Haw River Valley is an AVA in North Carolina, between the cities of Greensboro and Raleigh. Located along the banks of the Haw River in the Piedmont ('foot of the hills') region of the Appalachian Mountain chain, the AVA covers some 870 square miles (2250 square km) of hilly countryside. Both hybrid and Vitis vinifera grape varieties fare well in the Haw River Valley, and wines are produced from a range of grapes including Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Chardonnay and Traminette.
The Haw River Valley lies between the Atlantic coast and North Carolina's other sub-AVAs of Yadkin Valley and Swan Creek. The AVA encompasses the whole of Alamance County, with portions of the AVA spilling into neighboring counties. When the Haw River Valley AVA was delimited in 2009, there were approximately 60 acres of vineyards within the boundaries of the appellation.
The hills of Haw River Valley are geographically younger than those of the Yadkin Valley in the Blue Ridge mountain range. Formed by tectonic uplift and volcanic activity, the hills are the result of slow erosion over time. The varied soils in the area – mostly volcanic in origin – are made up of sand and loam, with low fertility and good drainage. This leads to deep root systems and lessens vigor, redirecting the vine's energy into the production of high-quality grapes.
The climate in the elevated Haw River Valley is transitional, being warmer than the areas to the north, but still cooler and wetter than the lower-lying areas to the south and east. The longer growing season in the AVA has meant that vinifera grape varieties are able to sufficiently ripen here, producing rounded, fruit-driven wines.
As in neighboring Yadkin Valley, a pre-Prohibition wine industry centered on the native Muscadine vine was curbed in 1920 when the 18th Amendment prohibited the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors nationwide. Vines in the Haw River Valley were ripped out in favor of tobacco and soybeans, which remained for much of the 21st Century. It has only been in the last few decades that winemaking has made a resurgence in the valley, and in the whole of North Carolina.
