Applegate Valley is one of the three sub-regions within the Rogue Valley in southern Oregon, and the only one to have achieved a separate AVA status. It extends approximately 50 miles (80km) north-west, from near the California state border to the Rogue River, just west of Grants Pass. The warm climate here makes it well suited to the production of bright, fruit-driven wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Zinfandel.
Applegate Valley surrounds the Applegate River, a tributary of the larger Rogue River that flows through the Rogue Valley on its way to the Pacific Ocean. The Applegate Valley AVA covers the land south of this river, extending up into the Siskiyou Mountains, and vineyards are found at elevations ranging between 1000ft and 2000ft (300-600m) above sea level.
This elevation, combined with the valley's warm, dry climate, differentiates the wines of Applegate Valley from the larger Rogue Valley. Vineyards planted on the slopes benefit from warm sunshine during the day, followed by cooler nights. This diurnal temperature variation slows ripening in the berries overnight, leading to the development of rich flavor at the same time as acidity.
Many of the vineyards in Applegate Valley are planted on river terraces and alluvial fans, where gravelly silt loam provides a free-draining base for the vines. These dry soils, largely granitic in origin, stress the vines, leading them to forgo leafy vegetation growth in favour of producing high-quality berries with a good concentration of sugars and acids. The wines, as a result, are rich and intense, with firm tannins.
Oregon’s first vineyard, Valley View, was planted here in the 1850s near the town of Jacksonville; a winery followed 20 years later. The original winery closed its doors in the Prohibition era. However, it was brought back to life in 1972 by Southern Oregon's modern-day wine pioneers, who championed the Bordeaux varieties and, more recently, Viognier, Syrah and Tempranillo. The region was granted AVA status in 2001, several years before the Willamette Valley's sub-AVAs of Dundee Hills and Eola-Amity Hills.
