Santa Cruz Mountains
AVA · Santa Cruz County · District 6 — 47.21% of this appellation; also in San Mateo (27.83%), Santa Clara (24.96%)
27 CFR 9.31 · established 1981-12-04
Heat class II · 1991-2020 normals
Climate normals in three numbers
, Apr 1 – Oct 31
145 GridMET cells cover this region
season rain, Apr 1 – Oct 31
52 mm of it in the , Sep 1 – Oct 31
Warm and cool vintages since 1980
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Rain across the season, and at harvest
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The boundary
Hovering a shaded region names it; a click opens its page.
Measured vineyard area
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Drought categories, year by year
Santa Cruz County — not Santa Cruz Mountains
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What's in the ground
6.2
pH, 1:1 water
13.2cm
, whole profile
105cm
to
Well drained
, dominant condition
Distribution across 347 · mean ◆, median │, p10–p90 bar
Dominant
- 17.6%
- 9.3%
- 8.8%
- 7.5%
- 4.7%
347 map units · soil described over 98.0% of the region’s area · 4.1% is water, rock outcrop or other non-soil · 88% of the described area has a restrictive layer within the profile.
Sand, silt and clay, against every other appellation
Sandy loam
54% sand · 28% silt · 18% clay
Sandier than 80% of California appellations and clayier than 19%. Each grey point is one appellation’s topsoil; appellations nest, so this is a distribution of places rather than of land.
Plus 16% rock fragments by volume, which the triangle does not describe — the three fractions are of the fine-earth material only.
Elevation, slope and aspect
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Producers
A curated roster, not a census — only source-verified entries appear, 2772 published across the atlas.
Bearing acreage by variety
Santa Cruz County · District 6 — 47.21% of this appellation; also in San Mateo (27.83%), Santa Clara (24.96%)
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Price per ton
Santa Cruz County · District 6 — 47.21% of this appellation; also in San Mateo (27.83%), Santa Clara (24.96%)
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The appellation in federal law
The boundary, in the government’s own words (674 words)
(c) Boundaries. The Santa Cruz Mountains viticultural area is located in portions of San Mateo, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz Counties, California. (1) From the beginning point where Highway 92 and the 400-foot contour line intersect (Half Moon Bay Quadrangle), the boundary line follows Highway 92, beginning in a southeasterly direction, to a point where Highway 92 and the 400-foot contour line intersect (San Mateo Quadrangle); (2) Thence along the 400-foot contour line, beginning in a southeasterly direction, to a point where the 400-foot contour line and Canada Road intersect (Woodside Quadrangle); (3) Thence along Canada Road, beginning in a southerly direction, to a point where Canada Road and Highway 280 intersect (Woodside Quadrangle); (4) Thence along Highway 280, beginning in a southeasterly direction, to a point where Highway 280 and 84 intersect (Palo Alto Quadrangle); (5) Thence along Highway 84, beginning in a southwesterly direction, to a point where Highway 84 and Mountain Home Road intersect (Woodside Quadrangle); (6) Thence along Mountain Home Road, beginning in a southerly direction, to a point where Mountain Home Road and Portola Road intersect (Palo Alto Quadrangle); (7) Thence along Portola Road, beginning in a westerly direction, to a point where Portola Road and Highway 84 intersect (Woodside Quadrangle); (8) Thence along Highway 84, beginning in a southwesterly direction, to a point where Highway 84 and the 600-foot contour line intersect (Woodside Quadrangle); (9) Thence along the 600-foot contour line, beginning in a northeasterly direction, to a point where the 600-foot contour line and Regnart Road intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (10) Thence along Regnart Road, beginning in a northeasterly direction, to a point where Regnart Road and the 400-foot contour line intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (11) Thence along the 400-foot contour line, beginning in a southerly direction, to a point where the 400-foot contour line and the north section line of Section 35, T. 6 S./R. 2 W, intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (12) Thence along the north section line of Sections 35 and 36, in an easterly direction, to a point where the section line and Highway 85 intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (13) Thence along Highway 85, in a southerly direction, to a point where Highway 85 and the southern section line of Section 36 intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (14) Thence along the section line, in a westerly direction, to a point where the section line and the 600-foot contour line intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (15) Thence along the 600-foot contour line, beginning in a southerly direction, to a point where the 600-foot contour line and Pierce Road intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (16) Thence along Pierce Road, in a southerly direction, to a point where Pierce Road and the 800-foot contour line intersect (Cupertino Quadrangle); (17) Thence along the 800-foot line, beginning in a northwesterly direction, to a point where the 800-foot contour line and the east section line of Section 25, T. 10 S./R. 2 E., intersect (Mt. Madonna Quadrangle); (18) Thence along the east section line, in a southerly direction, to a point where this section line and the 800-foot contour line intersect (Mt. Madonna Quadrangle); (19) Thence along the 800-foot contour line, beginning in a southeasterly direction, to a point where the 800-foot contour line and Highway 152 intersect (Watsonville East Quadrangle); (20) Thence along Highway 152, in a southwesterly direction, to a point where Highway 152 and the 400-foot contour line intersect (Watsonville East Quadrangle); (21) Thence along the 400-foot contour line, beginning in a northwesterly direction, to a point where the 400-foot contour line and the Felton Empire Road intersect (Felton Quadrangle); (22) Thence along Felton Empire Road, in an easterly direction, to a point where Felton Empire Road and Highway 9 intersect (Felton Quadrangle); (23) Thence along Highway 9, in a southerly direction, to a point where Highway 9 and Bull Creek intersect (Felton Quadrangle); (24) Thence along Bull Creek, beginning in a southwesterly direction, to a point where Bull Creek and the 400-foot contour line intersect (Felton Quadrangle); and (25) Thence along the 400-foot contour line, beginning in a southeasterly direction, back to the point of beginning.