United States

The United States has become the largest wine consuming country but is also one of the world’s largest producers (no. 4 in 2011), making it the biggest New World producer, followed by Argentina and Australia. Every US state has at least one wine producing estate, including the outlying Hawaiian Islands and Alaska, however the states of California (90% of the country’s production), New York, Washington and Oregon are considered its largest. Many of its wines are produced within the 200+ AVAs or American Viticulture Areas, which specifies that at least 85% of the grapes used to make a wine must have been grown in that geographical location. Viticulture was first brought to the country in the 16th century by French Huguenots around Jacksonville, Florida with Scuppernong, a native Muscadine grape. Vitis Vinifera, the species indigenous to Europe, was not cultivated until the 17th century. Today, the USA is considered one of the highest quality wine producers and is known for a diverse range of styles and varieties, including powerful Cabernets, Merlots and Syrahs; spicy Zinfandels; poised Pinot Noirs; rich Chardonnays; perfumed off-dry Rieslings; and sparkling wines produced by a number of methods, including the one used in Champagne, France.