Clear Lake AVA

Clear Lake
Wine region
Type	American Viticultural Area
Year established	1984; 2022 Amend
Years of wine industry	156
Country	United States
Part of	California, North Coast AVA, Lake County
Other regions in California, North Coast AVA, Lake County	Benmore Valley AVA, Guenoc Valley AVA, Long Valley-Lake County AVA
Sub-regions	Big Valley District-Lake County AVA, High Valley AVA, Kelsey Bench-Lake County AVA, Red Hills Lake County AVA, Upper Lake Valley AVA
Growing season	223 days
Climate region	Region II-III
Heat units	2,930–3,260 GDD
Precipitation (annual average)	37 inches (940 mm)
Soil conditions	Bright-red, iron-rich volcanic, cinder ash and silt blends, uniform sandy and clay loam and alluvial
Total area	168,980 acres (264 sq mi)
Size of planted vineyards	9,000+ acres (3,600+ ha)
No. of vineyards	16
Grapes produced	Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Grenache, Malbec, Merlot, Muscat Canelli, Petite Sirah, Pinot gris, Riesling, Sangiovese, Sauvignon blanc, Semillon, Syrah/Shiraz, Tempranillo/Valdepenas, Viognier
No. of wineries	13

Clear Lake is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located entirely within Lake County centered around the largest natural fresh water lake within the boundaries of California and identifies the principal inhabited region of Lake County. The area was established as the nation's 64^th, the state's 39^th and the county's third appellation on June 7, 1984 by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Treasury after reviewing the petition submitted by three of the grape-growers and winery owners located in an area surrounding the watershed of Clear Lake in southwestern Lake County proposing the viticultural area named "Clear Lake."
The viticultural area lies between the Mayacamas Mountains to the southwest and the Mendocino National Forest to the northeast. It extends to the southeast just north of the Guenoc Valley viticultural area also in Lake County. Clear Lake viticultural area was later placed entirely within the boundaries of the multi-county North Coast viticultural area. Half of viticultural area contains Clear Lake, the largest body of freshwater, 70.5 square miles (183 km²), in the state and the namesake for the county and town. Localities also use the name "Clear Lake" in their heritage as Clearlake Oaks, Clearlake Park, Clearlake Highlands and Clear Lake State Park. United States Geographical Survey maps document this information. For over a century the Clear Lake region has been a popular resort and agricultural center.
The moderating influence of the lake on the surrounding area results in a climate with less diurnal variation in temperature than surrounding areas where elevations range from 1,300 feet (400 m) to well over 3,000 feet (910 m). Clear Lake AVA has one of the coolest climates in California, which has led to success with grape varietals like Sauvignon Blanc. The plant hardiness zone ranges from 8b to 9b.