Ben Lomond Mountain AVA
Encyclopedia
The Ben Lomond Mountain AVA is an American Viticultural Area
in Santa Cruz County, California
, located on the western edge of the Santa Cruz Mountains
. Vineyards were first planted on the mountain in the 1860s, but viticulture there has been difficult. The appellation reaches altitudes as high as 2600 feet (792 m) above sea level, placing it above much of the fog
that rolls in from the Pacific Ocean
, ensuring long hours of sunlight. However, Ben Lomond Mountain has been especially impacted by Pierce's Disease, and bird
s and deer
are more plentiful here than other wine regions in California. Beauregard Vineyards in the only winery that currently produces wine that carries the Ben Lomond Mountain AVA designation.
American Viticultural Area
An American Viticultural Area is a designated wine grape-growing region in the United States distinguishable by geographic features, with boundaries defined by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau , United States Department of the Treasury....
in Santa Cruz County, California
Santa Cruz County, California
Santa Cruz County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, on the California Central Coast. The county forms the northern coast of the Monterey Bay. . As of the 2010 U.S. Census, its population was 262,382. The county seat is Santa Cruz...
, located on the western edge of the Santa Cruz Mountains
Santa Cruz Mountains
The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. They form a ridge along the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, separating the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley, and continuing south,...
. Vineyards were first planted on the mountain in the 1860s, but viticulture there has been difficult. The appellation reaches altitudes as high as 2600 feet (792 m) above sea level, placing it above much of the fog
Fog
Fog is a collection of water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. While fog is a type of stratus cloud, the term "fog" is typically distinguished from the more generic term "cloud" in that fog is low-lying, and the moisture in the fog is often generated...
that rolls in from the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, ensuring long hours of sunlight. However, Ben Lomond Mountain has been especially impacted by Pierce's Disease, and bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s and deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
are more plentiful here than other wine regions in California. Beauregard Vineyards in the only winery that currently produces wine that carries the Ben Lomond Mountain AVA designation.