NEW WINE COUNTRY

DES MOINES, Iowa--

A new federal ruling literally puts Iowa on the map as part of the largest wine region in the entire country.

It could help the state's economy by bringing in wine-loving tourists.





The Jasper Winery near Waterworks Park in Des Moines is one more reason the Midwest may soon be the biggest wine region in the country.

"We're kind of riding the wave of people wanting to drink wine and support their local winery," said Jasper Winery's Mason Groben.

Groben said business is booming at the family business and it may get even better thanks to a new federal ruling. It creates America's biggest wine region, called the Upper Mississippi River Valley.





When you think wine country, the Napa Valley in California comes to mind. It's about 759 square miles. The new Mississippi River Valley Wine Region is nearly 30,000 square miles, 39 times the size of Napa Valley. That's big news for Midwestern wine makers.

"The wine from that area has characteristics that no one else in the world has. It's a great marketing tool to help support the region," said Groben.

The Jasper Winery and others in Central Iowa can use the new Upper River Mississippi Valley name on their bottles only if they use grapes from eastern Iowa. Still, they know the new wine region designation will spill over to all parts of the state as well.

"It's just going to add more recognition and bring in tourism for wineries around the state," said Groben.

Wineries in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois have been asking for the new wine designation for years, but it may take a while for the Mississippi to catch up with places like the Napa Valley.
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