wein.plus
Attention
You are using an old browser that may not function as expected.
For a better, safer browsing experience, please upgrade your browser.

Log in Become a Member

Alexander Valley

AVA area in Sonoma County ( North Coast region) in California. It extends from the city of Healdsburg in the south to the foothills of the Mayacamas Mountains at the border with Mendocino County in the north. In 1986, a new boundary delineation took place, partially overlapping with the Russian River AVA area. The valley has a length of just under 14 kilometres, and a width of just under two to just under five kilometres. The viticultural history dates back to the time of the Gold Rush. The valley was named after Cyrus Alexander (1805-1872) who, coming from San Diego in 1840, was commissioned to find suitable ranch land. He eventually marked out an area the size of just under 20,000 hectares, which was then bought from the Mexican government. In return, he received land the size of 3,600 hectares.

There he established the first vineyard and orchard near Healdsburg in 1846. As the first leader of the community, he built a schoolhouse and founded three churches. At the centre of his former estate, there is now Alexander Valley Vineyards, which produces a red wine "Cyrus" in honour of Alexander the pioneer. The Alexander Valley covers about 30,000 hectares, of which 5,600 hectares are cultivated with vines. Sandy loam prevails on the valley floor and gravelly volcanic rock on the mountain slopes. Around 30 grape varieties are cultivated, the most important being Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, JR (Riesling), Malbec (Cot), Merlot, Nebbiolo, Petite Sirah (Durif), Sangiovese, Syrah, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier and Zinfandel. There are 30 wineries and around 250 grape farmers. Well-known producers are Clos du Bois, Gallo, Iron Horse, Jackson Family Wines, Jordan, Ravenswood and Simi Winery.

Voices of our members

Dr. Edgar Müller

I have great respect for the scope and quality of the wein.plus encyclopaedia. It is a unique place to go for crisp, sound information on terms from the world of wine.

Dr. Edgar Müller
Dozent, Önologe und Weinbauberater, Bad Kreuznach

The world's largest Lexicon of wine terms.

26,379 Keywords · 46,983 Synonyms · 5,323 Translations · 31,713 Pronunciations · 202,093 Cross-references
made with by our author Norbert F. J. Tischelmayer. About the Lexicon

EVENTS NEAR YOU

PREMIUM PARTNERS