How Good Are Wine Maps?

The number of people who are really into wine is definitely on the increase. You cannot blame them for being hooked by some of the wonderful wines out there, and lots of people find they develop it as a hobby without really realizing it. They’ve invested in a vintage collection of wine wines, they’ve converted their spare room into a storage cellar, bought a selection of different wine glasses so that they can get the maximum enjoyment of each wine variety, and have all the neat tableware gadgets for opening and pouring their wine.

The one thing that very few wine buffs have however is a wine map, which can show you more about wine regions that most books can. Wine maps have come a long way from the days they were roughly scribbled on a piece of paper and are now researched extensively and updated frequently.  The California wine map for example is updated every year due to the complicated layout of the area, especially after Napa Valley was officially recognized as an American Viticultural Area in 1981. This means that there are 108 AVAs in the area, all providing different grape varieties and wine qualities.

Most people pick up their wine knowledge from talking to friends or reading the labels, but a wine map provides a visual representation of the different regions and fruit varieties. If you are lucky enough to be visiting an area of wine production, its is even more imperative that you have a wine map to take with you. Often different terrain overlaps between wine making regions so certain wines can be made up of a combination of different grapes and grape maturing conditions. A wine map will allow you to not only understand the wines better but also identify where the tastes and aromas coming from your wine glasses originated