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California Wine Atlas

Willow Creek

AVA · Humboldt County · District 9 — 73.9% of this appellation; also in Trinity (26.1%)

27 CFR 9.85 · established 1983-08-18

Heat class IV · 1991-2020 normals

Climate normals in three numbers

3,508°F-days

, Apr 1 – Oct 31

10 GridMET cells cover this region

IV

raw 4 km GridMET would say III

267mm

season rain, Apr 1 – Oct 31

87 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

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Hovering a shaded region names it; a click opens its page.

Measured vineyard area

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Drought categories, year by year

Humboldt County — not Willow Creek

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What's in the ground

5.9

pH, 1:1 water

12.2cm

, whole profile

152cm

to

Well drained

, dominant condition

Distribution across 14 · mean ◆, median │, p10–p90 bar

5.9
1.2%
19.7%
available water
12.2cm
depth to restriction
152cm

Dominant

  • 38.5%
  • 32.1%
  • 16.8%
  • 6.4%
  • 3.2%

14 map units · soil described over 100.0% of the region’s area · 12.1% is water, rock outcrop or other non-soil · 62% of the described area has a restrictive layer within the profile.

Sand, silt and clay, against every other appellation

CLAYSANDSILT

Loam

49% sand · 31% silt · 20% clay

Sandier than 73% of California appellations and clayier than 31%. Each grey point is one appellation’s topsoil; appellations nest, so this is a distribution of places rather than of land.

Plus 32% 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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Bearing acreage by variety

Humboldt County · District 9 — 73.9% of this appellation; also in Trinity (26.1%)

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Price per ton

Humboldt County · District 9 — 73.9% of this appellation; also in Trinity (26.1%)

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The appellation in federal law

The boundary, in the government’s own words (185 words)

(c) Boundaries. The Willow Creek viticultural area is located within portions of Humboldt and Trinity Counties, California. From the point of beginning where the 1,000-foot contour line intersects Kirkham Creek (directly north of section 19, T.7 N./R.5E.), beginning in a southerly direction, the boundary line the 1,000-foot contour line to; (1) The point of intersection between the 1,000-foot contour line and the north section line of section 27, T.6N./R.5E.; (2) Then in a straight, north easterly line to the point of intersection between the 1,000-foot contour line and the east section line of section 13, T.6N./R.5E.; (3) Then in a straight, northwesterly line to the point of intersection between the 1,000-foot contour line and the north section line of section 11, T.6N./R.5E.; (4) Then in a straight, south-southwesterly line to the point of intersection between the 1,000-foot contour line and the east section line of section 15, T.6N./R.5E.; (5) Then following the 1,000-foot contour line, beginning in a westerly direction, to the point of intersection between the 1,000-foot contour line and Coons Creek; (6) Then in a straight, westerly line to the point of beginning.