Southern Oregon AVA

Southern Oregon AVA

Wine region
Image of Ruch in Applegate Valley. The field of green on the opposite hillside is a vineyard in the Applegate Valley AVA
Type	American Viticultural Area
Year established	2004
Country	United States
Part of	Oregon
Sub-regions	Applegate Valley AVA, Red Hill Douglas County, Oregon AVA, Rogue Valley AVA, Umpqua Valley AVA
Climate region	Maritime/Mediterranean
Total area	2,001,430 acres (8,099 km2)
Grapes produced	Albarino, Bastardo, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Dolcetto, Grenache, Malbec, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Petite Sirah, Syrah, Tempranillo, Viognier

The Southern Oregon AVA, is an American Viticultural Area which lies in Southern Oregon, United States. The Southern Oregon AVA was established in 2004, and was created to include the land of two smaller AVAs, the Rogue Valley AVA and the Umpqua Valley AVA. Southern Oregon AVA was established to allow the two principal winegrowing regions in the southern part of the state to market themselves jointly. This creation of a "super-AVA" is a departure from the trend in the Willamette Valley AVA or northern Oregon of establishing smaller AVAs specific to a particular locale's climate or soil conditions.

The Southern Oregon AVA is the union of the Umpqua Valley AVA and the Rogue Valley AVA, and all land suitable for grape cultivation within the Southern Oregon AVA is also located in one of these smaller regions. A small strip of connecting territory is included in the Southern Oregon AVA to make it a contiguous region, however, this strip passes through mountainous regions not suitable for viticulture. The AVA lies entirely within the southwest corner of the state, south of Eugene and west of the Cascades, and consists of the river valleys of the Rogue and Umpqua River rivers and their tributaries.

The Umpqua Valley AVA contains the drainage basin of the Umpqua River, excluding mountainous regions. It is a warmer climate than the Willamette Valley, but cooler than the Rogue Valley to the south. Grapes grown here include Pinot Noir, with smaller amounts of Pinot Gris, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, and Riesling, as well as several French-American hybrids.

The Red Hill Douglas County, Oregon AVA is entirely contained within the Umpqua Valley AVA. This AVA includes 5,500 acres (2,226 ha), and is located near Yoncalla. Originally petitioned as the "Red Hill AVA", the proposed appellation brought protest from Willamette Valley vintners, where a region known as Red Hill is also located; the name of "Red Hill Douglas County" was instead chosen to avoid consumer confusion.