfield North Quadrangle, California", "Fairfield South Quadrangle, California", and "Cordelia Quadrangle, California"). The specific description of the boundaries of the proposed viticultural area is found in the proposed regulations.

Clarksburg AVA

The Clarksburg appellation – which enfolds 64,640 acres of rich farmland spanning Sacramento, Solano and Yolo counties – is blessed with many graces. Sixteen miles long and eight miles wide, it has over 9,000 acres of vines. With poorly-drained clay and loam soils, this appellation combines arid conditions with a nutrient-rich base. Summer days are warm here, but in late afternoon cool breezes from San Francisco Bay roll into the Sacramento River Delta, preserving acidity in the ripening fruit. The air mass keeps the Clarksburg AVA an average of nine degrees cooler than neighboring Sacramento.

More than twenty wine grape varietals thrive in the AVA.

So why is this very large and very productive appellation so little known? Alas, best results in this terroir are achieved by Chenin Blanc and Petite Sirah... read: not Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. While the Clarksburg appellation produces 40,000 tons of grapes annually, 90% of it is crushed outside the appellation. Several wineries are now producing under the AVA name, which may signal much deserved future recognition.

Wild Horse Valley AVA

You'll almost never find the Wild Horse Valley on a tourist map to Wine Country. There's nary a mention of the Napa Valley's smallest and most obscure appellation in the wine books. In fact, there is hardly any wine made from grapes from this most mysterious of wine regions. Adding to the mystique, the AVA's only as-yet-to-be built winery has its vineyard in Solano County.