The winery and vineyards don't have to be contiguous, but they have to be located in the same appellation. In the U.S., the "estate" term has been expanded to include not only vineyards owned by a wine label, but also ones that are managed or controlled by the winery, even if they're actually owned by someone else.

Concha y Toro, which owns 2,656 acres of vineyards including 1,144 acres at Fetzer and Bonterra in Mendocino, claims to be the world's largest owner of vineyards since Treasury Estates sold the 275 acres around its venerable Asti Winery to Gallo, dropping it to 10,670.

An estate winery is a winery where the vineyards and each step of the winemaking process is controlled by the winery. This means the winery manages the entire winemaking process, from grape growing to bottling.

Prince Edward County hosts over 40 wineries and is Ontario's newest wine region. Wineries in the area take pride in the fact that everyone is very different. Talk to anyone from The County and they each have a different favourite winery for a different reason.