Est. 1985

San Joaquin Valley

Written by Fred Swan

The San Joaquin Valley is the southern half of California’s great Inland Valley, also known as the Central Valley. San Joaquin Valley includes all or part of eight counties: San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Fresno, Madera, Kings, Tulare, and Kern. At roughly 25,900 square km (10,000 square miles), the valley floor is larger than the entire state of Maryland. The valley includes vast tracts of flat land that is arable when supported by irrigation.

The San Joaquin River runs southwest, down from the eastern mountains and into the valley. When the river hits the center of the valley, it turns northwest, eventually emptying into the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, which connects to the greater San Francisco Bay complex. This river, along with the Kings and Kern Rivers, provide water which serves the valley’s massive agricultural industry.

By the numbers

12

AVAs
30+

Physical Wineries
10%

Total Plantings
69,823

Acreage Under Vine (Acres)
608,000

Crush (Tons)

28,256

Acreage Under Vine (Hectares)
34,4736,000

Crush (Liters)

Key Varieties

Chardonnay 14%, Zinfandel 14%, Cabernet Sauvignon 11%, French Colombard 10%, Merlot 8%, Rubired 6%, Pinot Gris 5%

Climate

Hot-summer Mediterranean in the north; Desert in the south

Key Soil Types

Tokay Sandy Loam - Mokelumne River AVA; Redding Clay - Borden Ranch, Clements Hills; San Joaquin Series

Overview

The massive San Joaquin Valley accounts for the southern half of California’s great Inland Valley. It is bounded on the east by the Sierra Nevada mountains, the Tehachapi Mountains to the south, and by coastal mountain ranges on the west. The northern end abuts the Sacramento Valley.

The San Joaquin Valley covers almost the same amount of land surface as its northern neighbor, but the two valleys differ in significant ways. Most importantly, the southerly location of the San Joaquin Valley and its greater isolation from the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay complex contribute to a hotter, drier climate.

Unlike the Sacramento Valley which is dominated by one river that runs throughout, the San Joaquin Valley can be seen as having a northern and southern half. The north features the San Joaquin River which heads west, downhill from the Sierra Nevada Range, then turns north on the valley floor to reach the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The southern portion features two different rivers, Kings and Kern, but they don’t leave the valley. Their waters are managed in order to provide water for the valley’s agriculture and southern towns.