Southern Oregon AVA
| Wine region | |
| Type | American Viticultural Area |
|---|---|
| Year established | 2004 |
| Country | United States |
| Part of | Oregon |
| Sub-regions | Applegate Valley AVA, Elkton Oregon AVA, Red Hill Douglas County AVA, Rogue Valley AVA, Umpqua Valley AVA |
| Growing season | 182 days |
| Climate region | Region II |
| Heat units | 2.508 GDD units |
| Precipitation (annual average) | 32–35 in (813–889 mm) |
| Soil conditions | Sedimentary rock over crushed, metamorphosed and modified rock formations |
| Total area | 2,001,430 acres (3,127 sq mi) |
| Size of planted vineyards | 3,000 acres (1,214 ha) |
| No. of vineyards | 120 |
| Grapes produced | Albarino, Bastardo, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Dolcetto, Grenache, Malbec, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Petite Sirah, Syrah, Tempranillo, Viognier |
| No. of wineries | 17 |
Southern Oregon is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Southern Oregon and, at the outset, encompassed two sub-appellations: the Rogue Valley AVA and the Umpqua Valley AVA. The wine appellation was established as the nation's 173rd and the state's tenth AVA on December 8, 2004 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), Treasury after reviewing the petition submitted in 2002 by H. Earl Jones, a winemaker, and Dr. Gregory V. Jones, an associate professor of geography, proposing a viticultural area spanning across portions of Douglas, Jackson and Josephine Counties in the state's southwestern region named "Southern Oregon."
Southern Oregon AVA is the union of the Umpqua Valley AVA and the Rogue Valley AVA, and all land suitable for grape cultivation within the Southern Oregon is also located in one of these smaller appellations. A small strip of connecting territory is included in the Southern Oregon AVA to make it a contiguous region, however, this strip passes through mountainous regions not suitable for viticulture. The AVA lies entirely within the southwest corner of the state, south of Eugene and west of the Cascade Mountains, and consists of the river valleys of the Rogue and Umpqua Rivers and their tributaries.
Southern Oregon was established to allow the two principal winegrowing regions in the southern part of the state to market themselves jointly. This creation of a "super-AVA" is a departure from the trend in the Willamette Valley AVA in northern Oregon establishing smaller AVAs specific to a particular locale's climate or soil conditions. The plant hardiness zone range is 7b to 9a.