The Ozark Highlands AVA, established in 1987, is located in southern Missouri in the Ozark Mountains. As with numerous appellations outside of the western states, this is a very large AVA, encompassing 1.2 million acres. While fruit wines were previously quite important, production recently has shifted to hybrid and international varieties, such as Norton, Chardonel, Pinot Noir and Syrah. There are about a dozen wineries in this zone; most of the wine is consumed locally. (Wine/Appellations)