California Association of Winegrape Growers — Many California winegrape growers in areas affected by wildfire smoke may wonder how grape prices and tonnage will be reported for the 2020 Grape Crush Report. All California processors who crush grapes should have received a Grape Crush Report questionnaire, which was mailed in October by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA)-Division of Marketing …

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire — and also lots of microorganisms, according to a new study from the University of Florida. For the first time, researchers have measured the number of microbes in smoke from fires in wilderness areas, also known as wildland fires. The researchers also found that a surprisingly high percentage of microbes survive the blazes and are lofted into …

Foundation Plant Services (FPS) has been testing grapevines in its foundation vineyards for grapevine red blotch virus (GRBV) since 2013. Red blotch infection rates have remained extremely low in the Classic Foundation Vineyard, ranging from 0% to 0.21% since 2013. None of the 4,270 vines were infected in 2020 (see table). Russell Ranch Vineyard (RRV) remained unaffected until 2017 when …

Seghesio Family Vineyards announced a historic milestone as it celebrates its 125th harvest in Sonoma County this fall. Representing the past, present and future of old vine Zinfandel, Seghesio is best associated with the historic role it played in creating a spiritual home for its flagship grape. A unique variety with no prior old-world benchmark, Seghesio helped define Zinfandel as …

The California Mid-State Fair is pleased to announce the winners of the 18th annual Central Coast Wine Competition (CCWC) presented by SLO Life Magazine, the Central Coast Spirits Competition (CCSC) and the Central Coast Vinegar Competition (CCVC). The blind-tasting event, held October 12-14 at the Paso Robles Event Center, is the largest wine competition on California’s Central Coast, which encompasses …

Under sunny fall skies the harvest of table grapes continues in the San Joaquin Valley, moving steadily toward its December conclusion according to Kathleen Nave, president of the California Table Grape Commission. “Fall is a beautiful time of year to harvest grapes in California,” said Nave. “The vineyards are full of fruit, the mornings are cool and the afternoons are …

These red wines were 20 years in the making; or rather, the grape vines took two decades to develop. Whitehall Lane joined forces with Dr. Andrew Walker of UC Davis and Dr. Paul Skinner of Vineyard Investigations in Napa Valley and planted these experimental grape varieties because they are highly resistant to Pierce’s disease. Pierce’s disease is caused by a …

California Department of Food & Agriculture — Free raisin tonnage produced by handlers in 2019 totaled 24,844 tons, up from the 9,423 tons reported in 2018. This figure does NOT include raisins purchased from other handlers or producers. The total 2019 raisin crop purchased from producers, for whom pricing had been finalized, reached 145,145 tons at an average price of $1,162 per ton, down significantly …