216:." However, the Mendocino Ridge AVA designation is unique in that it is limited by elevation, reserved only for vineyards at or above 1200 feet. This means Mendocino Ridge is the only non-contiguous AVA in the United States. The Mendocino Ridge AVA has been nicknamed "Islands in the Sky," because the thick fog moving inland from the Pacific Ocean blankets the coast and the valleys between the ridge tops, making the tops of the mountains, where the vinyards lay, look like islands protruding from a sea of fog. The Mendocino Ridge AVA lands are above the Anderson Valley and Mendocino
220:. The Mendocino Ridge viticultural area boundary encompasses 262,400 acres (410 square miles, 36 miles long from north to south), but the actual viticultural area contains only 87,466 acres. Of these, approximately 1,500 to 2,000 acres (2% of the total acreage) are suitable for vineyards. The local hillsides are very steep (often above 70%) and covered with timber, making them unfit for planting. Estimates of planted acres range from 233 to 410, which accounts for about 0.3% of the total area.
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The average high temperature is 75.9 °F and the average low temperature is 49.4 °F. The diurnal variation during the growing season is significantly less than the
Anderson Valley (20 degrees versus 40-50 degrees in Anderson Valley), and daytime high temperatures are often 10 degrees cooler
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While
Mendocino Ridge was only approved as an AVA in 1997, it has some of the oldest vineyards in the region. Italian immigrants in the late 1800s planted on Greenwood Ridge and surrounding areas, preferring zinfandel which remains a popular varietal in the AVA, although pinot noir has become the
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most common grape in the region since the 1990s. Other plantings (ordered by decreasing representation in total acres) include
Chardonnay, Syrah, Merlot, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Primitivo, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Grüner Veltliner. Much of the non-planted land is covered by
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than in the
Anderson Valley. The soil composition is of the "timber" type, shallow and with good drainage due to the ridge top locations. Average annual rainfall average is 58 inches, leaving sufficient groundwater to dry farm vineyards.
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as the northern boundary and
Anderson Valley as the inland boundary running northwest–southeast. The Mendocino Ridge AVA "is essentially a northern extension of the true
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257:(Title 27: Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; Part 9 — American Viticultural Areas; Subpart C — Approved American Viticultural Areas)
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204:. Roughly 36 miles of the southernmost portion of the Mendocino Coast make up the western boundary of the AVA, with the
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This article is about the wine-growing region in
California. For ridge on the floor of the Pacific Ocean, see
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466:, US Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, September 24, 1997
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436:"Mendocino Ridge: California's Best Kept Secret Source of Spectacular Wines"
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196:. The boundaries of the AVA encompass the coastal ridges adjacent to the
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351:"Mendocino Ridge: New Frontier for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay"
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289:"Mendocino Ridge (AVA): Appellation Description"
184:is a coastal, cool climate and high altitude
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188:located entirely within the coastal zone of
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327:"Mendocino Ridge AVA Map, Scale 1:68,000",
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486:"Mendocino Ridge AVA is Zinfandel Heaven"
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365:from the original on December 19, 2014
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349:Gaffney, Rusty (January 22, 2010).
208:line as the southern boundary, the
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527:1997 establishments in California
484:Stewart, Rhoda (16 April 2009).
434:Gaffney, Rusty (June 24, 2012).
214:Sonoma Coast viticultural area
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16:Wine region in California, USA
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414:"Mendocino Ridge Wine Region"
200:that reach inland toward the
113:262,400 acres (1,100 km)
261:Code of Federal Regulations
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385:"Mendocino Ridge Wineries"
186:American Viticultural Area
56:American Viticultural Area
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442:. Vol. 9, no. 8
118:Size of planted vineyards
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254:"§9.158 Mendocino Ridge"
19:Not to be confused with
389:AmericanWineryGuide.com
32:Mendocino Fracture Zone
295:. 2007. Archived from
121:237 acres (96 ha)
21:Mendocino County wine
490:Appellation America
420:. 19 December 2014.
293:Appellation America
182:Mendocino Ridge AVA
104:Anderson Valley AVA
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173:Grüner Veltliner
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90:Mendocino County
62:Year established
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202:Anderson Valley
153:Sauvignon Blanc
137:Grapes produced
94:North Coast AVA
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210:Navarro River
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25:Mendocino AVA
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500:December 19,
498:. Retrieved
494:the original
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470:December 18,
468:, retrieved
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446:December 19,
444:. Retrieved
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369:December 18,
367:. Retrieved
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301:. Retrieved
297:the original
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264:. Retrieved
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218:appellations
181:
179:
129:of vineyards
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303:January 21,
266:January 21,
234:Douglas Fir
100:Sub-regions
45:Wine region
516:Categories
440:Pinot File
240:References
194:California
157:Chardonnay
141:Pinot Noir
110:Total area
82:California
355:PinotFile
329:Everyvine
145:Zinfandel
395:16 March
363:Archived
169:Albariño
165:Riesling
236:trees.
230:Redwood
78:Part of
70:Country
331:, 2012
161:Merlot
391:. n.d
361:(9).
149:Syrah
502:2014
472:2014
448:2014
397:2020
371:2014
305:2008
268:2008
232:and
180:The
65:1997
52:Type
127:No.
23:or
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27:.
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