Wine Regions of the World

Guide to Willamette Valley, Oregon

This map depicts wineries and tasting rooms within the Oregon Willamette Valley AVA. Here you will find a level of in-depth graphically displayed information about the region and its wineries.

The Willamette Valley Region

Established in 1984, Oregon’s Willamette Valley AVA (a.k.a. American Viticultural Area) is a concentrated appellation packed with many jewels within it’s sub-appellations. At 5,200 square miles at 150 miles long and 60 miles wide, it’s the largest AVA in the state, making it Oregon’s largest AVA which contains most of the state’s wineries.

The region runs from the Columbia River in Portland south through Salem to the Calapooya Mountains and has the largest concentration of wineries and vineyards in Oregon. The Willamette Valley shares the 45th parallel with the Burgundy region of France, and has fertile hillside soils and ocean-cooled climate conditions that make the Willamette Valley a perfect location to plant and grow varietals such as Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

Approved American Viticultural Areas

The Willamette Valley consists of two major regions, which include North Willamette Valley and South Willamette Valley. The Northern part of the valley consists of six delimited grape-growing regions distinguishable by geographic features. The American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) include the Chehalem Mountains AVA, Dundee Hills AVA, Eola-Amity Hills AVA, McMinnville AVA, Ribbon Ridge AVA and the Yamhill-Carlton District AVA.

What’s interesting about the demographics of the Northern versus the Southern Willamette Valley is that all of the approved Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) AVAs exist in the Northern part of the region.

Willamette Valley Grapes

The Willamette Valley has a cool, moist climate, which makes a perfect climate to produce Pinot Noir, for which it is most recognized. There are approximately twenty-four known varietals grown in this region, but the most well known and dominating varietals include Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Marechal Foch, Merlot, Müller-Thurgau, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Riesling, and Syrah.

Willamette Valley Vineyards and Wineries

Willamette Valley Google Earth Virtual Experience

If you’re looking for an interactive virtual experience, download and launch the Wine Regions of the World Series: Oregon – Willamette Valley with Google Earth (you won’t regret it, I promise).

If you don’t have Google Earth, download the latest version here. What is Google Earth? Google Earth combines the power of Google Search with satellite imagery, maps, terrain and 3D buildings to put the world’s geographic information at your fingertips.

Looking for more wine maps? Check out the full list here.