Celebrate Texas Wine Month in Texas Vineyards
Texans are celebrating October as Texas Wine Month. The grape harvest is in and has an outstanding quality assessment. Texas’ vineyards are becoming better and better along with the recognition. Texas has eight American Viticultural Areas (AVA). These government-designated grape-growing regions are regulated by the Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) of the U. S. Treasury Department and is similar to designated grape growing regions in other parts of the world like Italy, Spain, and France. The sole purpose is to allow producers to specify where the majority of grapes used to make a given wine came from. Because AVAs only relate to the growing of wine grapes, the boundaries are intended to be agriculturally relevant, rather than arbitrary or political. These boundaries showcase growing conditions like soils, climate, terrain, etc. Texas’ current AVA’s include:
• Bell Mountain – Designated in 1986, it was the first established AVA in Texas, covering five square miles, about 15 miles north of Fredericksburg within the Texas Hill Country.
• Texas Hill Country -This AVA is the second largest certified Viticultural Area in the USA. Containing more than 9 million acres in the heart of Texas, it is no wonder that other more specific AVAs, such as Bell Mountain and Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country, have been identified as unique microclimates within this blanket AVA. The wines of this massive region, north of San Antonio and west of Austin, range from Bordeaux blends to Italian varietals, as well as cool-climate grapes and has over 200 wineries.
• Texas High Plains – The Texas High Plains is located west of Lubbock in the Panhandle at an elevation of 3,000–4,000 feet. The climate of this appellation is very dry, with cool nights in the Summer allowing the vitis vinifera to flourish. The Texas High Plains AVA encompasses over 8 million acres and grows over 80% of Texas’ wine grapes. This cold, semi-arid climate is ideal for growing vitis vinifera grapes.
• Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country – This viticulture area covers about 110 square miles and is located in the Texas Hill Country AVA.
• Texoma – Located in north-central Texas, this area contains approximately 3,650 square miles just south of the Texas-Oklahoma line.
• Texas Davis Mountains – This west Texas appellation is cool and wet at an elevation ranging from 4,500 to 8,300 feet.
• Escondido Valley – This appellation established in 1992 covers 50 square miles in Pecos County in far West Texas, located near Fort Stockton.
• Mesilla Valley – Located at the far western tip of the Texas border north and west of El Paso, this area is hot and dry with a long growing season. This general area has America’s first vineyard and winery being at a Spanish Mission called Mission Yselta.
Texas has six new AVA’s in the works with three going through government approvals with three more in the advanced planning stages. Those three areas being considered for approval by the Federal Government include:
• Llano Uplift – The Llano Uplift is proposed to cover 1.3 million acres near the center of the Texas Hill Country AVA. This area is predominantly granite and is surrounded by limestone outcroppings in the Texas Hill Country AVA.
• Hickory Sands – This proposed AVA is located in the proposed Llano Uplift AVA within the Texas Hill Country AVA. This area contains elevations above 1500 above sea level with decomposed granite and sandstone gravels.
• Dell Valley – This proposed West Texas AVA is centered on 150 acres of the Dell Valley Vineyards.
The addition of these three proposed American Viticultural Areas to the eight that Texas currently has will add distinction, prestige, and recognition to the Texas grape-growing industry. It is time to raise a glass of Texas Wine to celebrate!