USA

America is the world’s fourth largest wine producing nation, after France, Italy and Spain. U.S. wineries are well known for innovation in wine making and marketing techniques that have profoundly influenced world wine markets over the past several decades.

Most production of American wine is concentrated in California and the Pacific Northwest. American wine regions are currently being classified by region under a scheme called “American Viticultural Areas” (AVAs), a system much like the French “AOC” model (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée”) AVAs indicating the origin of American wines will appear on their labels.

Like France's AOC, an AVA is not a guarantee of quality: it merely guarantees that the grapes come from a certain place. Nevertheless, the AVA system provides wine lovers with a frame of reference for American wines – much like getting to know the villages of Burgundy helps one understand the wines of that region better.