Sierra Foothills is a vast American Viticultural Area (AVA) encompassing portions of seven of the twelve California counties in the foothill "belt" of the Sierra Nevadas in north-central California, an interior range that extends about 360 mi (580 km) in a northwest-southeast orientation from Mt. Lassen to Walker Pass near Bakersfield. The viticultural area is approximately 160 mi (260 km) long and lies 40 mi (64 km) to the east of Sacramento. It was established on December 18, 1987 by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), Treasury after evaluating the petition filed by the Sierra Foothills Winery Association of Somerset, California for the establishment of a viticultural area named "Sierra Foothills" in portions of Yuba, Nevada, Placer, El Dorado, Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne and Mariposa Counties. Wine grapes were introduced to the area in the nineteenth century during the California Gold Rush of 1849. Over 280 vineyards/wineries are located within its boundaries.