Gallo Winery gets AVA expansion (US)

After years of regulatory wrangling, mega-producer E & J. Gallo Winery has emerged victorious in its quest to enlarge the Russian River Valley (RRV) AVA in a decision announced by the Alcohol and Tobacco Trade Bureau on 16 Noember which became effective on 16 Decenber. As requested in the petition from Gallo Family Vineyards, the ruling expands the RRV AVA by 14,044 acres and the overlapping Northern Sonoma AVA by 44,244 acres. The AVA now covers parts of what most locals might consider Central/Southern Sonoma or the Petaluma Gap.