Missouri wine

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Missouri (Wine Region)
Official name State of Missouri
Appellation type U.S. state
Year established 1821
Years of wine industry 1837-present
Country USA
Sub-regions Augusta AVA, Hermann AVA, Ozark Highlands AVA, Ozark Mountain AVA
Total area 69,709 square miles (180,545 km²)
Grapes produced Baco noir, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Catawba, Cayuga, Chambourcin, Chardonel, Chardonnay, Chelois, Concord, Couderc noir, De Chaunac, Delaware, Diamond, Edelweiss, Malbec, Marechal Foch, Merlot, Muscat Canelli, New York Muscat, Norton, Rayon d'Or, Riesling, Rougeon, Ruby Cabernet, Seyval Blanc, St. Vincent, Touriga Francesa, Traminette, Valiant, Vidal Blanc, Vignoles, Villard Blanc, Villard Noir, Vivant, Zinfandel[1]
No. of wineries over 50
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Missouri Wine refers to wine made from grapes grown in the U.S. state of Missouri. Missouri was settled by European, especially German, immigrants in the early 1800s, when wine production in Missouri began. In the mid-1880s, more wine was produced by volume in Missouri than in any other state. Missouri had the first area recognized as a federally recognized American Viticultural Area when the Augusta AVA was designated on June 20, 1980.[2]

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[edit] History

Native Americans cultivated local varieties of grape, and these species were developed by later European immigrants. Hermann, Missouri, settled by Germans in 1837, had ideal conditions to grow such grapes. By 1848 it produced 10,000 US gallons (37,900 l) per year, expanding to 100,000 US gallons (378,500 l) per year by 1856.[citation needed] Later, Italian immigrants expanded production in the Rolla, Missouri area.

The state produced 2,000,000 US gallons (7,570,800 l) per year by the 1880s, when it produced more wine than any other state in the nation.[citation needed] In the mid-19th century, the phylloxera louse destroyed much of the Vitis vinifera grape crop; Missouri’s state entomologist, Charles Riley, encouraged the sending of resistant native Missouri rootstocks to France to combat the epidemic.[citation needed] The Missouri wine industry was wiped out in 1919 by the imposition of Prohibition. The only remaining winery was St. Stanislaus Seminary, in Florissant, which made sacramental wines.[citation needed]

Revival of the state's wine industry started in 1965 with the reopening of Stone Hill Winery, followed soon by the opening of Mount Pleasant Winery.[citation needed]

[edit] Grapes grown

Missouri's climate, with its long, hot summers, good sun exposure, and thin rocky Ozarks soil, is excellent for growing grapes. The moderate average temperature allows natural cellaring of wine. The winters, however, are too cold to reliably grow some popular grape varieties of the species Vitis vinifera found in Europe and California.

The most prominent Missouri-grown variety is Cynthiana/Norton, believed to be a variety of Vitis aestivalis. Other varieties grown include native American grapes, Concord and Catawba, as well as French-American hybrids like Vignoles, Seyval, and Chambourcin. Recently, there has been more interest in planting Vitis vinifera grapes varieties, especially Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, and Mourvedre.[citation needed]

[edit] Industry

The wine industry is still small in Missouri, but it is growing very quickly. The market for Missouri wine is estimated to be far higher than current production. Wine production in the state in 2001 was about a 500,000 US gallons (1,893,000 l) per year, and made up about 6% of the state's wine consumption.[citation needed] In 2001, the state had 870 acres (350 ha) in wine grape production with Concord, Catawaba and Norton being the most significant varieties.[citation needed]

The state had a total of 47 wineries in 2003.[citation needed] The three largest wineries in Missouri are in order: Stone Hill Winery, Mount Pleasant Winery, and Les Bourgeois Winery.[citation needed] A state tax on wine imposed in 1984, now 12 cents per gallon, supports the Missouri Wine and Grape Program, providing scientific and marketing support for Missouri wines.[citation needed] The state government hopes to encourage the local wine industry by promoting Missouri regionalism: integrating grape agriculture with winemaking, the restaurant business, and tourism, as a way of combating the uniformity of globalism.[citation needed]

Missouri wines, especially of the Norton variety, have won many major international awards.

[edit] Gallery

Hermannhoff White Lady of Starkenburg wine

Stone Hill Norton wine of 2003

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Appellation America (2007). "Missouri: Appellation Description". Retrieved Nov. 16, 2007.
  2. ^ Code of Federal Regulations Title 27, Volume 1 ALCOHOL, TOBACCO PRODUCTS AND FIREARMS
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American wine