American Viticultural Area · OR
Willamette Valley
Willamette Valley is a federally-designated American Viticultural Area in OR, established in 1983. The map below shows its official TTB boundary alongside nearby AVAs.
The Willamette Valley boundary is highlighted. Nearby AVAs are rendered in gray — click any of them to view that AVA's page.
At a glance
Established
1983
State
OR
Climate
Cool maritime
Signature varietals
Boundary recorded in 27 CFR Part 9 · Source: TTB
Learn more about Willamette Valley
About the Willamette Valley AVA
Willamette Valley, designated 1983, is Oregon's largest and most important wine region. It is bounded on the west by the Coast Range, on the east by the Cascades, and stretches roughly 150 miles from the Columbia River south to the Calapooya Mountains. The climate is cool maritime — milder than the continental climate of Washington's Columbia Valley to the east, warmer than the coastal fog belt to the west — and the growing season is long but low in heat accumulation compared to most California regions.
Willamette Valley is the leading US producer of cool-climate Pinot Noir. Pinot Gris and Chardonnay are also widely planted. The AVA contains ten sub-AVAs (Dundee Hills, Yamhill-Carlton, McMinnville, Ribbon Ridge, Eola-Amity Hills, Chehalem Mountains, Van Duzer Corridor, Tualatin Hills, Laurelwood District, Lower Long Tom), each distinguished by some combination of soil type, elevation, and wind exposure. Several are notably small and tightly defined.
Nearby AVAs
Other American Viticultural Areas closest to Willamette Valley — useful when a vineyard sits inside more than one AVA at once.