Napa Valley AVA

Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Napa County, California. It was established as the nation's second, the state and county's initial appellation on January 28, 1981 by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Treasury after reviewing the 1978 petition submitted by the Napa Valley Vintners and the Napa Valley Grape Growers Association proposing the viticultural area named "Napa Valley."
The appellation is internationally renown as one of the world's premier wine regions and includes all of Napa County except the portion northeast of Putah Creek and Lake Berryessa. Napa's viticulture history dates back to the nineteenth century, and its modern premium wine production reemerged in the 1960s. The combination of Mediterranean climate, geography, and geology of the region is conducive to growing quality wine grapes.
George C. Yount was the first vineyardist on record in Napa Valley, planting his vines in 1838. John Patchett established the Napa Valley's first commercial vineyard in 1858. In 1861, Charles Krug established another of Napa Valley's first commercial wineries in St. Helena. By 1880, its first great period of prominence, the Napa Valley had 443 vineyards with a thousand or more vines each. Of these major holdings, 72 were in the Calistoga district, 126 were in Napa City, and 245 were in the St. Helena area. Viticulture in Napa suffered several setbacks in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including an outbreak of the vine disease phylloxera, national enactment of Prohibition, and the Great Depression. The modern wine industry in Napa Valley gradually recovered, gaining immediate recognition at the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976 where Napa Valley vintages scored top honors against premier French wines. Napa Valley is now a major international enotourism destination. The USDA plant hardiness zones range is 9a to 10a.