American Viticultural Area · CA
Monterey
Monterey is a federally-designated American Viticultural Area in CA, established in 1984. The map below shows its official TTB boundary alongside nearby AVAs.
The Monterey boundary is highlighted. Nearby AVAs are rendered in gray — click any of them to view that AVA's page.
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Established
1984
Size
~601,000
acres
State
CA
Climate
Cool maritime
Signature varietals
Boundary recorded in 27 CFR Part 9 · Source: TTB
About the Monterey AVA
Monterey, designated 1984, is a large AVA running down the Salinas Valley in Monterey County, on California's Central Coast. Its climate is dominated by the opening to Monterey Bay at the valley's northern end, which acts like a funnel: cool ocean air and fog are drawn inland every afternoon, making the northern reaches some of the coolest, windiest vineyard land in California. The valley warms steadily toward its drier southern end. Monterey lies within the larger Central Coast AVA and contains several smaller AVAs, including Santa Lucia Highlands, Arroyo Seco, and Chalone.
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are the leading varieties in the cooler north, where the long, mild growing season produces bright, aromatic wines, while warmer southern sites support Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Rhône varieties. Monterey is one of California's largest winegrape-growing counties by acreage, supplying fruit across a wide range of styles and price points.
Nearby AVAs
Other American Viticultural Areas closest to Monterey — useful when a vineyard sits inside more than one AVA at once.
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Free for wineries, regional associations, and wine-education sites — the interactive Monterey boundary map above, in a single iframe.
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Wineries that list on Crush appear as pins on the embedded map too. Want a custom framing or a white-label version? Get in touch.