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For oenophiles, merely buying their favorite case of wine is not enough, to get the whole experience a visit to a winery is a must. However, due to budget constraints, a visit to Old World wineries may not be possible since the cost of going to France, Italy, or Spain to talk to a vintner and sample a few wines may be too high. Fortunately for Americans there are more than enough wineries to visit without crossing the Atlantic.

California is arguably the most well-known American state which produces fine wines. At the top of the list is the Napa Valley, a 30 mile-long trail located in northern part of California. Napa has a number of world-renown wineries like the Robert Mondavi Winery (one if the world’s most visited and recognized wineries), Beringer (oldest continuous winemaking facility in the region), as well as Domaine Chandon, Rubicon Estate, and the Beaulieu Vineyards. California is also home to Sonoma County, which features E. & J. Gallo Winery, the largest winery in the U.S.

On the other side of the country, New York can be a viable alternative for wine lovers. It currently has over 100 wineries, and it boasts of some of the country’s oldest commercial wineries, one of which was built in the 1860s. There are several wine trails to choose from in that area including the Hudson Valley, the Shawangunk Wine Trail, the Long Island Wine Country, and the Finger Lakes Wine Country.

Texas, more known for that other liquid, oil, has its share of wine makers and is currently the fifth-largest producer of wine in the nation. There are some 26 wineries and a large number of independent grape farmers which together produce over one million gallons of wine a year. The first to plant vineyards in Texas were the Spanish missionaries living in the El Paso area during the 1600s. Today Texas has five federally designated wine producing zones, or “Appellations of Origin”, plus a number of smaller areas in the Dallas-Ft. worth area.

North Carolina had a flourishing wine industry until the prohibition in the 1920s when production came to an abrupt stop. However, now North Carolina is home to one of the country’s most visited wineries, the Biltmore Estate Winery, which averages 600,000 visitors per year.

Pennsylvania may not be not widely known as a wine mecca, but it has produced award-winning wine in recent years. Its Mount Nittany vineyards offer a breathtaking view of the Tussey Mountain Range as well as producing quality wines.

In the South, Georgia is a good destination for wine lovers. The state’s wine making industry dates back to the Cherokee Indian Nation. As with North Carolina, prohibition devastated the wine industry in Georgia, however there has been a resurgence in recent years and now Georgia has 25 bonded wineries in production.

There are other scattered areas throughout the United States which produce a significant amount of wine, probably there is one close to where you live. Do a bit of investigating and you may find a great wine almost on your doorstep.

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