AVA Adds Credibilty to Indiana Wine

The Indiana’s Uplands region being declared an American Viticulture Area Feb. 12 is good news for all Midwestern wineries.

The U.S. wine industry is driven by tourism. For those who take wine seriously and want to learn more about wine, hitting up AVA-designated areas assures a level of serious winemaking and even quality.

Michigan leads the way in the Midwest with four AVAs: Fennville, Leelanau Peninsula, Lake Michigan Shore, and Old Mission Peninsula. Ohio has four AVAS: Lake Erie, Isle St. George, Grand River Valley, and Loramie Creek. Illinois has the Shawnee Hills AVA and shares the Upper Mississippi AVA with Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin.

The Ohio River Valley AVA is shared by Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. Kentucky has no other designated grape production area and Indiana did not until the Uplands announcement.

“It just kind of affirms what we already know that we have some excellent grape growing regions and they’re unique here in the Midwest,” said Bruce Bordelon, Viticulture Specialist at Purdue University. “The Uplands region is different than southwest Indiana. Posey County and Gibson County have different climate and soils. There really is a difference in the (grapes) that we grow and the quality that we get between regions. It’s those little minor differences that makes vintages special and make our varietal-labeled wines special.”

Oliver Winery, near Bloomington, IN., is one of the Midwest’s largest. With production in the 400,000-case range business is good. But Oliver embraced the Uplands news every bit as much as the other eight wineries in the Uplands.

“It allows us to qualify as a true viticulture area and raise the level of awareness that there is something special about this region,” said Kathleen Oliver, Executive Vice President. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to capitalize on that by saying there is something really unique about these wines. We are producing great quality wines; we can do it just like Napa and Sonoma. We are something special. And it gives us the opportunity to look for a more premium price.”

The nine established wineries in the Uplands AVA are Best Vineyards Winery, Elizabeth; Brown County Winery, Nashville; Butler Winery, Bloomington; Carousel Winery, Bedford; French Lick Winery, West Baden Springs; Huber Winery, Starlight; Oliver Winery, Bloomington; Turtle Run Winery, Corydon; and Winzerwald Winery, Bristow.

Jim Butler, Butler Winery also near Bloomington, spent nearly 10 years working to achieve the AVA designation. He agreed that Indiana has a niche with white Traminette and red Chambourcin wines that are grown throughout the Midwest and excel in the Uplands region. But he also sees other wines doing well and a future for more traditional plantings.

“Late harvest Vignoles and Vidal does wonderfully,” Butler said. “We’ve been doing Chardonnel. I think we’re going to see some more viniferas (think traditional wine grapes) planted. “It takes four years to plant a vine and then get your first crop. It’s going to be a decades-plus process to zero in on those varieties that are going to give us the product that we want.”

The 4800-square-mile Uplands AVA stretches from the Morgan-Monroe County line near Bloomington south to the Ohio River. The east-west boundaries run from Jasper in Dubois County to Knobstone Ridge near Starlight, overlooking the Ohio River Valley.

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Uplands AVA Adds Credibility for Indiana Wine

Editor's Note: Here is story I did for Palate Press and the 22 newspapers which carry my every-other-week column. Big news for Indiana wineries today!

INDIANAPOLIS, IN. – Indiana winemakers believe validation and credibility come with the federal government’s designation of the Indiana Uplands in southeast Indiana as an American Viticulture Area (AVA).

Jim Butler talks about the AVA

Indiana Secretary of Agriculture Gina Sheets, members of Purdue University’s Wine and Grape team, along with representatives of Indiana’s nine Upland wineries made the announcement Tuesday at the Statehouse. Butler Winery owner and winemaker Jim Butler has pursued the designation for nearly 10 years. The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau granted the designation as the Indiana Uplands.


“I think what we want to develop now is when people see the name Indiana Uplands, it conjures up something in their minds about the area and the wines,” Butler said. “We want customers to have a real familiarity they can depend on knowing that they’re going to get a good wine.”

The 4800-square-mile Uplands AVA stretches from the Morgan-Monroe County line near Bloomington south to the Ohio River, a distance of more than 100 miles. The east-west boundaries run from Jasper in Dubois County to Knobstone Ridge near Starlight, overlooking the Ohio River Valley.

Oliver

“This legitimizes the area as a grape growing region,” said Kathleen Oliver, Executive Vice President of Oliver Winery. Oliver is one of the Midwest’s largest wineries. “I think that’s something we already knew. We have something special in our topography with well-drained soils and a climate ideal for growing grapes. This raises the level of awareness that there is something unique about our region. It’s just like Napa or Sonoma, we are now something special.”

There are more than 200 AVAs in the United States including the Ohio River AVA shared by West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Butler said most southern Indiana wineries have never wanted to use the AVA designation which would force them to put “Ohio” on their Indiana-made wines.

Bordelon

But Bruce Bordelon, Purdue’s Viticulture Specialist, said it takes more than a designation or label to make the Uplands stand out. “Quality is always the goal whether it’s Michigan, Indiana, Ohio or Washington and California,” he said. “This is an affirmation that what we’re doing is successful and mainstream and good as any region in the world.”

Indiana has approximately 650 acres in vineyard and 63 bonded wineries. A substantial amount of Indiana wine is made from grapes grown out of state. The nine established wineries in the Uplands AVA are Best Vineyards Winery, Elizabeth; Brown County Winery, Nashville; Butler Winery, Bloomington; Carousel Winery, Bedford; French Lick Winery, West Baden Springs; Huber Winery, Starlight; Oliver Winery, Bloomington; Turtle Run Winery, Corydon; and Winzerwald Winery, Bristow. There are also a few vineyard-only properties.

Merritt

The winemakers acknowledged the big step is using the AVA designation to push quality, increase tourism, and sell more wine. “The big marketing point is they’re going to be able to put Uplands AVA on their wine bottles,” said Jeanette Merritt, Marketing Director, Indiana Wines & Purdue Wine Grape Team. “When people go out to buy wine they are looking for those special designations. Having the Uplands designation on the bottle and being able to promote that is going to encourage people to buy those wines.”

Butler said it’s a process that could take decades, but an important first step.

Adams

Dan Adams, winemaker and owner of one of the Uplands’ smallest wineries, Winzerwald, said everyone from Oliver to his small operation benefits.

“We have to get the word out and tell people we have unique qualities like a Napa or Bordeaux,” he said. “We’ll eventually achieve the same level of recognition that other areas have achieved. Some of those areas have had years, if not hundreds of years, head start on us.”

The Uplands wineries also have regular wine trail activities. Check out their website here.

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