Lodi is an
American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in the
Central Valley of
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, at the northern edge of the
San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley ( ; Spanish language in California, Spanish: ''Valle de San Joaquín'') is the southern half of California's Central Valley (California), Central Valley. Famed as a major breadbasket, the San Joaquin Valley is an importa ...
, within portions of
Sacramento
Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...
and
San Joaquin Counties, east of
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay (Chochenyo language, Chochenyo: 'ommu) is a large tidal estuary in the United States, U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the cities of San Francisco, California, San ...
. It was established as a designated
wine growing
Viticulture (, "vine-growing"), viniculture (, "wine-growing"), or winegrowing is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ...
appellation
An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication used to identify where the ingredients of a food or beverage originated, most often used for the origin of wine grapes. Restrictions other than geographical boundaries, s ...
on February 13, 1986 by the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF),
Treasury
A treasury is either
*A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry; in a business context, corporate treasury.
*A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be ...
after reviewing the petition submitted by the Lodi District Vintners Association to establish a viticultural area named "Lodi."
The viticultural area originally was of which were cultivated with
wine grape
A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters.
The cultivation of grapes began approximately 8,0 ...
s.
In 2002, the area was expanded by , with cultivated, in the western area and in the southern portion by , cultivation, of the original AVA boundaries in San Joaquin County.
The appellation lies in southern Sacramento County and northern San Joaquin County. Its western border is outlined by
Interstate Highway 5 and the eastern border is adjacent to
El Dorado
El Dorado () is a mythical city of gold supposedly located somewhere in South America. The king of this city was said to be so rich that he would cover himself from head to foot in gold dust – either daily or on certain ceremonial occasions � ...
,
Amador and
Calaveras counties.
On July 16, 2006, the
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), Treasury established seven new viticultural areas within the boundary of Lodi viticultural area. The seven new AVAs are Alta Mesa, Borden Ranch, Clements Hills, Cosumnes River, Jahant, Mokelumne River and Sloughhouse. TTB designates viticultural areas to allow vintners to better describe the origin of their wines and to allow consumers to better identify wines they may purchase.
History
The Lodi region has been home to grape growing since at least the 1850s when wild grapes would grow down from trees along the edge of rivers. This led some trappers to call the
Calaveras River
Lead
The Calaveras River is a river in the San Joaquin Valley of California.
It flows roughly southwest for from the confluence of its north and south forks in Calaveras County to its confluence with the San Joaquin River in the city of St ...
, which runs through the southern portion of the area, "Wine Creek."
The farms run by multi-generational families were producing 20% of the
wine in California in 2024.
Grapes and wines
Although the appellation is probably best known for its
old vine
Old vine (, ), a common description on wine labels, indicates that a wine is the product of grape vines that are notably old. There is a general belief that older vines, when properly handled, will give a better wine. There is no legal or genera ...
Zinfandel
Zinfandel (also known as Primitivo) is a variety of black-skinned wine grape. The variety is grown in over 10 percent of California vineyards. DNA analysis has revealed that it is genetically equivalent to the Croatian grapes Crljenak Kašt ...
, Lodi also produces a large quantity of
Merlot
Merlot ( ) is a dark-blue-colored wine grape variety that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of , the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the color ...
,
Chardonnay
Chardonnay (, ; ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand. For new a ...
,
Cabernet Sauvignon
Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebano ...
, and
Sauvignon blanc
Sauvignon blanc () is a green-skinned grape variety that originates from the city of Bordeaux in France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French words ''sauvage'' ("wild") and ''blanc'' ("white") due to its early origins as an ind ...
.
References
External links
Lodi Winegrape CommissionTTB AVA Map
American Viticultural Areas of Sacramento County, California
American Viticultural Areas of San Joaquin County, California
1986 establishments in California
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