United States

The United States is the world's fourth-largest wine producer, with 2025 output estimated by the OIV at 20.0 mhl, 8.9 percent of world production. Its vineyard, the fifth largest in the world, is estimated at 415 kha in 2025. Wine is made commercially across the country, and the federal government organises place-of-origin labelling through American Viticultural Areas, or AVAs. Petitions to establish one go to the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), which decides what action to take on them. TTB records 280 established AVAs, of which California holds 154. California dominates the national picture. The Wine Institute reports United States wine production of 647,701,604 gallons in 2024, of which California accounted for 508,246,015 gallons, and states that California produces an average of 81 percent of total U.S. wine production. Beyond California, USDA NASS reported 67,000 bearing grape acres in Washington, 33,000 in New York and 32,000 in Oregon in 2025, and AVAs reach from Ulupalakua on Maui, Hawaii, to Southeastern New England on the Atlantic coast.

• 280 established AVAs nationwide, per TTB's listing last updated August 18, 2026
• California holds 154 AVAs, more than any other state
• OIV: 20.0 mhl produced in 2025, 5.3 percent below 2024
• OIV: 415 kha under vine in 2025, 5.9 percent of the world total

American wine geography is defined from the ground up rather than from a national map. Under 27 CFR 9.12, an AVA petition must describe the features that make a growing area distinctive, and the regulation lists climate (temperature, precipitation, wind, fog, solar orientation and radiation), geology, soils, physical features and elevation, given as minimum and maximum elevations. Physical features include flat, hilly or mountainous topography, geographical formations, bodies of water, watersheds and irrigation resources. A petition must also outline what is common within the proposed boundary and explain how those elements differ in adjacent areas outside it. The resulting map is continental in reach. Established AVAs run from Ulupalakua on Maui in Hawaii to Southeastern New England, which covers Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts and contains Martha's Vineyard, and from Sonoita in Arizona's Cochise, Pima and Santa Cruz counties to Champlain Valley of New York. Water bodies anchor several: Lake Erie spans New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania; Upper Mississippi River Valley takes in Illinois, Iowa and Minnesota; and Michigan's established AVAs include Lake Michigan Shore, Leelanau Peninsula and Old Mission Peninsula.

• 27 CFR 9.12 lists climate, geology, soils, physical features and elevation as distinguishing features affecting viticulture
• Elevation evidence is given as minimum and maximum elevations
• AVAs extend from Ulupalakua on Maui, Hawaii, to Southeastern New England
• Lake Erie AVA spans New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania

TTB defines an AVA as a specific type of appellation of origin used on wine labels, and as a delimited grape-growing region with specific geographic or climatic features that distinguish it from the surrounding regions and affect how grapes are grown. TTB states that using an AVA designation on a label allows vintners to describe more accurately the origin of their wines to consumers. Names and boundary descriptions for every established AVA sit in 27 CFR part 9; TTB notes that its own tables are for informational purposes only and that the official boundary description for each AVA is contained in part 9. The AVA sits inside a wider appellation framework in 27 CFR 4.25. An American appellation of origin may be the United States, a state, two or no more than three contiguous states, a county, two or no more than three counties in the same state, or a viticultural area. The origin thresholds differ: at least 75 percent of the wine must come from fruit grown in a state or county appellation area, while not less than 85 percent must come from grapes grown within the boundaries of a viticultural area. Where viticultural areas overlap, an appellation comprising more than one of them may be used if not less than 85 percent of the volume comes from grapes grown in the overlapping area. Establishment runs by petition rather than by decree. Any person may petition TTB to establish a new AVA, change a boundary, or change a name, and any individual or group may do so. The petition must show that the name is currently and directly associated with an area in which viticulture exists, with name evidence drawn from sources independent of the petitioner, and must set out the distinguishing features and boundary evidence.

• An AVA is a delimited grape-growing region distinguished by geographic or climatic features affecting how grapes are grown
• Viticultural area appellation: not less than 85 percent of the wine from grapes grown inside the boundary
• State or county appellation: at least 75 percent from fruit grown in that area
• Any person may petition TTB to establish an AVA or change its name or boundary
• Name evidence must come from sources independent of the petitioner

Wine is grown across the country, and the TTB listing groups AVAs by state, with a separate table for those that overlap two or more states. California is the largest single block by a wide margin, with 154 of the 280 established AVAs. The Pacific Northwest and interior West cover Washington, Oregon, Idaho and the Snake River Valley, along with Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas; Nevada and Montana carry no AVA in the TTB listing. The Midwest and Great Lakes take in Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Minnesota and Wisconsin. The Northeast and mid-Atlantic cover New York, New England, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. The Southeast covers North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and the Tennessee/Mississippi border country of the Mississippi Delta AVA, with South Carolina absent from the TTB listing. Several AVAs cross state lines, so the same vineyard belt can carry two state names.

• California: 154 established AVAs, the most of any state
• Pacific Northwest and interior West: Washington (Ancient Lakes of Columbia Valley, Beverly, Washington, Candy Mountain), Oregon (Applegate Valley, Chehalem Mountains, Dundee Hills, Elkton Oregon), Idaho (Eagle Foothills), the Snake River Valley AVA shared by Idaho and Oregon, plus Colorado (Grand Valley, West Elks), Arizona (Sonoita, Verde Valley, Willcox), New Mexico and Texas (Bell Mountain, Escondido Valley, Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country, Texas Davis Mountains, Texas High Plains); Nevada and Montana do not appear among the states listed with established AVAs
• Shared Northwest ground: Columbia Valley and Columbia Gorge span Oregon and Washington, and Lewis-Clark Valley spans Idaho and Washington
• Midwest and Great Lakes: Michigan (Fennville, Lake Michigan Shore, Leelanau Peninsula, Old Mission Peninsula, Tip of the Mitt), Ohio, Illinois (Shawnee Hills), Indiana (Indiana Uplands), Missouri (Augusta, Hermann, Ozark Highlands), Minnesota (Alexandria Lakes) and Wisconsin (Lake Wisconsin, Wisconsin Ledge), with Ohio River Valley shared by Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia
• Northeast and mid-Atlantic: New York (Cayuga Lake, Champlain Valley of New York, Finger Lakes), New England through the Southeastern New England AVA, Connecticut (Eastern Connecticut Highlands, Western Connecticut Highlands), New Jersey (Cape May Peninsula, Outer Coastal Plain), Pennsylvania (Lancaster Valley, Lehigh Valley), Maryland (Catoctin, Linganore), Virginia (Middleburg Virginia, Monticello, North Fork of Roanoke, Rocky Knob) and West Virginia via Kanawha River Valley
• Southeast: North Carolina, Georgia (Dahlonega Plateau), Tennessee (Nine Lakes of East Tennessee, Upper Cumberland) and the Tennessee/Mississippi overlap in the Mississippi Delta AVA, which covers Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee; South Carolina does not appear among the states listed with established AVAs
• Cross-border AVAs also include Appalachian High Country (North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia), Shenandoah Valley (Virginia, West Virginia), Mesilla Valley (New Mexico, Texas), Central Delaware Valley (New Jersey, Pennsylvania), Cumberland Valley (Maryland, Pennsylvania) and Upper Mississippi River Valley (Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota)

The most detailed public variety data covers California, where USDA NASS and the California Department of Food and Agriculture run an annual acreage survey of about 6,500 grape growers with the California Table Grape Commission. In the 2024 crop report, released April 23, 2025, the leading wine-type varieties continued to be Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. Cabernet Sauvignon stood at 94,906 acres (91,911 bearing, 2,995 non-bearing) and Chardonnay at 85,840 acres (83,725 bearing, 2,116 non-bearing). Pinot Noir followed at 46,899 acres, then Zinfandel at 35,906 and Merlot at 31,924. Among whites, Sauvignon Blanc reached 17,663 acres, Pinot Gris 16,034 and French Colombard 15,290. Syrah stood at 14,290 acres. California red wine type grapes totalled 286,399 acres and white wine type grapes 163,286 acres in 2024.

• Cabernet Sauvignon: 94,906 acres in California, 2024
• Chardonnay: 85,840 acres in California, 2024
• Pinot Noir: 46,899 acres; Zinfandel: 35,906 acres; Merlot: 31,924 acres (California, 2024)
• Sauvignon Blanc: 17,663 acres; Pinot Gris: 16,034 acres; French Colombard: 15,290 acres; Syrah: 14,290 acres (California, 2024)
• California totals for 2024: 286,399 acres of red wine type grapes and 163,286 acres of white wine type grapes

According to the Wine Institute, United States wine production reached 647,701,604 gallons in 2024, with California accounting for 508,246,015 gallons; the Wine Institute states that California produces an average of 81 percent of total U.S. wine production, and sources its figures to bw166/Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates as removals of still wine from fermenters. According to the OIV, United States wine production was 20.0 mhl in 2025, 5.3 percent below 2024 and 16.2 percent below the five-year average, or 8.9 percent of world production. The OIV puts the United States vineyard at 415 kha in 2025, 5.9 percent of the world total, and notes a seventh consecutive year of decline driven largely by the ongoing uprooting of wine grapes in California. According to USDA NASS, United States grape bearing acreage was 883,000 acres in 2025, with utilized production of 5,227,700 tons; California wine-type bearing acreage was 510,000 acres producing 2,620,000 tons, Washington had 67,000 bearing acres including 50,000 of wine type, New York 33,000 and Oregon 32,000. The California Grape Acreage Report put the state's 2024 wine-type acreage at 590,000 acres, 550,000 of them bearing, alongside 120,000 acres of table-type grapes. On trade, the OIV reports United States wine exports of 2.0 mhl in 2025, down 17.9 percent on 2024, and imports of 12.0 mhl, with the United States remaining the world's largest wine importer by value.

• Wine Institute: 647,701,604 gallons produced in the United States in 2024
• OIV: 20.0 mhl produced in 2025, 8.9 percent of world production
• OIV: 415 kha under vine in 2025, a seventh consecutive year of decline
• USDA NASS: 883,000 bearing grape acres nationally in 2025, 5,227,700 tons utilized
• OIV: exports of 2.0 mhl and imports of 12.0 mhl in 2025

Primary sources used for this article: TTB, Established American Viticultural Areas (https://www.ttb.gov/regulated-commodities/beverage-alcohol/wine/established-avas); TTB, American Viticultural Area (AVA) (https://www.ttb.gov/regulated-commodities/beverage-alcohol/wine/american-viticultural-area-ava); eCFR, 27 CFR part 9 subpart B, AVA Petitions (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-27/chapter-I/subchapter-A/part-9/subpart-B); eCFR, 27 CFR 4.25, Appellations of origin (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-27/chapter-I/subchapter-A/part-4/subpart-C/section-4.25); USDA NASS, California Grape Acreage Report, 2024 Summary (https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/California/Publications/Specialty_and_Other_Releases/Grapes/Acreage/2025/grpacSUMMARY2024Crop.pdf); USDA NASS, California Grape Acreage Report, 2024 Crop, detailed tables (https://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/California/Publications/Specialty_and_Other_Releases/Grapes/Acreage/2025/2024%20Crop%20Grape%20Acreage%20Report.pdf); USDA NASS, Noncitrus Fruits and Nuts 2025 Summary (https://release.nass.usda.gov/reports/ncit0526.pdf); Wine Institute, California & U.S. Wine Production (https://wineinstitute.org/our-industry/statistics/california-us-wine-production/). Secondary source: OIV, State of the World Wine Sector in 2025 (https://www.oiv.int/sites/default/files/2026-05/OIV-State_of_the_World_Wine_Sector_in_2025_0.pdf). Last verified 2026-09-16