Fiddletown is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Amador County, California, United States. It was established as the nation's 43rd, the state's 28th and the county's second appellation on October 4, 1983, by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Treasury after reviewing the petition submitted by the Fiddletown Wine Grape Growers in Amador County proposing the viticultural area to be named "Fiddletown."
The viticultural area is considered the upper Amador wine growing region, as it sits at a higher elevation to both the Shenandoah Valley AVA, anchored by the towns of Plymouth and Sutter Creek, and the wineries that run along eastern State Route 16 to State Route 49, more centered around Ione. Most of the vineyards in the Fiddletown AVA are located in the south and west portion of the region on Sierra Nevada slopes between above sea level. At the outset, there was approximately suitable for vineyard development and the present of cultivation are scattered throughout the Fiddletown viticultural area where about 20% of the Amador County vintages are produced.
History Historically, as all wine regions of the Sierra Nevada foothills, was populated in the 1850s by settlers seeking their fortunes in the California Gold Rush. In Amador County, settlers who stayed in the area eventually planted grape vines to produce wine which became abundant by the end of the nineteenth century. In 1866, the number of grapevines was estimated at 557,773; in 1867, at 1,140,000; and 1868, at 683,623. The valley produced Zinfandel grapes throughout the late 1800s, but did not experience a wine boom until well into the 1960s. During the 1960s and 1970s, most of the grapes were sold to jug wine producers when the area became a growing retirement region, and the expanse of the population centers of the Central Valley and adjacent Nevada added significant enotourism to the area. With this resurgence of local wine buyers, the regions of interior California, especially the Sierra Foothills, started a new viticulture resurgence and wine making.
Fiddletown, which got its name because the young men of the town were always "fiddling" around, was briefly changed to the name of Oleta. But Fiddletown was immortalized in a story by Bret Harte, and the original name was restored in 1920. Fiddletown viticultural area is more high mountain grapes, with Syrah and related Rhone varietals doing well, and traditional Italian grapes such as Barbera, Tempranillo and Zinfandel being the historical favorites of the greater region. Grapes traditionally making up Bordeaux wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc are grown all across the region, just less common. Dominant white varietals grown in the region are Viognier, Grenache Blanc, Albarino, Rousanne, and others. Some vineyards in this area can stretch to over 3,000 feet above sea level creating a distinct difference to the lower elevations. A few celebrated winemakers especially focus on this area. A winery collective and store exists known as Amador 360 Winery Collective provides a diverse introduction specifically to this AVA.
Terroir Topography Fiddletown area differs from the neighboring Shenandoah Valley of California viticultural area because of its higher elevations of , colder nighttime temperatures and a higher rainfall of per year. The area surrounding the north and east boundaries is above and for the most part, too rugged a terrain and too cold for growing grapes.
Climate The summer daytime temperatures range from the eighties to one hundred degrees, and nights are cool from breezes from the surrounding mountains. The grapes are grown without any irrigation, and vines produce from per acre. The USDA plant hardiness zones range from 9a to 9b.
Soils Most of the grapes are grown on the southern and western rolling slopes of the hills in the area where the soil is a deep loam of decomposed granite. The soils of the Fiddletown viticultural area are Sierra-Ahwahee and Sites series which are deep, moderately well drained and consist of loams or sandy loams.
Wineries Damas Vineyards is one of the few wineries that places Fiddletown AVA on their labels. The AVA wine bottles usually are labelled with the "Amador County" appellation. The county access roads to the area's wineries and retail outlets are primarily in the California Shenandoah Valley viticultural area on Shenandoah Road while further south is the Fiddletown area, east of Plymouth, is Fiddletown Road. California Shenandoah Valley AVA has a more complete list of wineries that span both roads.
References
External links Amador Winegrowers Association Wine Institute TTB AVA Map