The Wine Knows

It's official: Idaho has its first American Viticultural Area.

The Associated Press reported today that the Alcohol and Tobacco, Tax and Trade Bureau approved the 8,263-square-mile appellation.

Because the appellation also dips into Eastern Oregon, this also makes the Snake River Valley the 16th AVA in the Beaver State.

It will stretch across 12 counties in Idaho and two counties in Oregon. There are 15 wineries, 46 vineyards and 1,107 acres of vineyards in the AVA, which will become official April 7.

Most of the action in this appellation is west of Boise near the cities of Nampa and Caldwell. What makes this region fascinating is its high elevation, where vineyards sit 2,000-3,000 feet above sea level. The warm summer days and cool evenings ensure ripe fruit with amazing acidity. Currently, the region is best known for white wines, though classic Bordeaux and Rhone varieties are successfully being made by such wineries as Ste. Chapelle, Sawtooth, Hells Canyon, Koenig and others.

Ste. Chapelle, owned by Constellation Brands, is by far the state's largest winery at about 150,000 cases.

Read more about this on Wine Press Northwest.