New AVA Law Preserves Paso Robles

Posted by Alan Boehmer Oct 21, 2007

AVAs (Designated American Viticultural Areas) are created by the federal government to provide consumers with dependable information regarding a wine's origin. There are large appellations like Columbia Valley, that include hundreds of square miles of acreage; and tiny ones like York Mountain, that relate to one or two small vineyards in a unique location.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) manages the creation of designated AVAs. But they have put everything on hold when it comes down to the creation of new AVAs. It's become too confusing for the consumer. It was easier when a wine declared it was from Napa Valley, then if it said Spring Mountain, or Stags Leap District, or Oakville. Consequently, the ATF has suspended the creation of sub-appellations within existing larger ones, at least for the time being.So now the State of California has stepped in to offer a compromise at least in the two large districts of Napa Valley and Paso Robles. New legislation has been signed into law that requires wine labels to carry a principal appellation of Napa Valley or Paso Robles, regardless of any sub-appellations that may apply. Those may also be listed in smaller type.

This legislation is intended to preserve the fundamental identity of both Napa Valley and Paso Robles wines. For more specific information on the Paso Robles AVA, see our recent article on Paso Robles Wine Touring.