THE EMERGENCE OF REGIONAL CULTIVAR SPECIALIZATIONS IN CALIFORNIA VITICULTURE

Centuries of evolution of viticultural patterns in Europe have established well-known associations between cultivars and viticultural regions. Though California's viticultural landscape is much younger than Europe's, scholars increasingly talk about cultivar specialization in California wine regions. This study uses data for recent years and location quotients to test the hypothesis of regional cultivar specialization in California. Support is found for the hypothesis, though not for each cultivar and region. Evidence suggests also that there are significant differences between California and Europe with respect to viticultural specialization. Two such differences are in physical geography and wine laws.