North Bay Business Journal

After three consecutive years with early and late rains and hard frosts in some areas negatively impacting winegrape production, growers and wineries in the North Bay and coastal regions of California cling to hope for sustainable yields and better returns in 2012 and beyond.

Longtime Mendocino County winegrape grower Bill Pauli was elected chairman of the California Association of Winegrape Growers at its Nov. 10 board meeting.

According to Brian’s Dictionary of Wine, the term hang time designates three related times: a time of flavor development for grapes, a time of anxiety and expectation for winemakers and a time of dread, despair and paranoia for grape growers. The poor grape broker’s job is to try to reconcile these three times to keep everyone happy — a tough task in a year like 2011, when no one is anything remotely like happy.

The 2011 winegrape harvest finally is getting under way in Napa County, as sparkling wine producers start crushing a crop is later and appears to be lighter than normal and even last year’s weather-wearied vintage. Domaine Chandon started bringing in Napa fruit Friday. Mumm Napa and Schramsberg Vineyards plan to do so Monday; Domain Carneros, Wednesday.

I stood in the rain and checked the calendar on my watch. It said June but it sure looked like January. I was standing in a merlot vineyard with the self-proclaimed “Best Damn Grower in Dry Creek.” (I probably should not mention that his name is Jim Ricci, so keep that to yourself.) This grower was convinced, as growers often are, that the merlot crop will be light this year. I tried to disagree, but it was hard to argue with him in the pouring rain.

Viticulturists trained at U.C., Davis have some high-tech methods for early season crop estimates. These techniques involve infinitesimal calculus and the molecular weights of certain tannin compounds.

The Sonoma County Winegrape Commission will be hosting weekly meetings in March, April and May to assist growers with the mandatory registration for all Russian River Watershed grape growers who frost protect with water.

Sonoma-based Cecchetti Wine Co. reported that it had its third year of volume sales growth. Roy Cecchetti’s goal of making lower-priced wines has resulted in 200,000 cases sold in 2010, a 39 percent increase from 2009. The winery is projecting sales of 250,000 cases total this year. … Winners from vineyard pruning contests in Mendocino, Sonoma and Napa counties. … A California Department of Industrial Relations Division of Labor Standards Enforcement opinion letter has added new wrinkles to the quandary over whether student interns have to be paid at least minimum wage as employees, according to Jennifer Phillips, an employment and real estate attorney with Dickenson Peatman & Fogarty in Santa Rosa. … Graton-based custom winemaker Sonoma Wine Co., which now produces more than 5 million cases of wine from six facilities in Sonoma and Napa counties, inked a deal with Sebastopol-based Winesecrets to provide services to Sonoma Wine’s 30 clients. … Golden State Overnight and FedEx expand direct-shipping services. … Bill Hambrecht teams with Paul and Heath Dolan and Phil Hurst in the H.D.D. wine group venture. … Dry Creek Vineyard entered a sales and marketing agreement with Sonoma-based V2 Wine Group, which will manage Dry Creek’s distribution nationwide.

Buried in the recently released 2010 California Grape Crush report are important considerations for North Coast winegrape growers this year.

NORTH COAST — Partly expected from the rains and scorching hot weather at key points during the winegrape season last year and weak market for high-end grapes, the 2010 harvest was 13.6 percent smaller in revenue and 4.7 percent smaller in tonnage than in 2009, according to preliminary state figures released today.

SANTA ROSA — The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday is set to consider final details for the recently adopted Sonoma County Vineyard and Orchard Frost Protection Ordinance before growers are required to start registering their water-based frost-fighting systems on March 1.

SANTA ROSA — The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors has postponed until Feb. 8 a hearing on final details for the recently adopted Sonoma County Vineyard and Orchard Frost Protection Ordinance before growers are required to start registering their water-based frost-fighting systems on March 1. However, county staff did unveil proposed fees for registration, monitoring Russian River watershed streamflow during frost protection and reporting the results to state water regulators.

SACRAMENTO — Sales of wine in restaurants are improving but will be challenging for the next five years amid a lasting consumer shift to “value,” but growers of grapes for ultrapremium-priced wines are facing higher costs than are covered by the increasing number of grape buyers, according to experts at a major wine industry conference in Sacramento today.

SONOMA AND MENDOCINO COUNTIES — The impact of proposed state rules controlling the use of Russian River basin water to protect winegrapes and other crops from frost damage could exceed $2.1 billion from lost business income, tax revenue, land values and 8,000-plus jobs in Sonoma and Mendocino counties, according to a new study by a Sonoma State University economist.

GEYSERVILLE — M. Draxton Inc. is one of the options North Coast winegrape growers have for extending the marketability of their crops in case they have unsold grapes at harvest.

Also: Jess Jackson, Kunde and Balletto families receive honors

NORTH BAY — U.S. Agriculture Department’s Natural Resources Conservation Service today said it has set aside $1 million to help farmers in seven California counties, including four in the North Bay, pay for environmentally friendly options control the spread of the European grapevine moth, which can destroy winegrape crops.

NORTH COAST – The Pierce’s Disease/Glassy-winged Sharpshooter (PD/GWSS) Referendum to continue wine grapegrowers’ self-assessment that funds research on Pierce’s disease and the glassy-winged sharpshooter passed

UKIAH — Thirteen European grapevine moths, which can destroy whole crops in certain stages of development, were found in a vineyard in north Ukiah, expanding the fight against the grape cluster pest from Napa, Sonoma and Solano counties.

NORTH BAY – State, federal and local agriculture officials are expanding the quarantine areas for the European grapevine moth in Napa and Sonoma counties after the insect was found in Kenwood, Sonoma and Calistoga.