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Posted on 10/13/2025 6:23:18 AM PDT by Red Badger
(FOX40.COM) — According to the California Association of Winegrape Growers, the Golden State produces about 80% of all wine in the United States.
The wine industry has been a major economic driver for the state for decades. Creating hundreds of thousands of jobs, generating billions in revenue, and attracting tourism.
However, now the state’s wine industry is in a crisis, tackling several challenges. It’s an impact affecting local farmers and wineries in Northern California
“I am fourth-generation farmer here in Clarksburg for my family’s farm, Wilson Vineyards, and I am the owner and winemaker of Silt Wine Company,” said David Ogilvie.
Just like many grape growers in California, this year some of Ogilvie’s grapes will go unpicked because of no buyers.
“This is the first time, in my family’s history, that this block is going unsold,” Ogilvie explained.
The block he is referring to is a section about 15 acres big and unfortunately, not the only grapes that will remain on the vine this harvest season.
“It’s an economic hit to the family farm. When we have multiple blocks like we do this year that will go on unharvested, it hurts,” Ogilvie said.
“Growers throughout California are facing an immense amount of challenges today and really, it’s not just one singular challenge. It is a host of challenges that have all stacked up and have really made things pretty dire here, Natalie Collins, President of the California Association of Winegrape Growers, said.
She said some of the challenges include a decrease in consumption by the younger generation, an oversupply of grapes, and an increase in cheaper imports.
“We’ve seen bulk wine, flood into the U.S. it’s up 17% year to date,” said Collins, “We get calls daily at our association from growers looking for answers. What can I do next? Sadly, there are generational farmers who are going out of business.”
Collins added this harvest season, more grapes will go unharvested while other vineyards will simply be lost.
“We removed over 37,000 acres of vineyards last year and there’s a call for another 50,000 to be removed,” Collins said.
“We are seeing, you know, a loss of jobs. Farm workers are struggling. The trucking companies are going to be struggling. Our suppliers, our barrel companies, the grapevine nurseries are fertilizer companies,” said Stuart Spencer, executive director of the Lodi Winegrape Commission.
Spencer added the farmers and wineries in the region are adapting during these challenging times. Finding new ways to bring in more consumers into the wine industry.
Spencer explained that right now, the biggest push is for people to support local.
“You know, we need to support local businesses. That’s how we all benefit. When you go to the stores, you know, look where your food comes from, look where your wine comes from and support Californians. It’ll benefit all of us,” Spencer said.
While the future of the wine industry in the Golden State is unknown, grape growers and winemakers in Northern California are hopeful.
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wine is too expensive. no wonder consumption is down.
Gen X, Y, Z don’t much care for wine...........
Newsome is trying to figure out how to force EV drivers to consume grape juice in their cars like ethanol in gas cars.
What we basically have here is a supply and demand problem.
Oversupply coupled with little demand and they wonder why............
All the farmlands in Delaware are now becoming housing developments.
If you going to talk sensibly, what hope is there for getting the crowds marching and chanting "la-test thing! la-test thing!"
I'm sure there are certain limitations to land that's good for growing grapes (i.e. it may not be good for switching to cranberries). But surely that land can grow something else.
I have never seen so many wineries and vineyards in Texas.
At some point Sweden was buying up Spanish Wine and using it to fuel their city buses. Might be a good way to use the oversupply as a “Flex Fuel”. :)
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“Serious question: Can the vineyard lands be used to grow something else that will sell?”
There is more to the wine industry than the land the grapes are grown on.
Wine is overpriced compared to other forms of alcohol.
And it seems drinking is not in fashion with the younger generations.
When has there ever NOT been a crisis in California wine country? Apart from a few large commercially wineries, owning a vineyard has always been a vanity hobby for the rich that is a financial blackhole.
They don’t drink wine and they don’t drink beer... They all want soda pop booze... In the past young women typically drank wine and men drank beer... Now they both go for soda pop booze... It taste like soda pop and they get drunk off it... Kind of like lemon-gin without the bad taste and puking that results from drinking lemon-gin.
Of course it can be re-allotted to other crops. But that would take a while................
"Two Buck Chuck" (Charles Schwab) is grown in California, it is not expensive, and is very good at the price point.
‘Supply & Demand’ is a Capitalist thingy.
They don’t understand Capitalist thingies..............
California wines are indeed overpriced. The big box stores are selling quality Argentine Malbec for less than ten bucks. There is nothing comparable with a USA label.
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