Test your wine knowledge with quiz questions from our expert.
Which of the following French departments are part of the Rhone Valley?
All of the above
The Rhone Valley, which forms a large corridor between Northern Europe and the Mediterranean, extends over six French departments, including all of those listed in today's quiz question, with the addition of Rhone and Loire.
True or False: the term Cotes du Rhone traces its roots back to the 19th Century?
False
While today's "Cotes du Rhone" is a 19th Century term, its origins are older. They stem back to the term "Coste du Rhone," a name used to describe the administrative district of the Viguerie d'Uzes. The Viguerie d'Uzes was famous for its wines, with regulations meant to help protect their quality and provenance introduced as far back as 1650.
True or False: There are references to wine grapes in Idaho dating back to the mid-1800s?
True
An Idaho Statesman article from September 1865 reported on the status of a vineyard of Royal Muscadine vines that had been planted in Lewiston the prior year. According to the article, the vines survived the region's difficult Winter season and were beginning to produce grapes.
True or False: Idaho has fewer than 1500 acres of wine grapes planted?
True
Despite having grape-growing agricultural roots that stem back more than 40 years, as of 2018 Idaho has a mere 1300 acres of land devoted to fine wine grapes.
Fennville is part of the AVA structure in Michigan. Idaho's Snake River Valley was approved as an AVA in 2007, followed by Eagle Foothills in 2015 and Lewis-Clark Valley in 2016. Idaho got a bit of a late start on its American Viticultural Area status; grapes had been planted in the Snake River Valley since the 1970s, and Idaho's largest winery (Ste Chapelle) opened in 1975.
As of 2017, how many wineries were located in Idaho?
55
As of 2017, Idaho is home to 55 wineries (up from 50 in 2016). The vast majority of the state's wine producers are established along the southwestern portion of the Snake River Valley AVA.
True or False: In the 1880s, consumers in Europe and America were drinking nearly two million gallons annually of wine made in Missouri?
True
German settlers established the town of Hermann near the Missouri River in 1837. The land proved too difficult for farming most crops other than grapes, which thrived there. By 1850 Hermann’s wineries were producing over 10,000 gallons of wine per year. By the 1880s, the town was home to over 60 wineries producing nearly two million gallons of wine each year for domestic and European consumption.
Which of the following American Viticultural Areas are part of Southern Oregon?
All of the above
Southern Oregon's AVAs include Umpqua Valley AVA (formally recognized in 1984), Rogue Valley AVA (1991), Applegate Valley AVA (2001), Red Hills AVA (2005), and Elkton AVA (2013). Taken together, Southern Oregon's AVAs represent about 23% of Oregon’s total wine production, 22% of of the state's wine grape acreage and vineyards, and about 18% of Oregon’s total wineries.
Which of the following grape varieties is NOT among the top five planted in Southern Oregon?
Riesling
Of the 70 grape varieties planted in the region, Riesling makes up about 3% of the plantings in Southern Oregon. The area is dominated by plantings of Pinot Noir (about 40%), and Pinot Gris (13%), as well as Syrah (about 6%), and Tempranillo (about 5%).
True or False: Oregon's Umpqua Valley was officially accepted as an American Viticultural Area in 1961?
False
Richard Sommer started Hillcrest Vineyards - the first winery in post-prohibition Oregon - in 1961 in the Umpqua Valley, but the region wasn't formally recognized as an AVA until 1984. Today, there are about 30 wineries in the region.
