| Wine region | |
 | |
| Official name | State of Minnesota |
|---|---|
| Type | U.S. StateAppellation[1] |
| Year established | 1858 |
| Years of wine industry | 1977-present |
| Country | United States |
| Other regions in vicinity | Wisconsin,Michigan,Illinois,Iowa |
| Sub-regions | Alexandria Lakes AVA,Upper Mississippi River Valley AVA |
| Climate region | Region I |
| Total area | 49.7 million acres (77,627 sq mi)[2] |
| Grapes produced | Chambourcin,Chardonnay,Concord,Delaware,Edelweiss,Frontenac,Geisenheim,Gewürztraminer,Itasca,La Crescent,La Crosse,Leon Millot,Malbec,Marechal Foch,Marquette,Riesling,Sabrevois,Seyval blanc,St. Croix,St. Pepin,Syrah,Vidal blanc,Vignoles,Zinfandel[1] |
| No. of wineries | 70+[3] |
Minnesota wine refers towine made fromgrapes grown in theU.S. state ofMinnesota. Minnesota is part of theAmerican Viticultural Area (AVA), specifically theUpper Mississippi River Valley AVA, which includes southwest Wisconsin, southeast Minnesota, northeast Iowa, and northwest Illinois. The state also has a smaller designated American Viticultural Areas, theAlexandria Lakes AVA. Minnesota is a very cold climate forviticulture and manygrapevarieties require protection from the winter weather by being buried under soil for the season. Minnesota is home to extensive research on cold-hardyFrench hybrid and other grape varieties.
The Minnesota Grape Growers Association (MGGA) is a statewide organization that promotes grape growing and wine making in the state and also in cold-hardy climates. Minnesota is home to theInternational Cold Climate Wine Competition (ICCWC) hosted annually in partnership between MGGA and University of Minnesota. This is the only wine competition solely dedicated to the promotion of quality wines made mainly from cold-hardy grape varieties. In 2014, the 6th annual competition saw 284 wines entered from 59 commercial wineries in 11 states. Awards were based on blind tastings by 21 expert judges, who include enologists, wine writers, restaurateurs, retailers, and wine educators.
Minnesota's hardy native wild grapes were staples of theindigenous inhabitants,Dakota andOjibwa, who atepemmican, a traditional food composed ofdried meat,fat, andfruit. Later,European-Americansimmigrants, after theAmerican Civil War, producedhybridscrossing native grapes with domesticVitisspecies from their homelands.University of Minnesotahorticulturists bred grapes throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries, resulting in four hybrid varieties in 1944. Concurrently,Italian immigrants in northern Minnesota’sIron Range imported grapes fromCalifornia to unlicensed, communal wineries. Minnesota’s first winery license was issued shortly after theRepeal of Prohibition to theOld Sibley House Winery, which operated inWest St. Paul until 1949 sourcing grapes from outside the state.[3]
In 1973, the first recorded vineyard in Minnesota was planted by David Bailly at Alexis Bailly Vineyard inHastings and the first modern winery, Northern Vineyards Winery, opened in 1977. The next year, Alexis Bailly Vineyard celebrated its viticulture production of the first commercial wine sourced entirely from Minnesota grapes.[4]
In 1997, only three wineries operated in Minnesota,[5] and currently has grown to over 70 commercial wineries throughout Minnesota.[6]
HorticulturalistElmer Swenson created commercially successful, cold-climate varieties in Minnesota including theEdelweiss andSt. Croix grapes.Oenology programs at theUniversity of Minnesota developed theFrontenac grape variety in 1995, and continue to research new hybrids and techniques for grape growing in the state and other cold climate regions.[1]
