This AVA was established in 2004 and is home to some of the finest Pinot Noir vineyards in the world.  It is located north of McMinnville, Oregon, in the Northern Willamette Valley, where the two small communities of Yamhill and Carlton meet.

Historically, this area was nourished by forestry and farming; but it is rapidly emerging as a global center of Pinot Noir production.  Once a final destination for early explorers of the of Oregon Trail, it is now  drawing a new kind of settler.  Winegrowers who are committed and passionate are drawn to the area’s unique growing conditions. The Coast Range to the west establishes a rain shadow over the entire area. The area is also protected by the Chehalem Mountains to the north and the Dundee Hills to the east. In addition to some of the oldest soils in the Willamette Valley, soils that drain quickly, makes it an ideal viticulture for the production of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Gamay, Pinot Blanc, Dolcetto, and Early Muscat.