Santa Cruz Mountains AVA

QUESTION: What does AVA mean?

ANSWER:     American Viticultural Area                        (a designated wine growing region) 

The Santa Cruz Mountains AVA was established in 1981, just prior to the establishment of the Napa Valley AVA.

It spans portions of three counties in California: Santa Clara, Santa Cruz and San Mateo - the region is bounded by the Santa Cruz Mountain range, from Half Moon Bay and Woodside in the north, to Mount Madonna and Watsonville in the south. 

The Santa Cruz Mountains has played a pivotal role in the history of winemaking in California, with roots going back over 100 years, and including legendary winemakers such as Paul Masson, Martin Ray, David Bennion & Paul Draper (Ridge), and David Bruce. The precedence set by these legendary figures (along with best and sustainable practices in the vineyards and wineries) can be tasted today in our world-class wines.

The Santa Cruz Mountains Appellation was among the first to be defined by its mountain topography.  Based on elevation, it largely follows the fog line along the coast, extending down to 800 feet (240 m) on the east (San Francisco Bay side) and 400 feet (120 m) on the west (Monterey Bay side), and encompasses the highest ridgetops at 3000+ elevation.  The mountainous terrain, the Pacific Ocean, and the nearby San Francisco Bay have wide-ranging effects on the appellation, creating myriad microclimates in the region - depending on the elevation of the land, on which side of the mountains are the vineyards, the effects of fog, sun exposure, soil type, etc.  The vineyards and wineries and the wines they produce reflect this mountain terrain, and their proximity to the ocean and the resulting maritime climate.   

The broad region is marked by diverse microclimates: warm on the eastern (inland) side where Zinfandel, Cabernet, and Merlot predominate; and on the coastal side and ridgetops, cooled by ocean breezes and fog, cooler climate varietals such as Pinot Noir & Chardonnay are grown. 

The Santa Cruz Mountains are largely the result of compressive uplift caused by a leftward bend of the San Andreas Fault. The Salinian Block basement rocks are overlain by Miocene rock strata of the Lompico Sandstone, the Vaqueros Sandstone and the Santa Margarita Formation.  Soils are varied (decomposed rock, clay, loam, limestone); an abundant mineral content often releases a fresh, mineral character to the wines.    The San Andreas Fault runs along or near the ridge line throughout the range. The interior east side of the mountains drops abruptly towards this fault line, especially near the towns of Woodside and Saratoga. 

See also "Terroir".

The appellation encompasses approximately 480,000 acres, some 60 miles as the crow flies and 100 miles to drive. Within this area are now some 60+ wineries and over 200 small vineyards growing approximately 1500 acres of winegrapes, divided about ¼ evenly among Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, and ‘other’ varietals (most notably Merlot and Zinfandel). A single vineyard in some appellations has as much if not more acreage as we have in the Santa Cruz Mountains entire appellation! Our winegrapes are rare and in demand.

Santa Cruz Mountains' AVA's subregions are: 

• Skyline
• Saratoga/Los Gatos
• Summit
• Coastal Foothills (above Santa Cruz)
• Ben Lomond Mountain
• Corralitos/Pleasant Valley

The region’s vineyards actively support sustainable winegrape growing. Winegrowers have used best vineyard and sustainable practices, including cover crops, erosion control, canopy management, for decades. Since the first sustainable workshops in 2004 the region has seen an increase in the adoption of sustainable vineyard practices. Some have adopted alternative energy such as solar and biodiesel. Several vineyards grow organically, and a couple are certified organic by the CCOF.

Santa Cruz Mountains wines reflect our special mountain terroir and, notwithstanding the different varietals and winemakers, typically are known for their minerality and balanced acidity, their complex flavors and long finish, and their ability to age. The result is wine that pairs particularly well with complementary foods, and age worthy wine that matures and improves in the bottle.

Two wineries from the Santa Cruz Mountains region participated in the 1976 Judgment of Paris wine tasting with the 1971 Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon placing 5th in the red wine tasting and the 1973 David Bruce Winery Chardonnay placing 10th in the white wine tasting .

History:

The Santa Cruz Mountains have been recognized as a premium wine producing region since the Mission at Santa Cruz planted it’s first vineyards between 1804 and 1807, in what is now Harvey West Park. Between 1850 and 1880, loggers stripped 18 million board feet of redwood leaving large cleared areas what were well-suited to orchards and vineyards. In 1853, John Burns planted the first commercial vines in the county, calling his mountain “Ben Lomond” (Mount Lomond), after an old wine district of Scotland. At about the same time, John and George Jarvis established a winery above Scotts Valley that they called “Vine Hill”. Burns and the Jarvis’ became the premium winemakers in the county, with many wineries springing up after two local vintners won international acclaim in 1884.

There were many wineries on the summit in the late 1800’s. Lyman Burrell established a winery in 1854 and there were vineyards all along the Summit Ridge, as well as in Austrian Gulch. There was one prominent winery on the Highland Ridge which was created by a German florist named Emil Meyer. He called his winery “Mare Vista”, and he owned the area’s first resistant root stocks, which avoided the root-louse infestation that crippled other grape growers in the region. His winery survived prohibition, but later closed in 1939 when his son died. None of the other original wineries survived prohibition, but several new wineries sprang up in the 1940’s. There are also many private vineyards which I affectionately call "vanity vineyards", owned by wealthy homeowners with plantable acreage in Woodside, Portola Valley, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos & Saratoga.  Many of these private vineyards, surrounding the owner’s home, sell their grapes to one of the local SCM wineries, &/or they bottle some for their own personal use. 

How to get there:

For much of the San Francisco Peninsula, State Route 35 (SR 35) runs along the ridge, and is known as "Skyline Boulevard", while Interstate 280 runs east of the ridges. The major routes across the mountains are (from north to south): SR 92 from Half Moon Bay to San Mateo, SR 84 from San Gregorio to Redwood City, SR 9 from Santa Cruz to Saratoga, SR 17 from Santa Cruz to Los Gatos, SR 152 from Watsonville to Gilroy, SR 129 from Watsonville to San Juan Bautista, and US Highway 101 from Salinas to Gilroy. Meanwhile, SR 1 runs parallel to the mountains from Daly City to Castroville while SR 85 runs parallel from Cupertino to San Jose.

Sources:  Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrowers Association & Wikipedia