Columbia Gorge AVA

York Hill Vineyard is in the Columbia Gorge AVA which is characterized by its beauty and dramatic landscapes. Located just 60 miles east of Portland/Vancouver, this wine grape-growing region is defined by the Columbia River Gorge, a narrow passage that marks the dramatic transition from eastern desert to cool maritime climate as the Columbia River cuts through the Cascade Mountain Range on its way to the Pacific Ocean. Click the map to learn more about the AVA.

Within the compact area of the Columbia Gorge lays an extraordinary combination of climate, soil, and geology creating distinctly different "micro-climates" perfect for growing premium grapes of almost every variety.

Due to the significant gradations of climate and geography found in the Columbia Gorge, this AVA exhibits a wide range of terroir in a relatively small region.

 By definition, an AVA is a designated wine-grape-growing region in the United States with specific geographic or climatic features that distinguish it from the surrounding regions and affect how grapes are grown. The boundaries of AVAs are defined by the Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), a component of the United States Department of the Treasury. The TTB defines AVAs at the request of wineries and other petitioners. The Columbia Gorge AVA was federally approved in 2004.

An AVA allows winemakers to describe more accurately the origin of their wine while helping them to build and enhance the reputation and value of the wines they produce. AVAs also allow consumers to attribute a given quality, reputation, or other characteristics to a wine made from grapes grown in an AVA. AVAs also help consumers identify what they purchase.

Winemakers frequently want their consumers to know about the geographic pedigree of their wines, as wines from a particular area can possess distinctive characteristics. If a wine is labeled with an AVA, at least 85% of the grapes that make up the wine must have been grown in the AVA, and the wine must be fully finished within the state where the AVA is located.