The McMinnville AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Yamhill County, Oregon. It is entirely contained within the Willamette Valley AVA, roughly running from McMinnville to Sheridan. The AVA was created as a result of a successful petition from Kevin Byrd of Youngberg Hill Vineyards. McMinnville is one of few AVAs that is designated in part based on elevation, with vineyards required to be between 200 ft and 1000 ft above sea level, where the soil and rock formations differ from surrounding areas. Primarily uplifted marine sedimentary loams and silt, the top soil is shallow and relatively infertile.