Appellation

Welcome to Vine to Wine, I’m your host Linda Moran. A wine’s appellation is its place of origin, and its badge of authenticity. Join me today as we explore the meaning of appellation.

Printed somewhere on a wine’s label you may notice a reference to where the grapes were grown. For example; a specific valley such as Willamette Valley in Oregon, Napa Valley in California, Columbia Valley in Washington. Ideally that location identifies a place where the land has attributes which result in the production of grapes with some distinctive characteristics. These identifiable areas can be large or quite small and they are known as the appellation. Among other things an appellation can be identified by attributes such as soil type and structure, sunshine, rainfall and elevation, even wind. If a particular place is well suited to grape growing, and if it is done well, the place begins to produce wines of notoriety. After a time the place is identified and the lines are drawn. With a good deal of legal validation the process is completed and an appellation is born. Then the question of who is entitled to use the name of the area or appellation to identify their product becomes an important financial matter. The importance of this identification can not be under estimated. It gives the wine an authenticity and gives it a pedigree over any other beverage. Look for the appellation on your next bottle of wine. And thank you for joining me on today’s Vine to Wine.