As powdery mildew begins to develop resistance to our traditional fungicides, it is more important than ever that growers apply just the right products at the right times, and a new mildew spore trapping technology is now available to help growers better diagnose what’s out in the field. Watch this brief interview with Dan Rodrigues from Vina Quest and the Cal Poly Viticulture & Enology Department as he explains.
Grape growers last summer experienced some pretty significant periods of hot weather that, for some, negatively impacted the health of their vines and crop yield. In the center of much of this heat, Fresno County UCCE Viticulture Advisor George Zhuang has been researching ways to reduce the impact of such temperatures which are sure to return to both the Central Valley and other parts of the state. Watch this brief interview with George, reporting from the Grape, Nut & Tree Fruit Expo as he explains. Read more about it in American Vineyard Magazine.
As if California grape growers didn’t have enough pest issues to deal with, UCCE Entomologist Surendra Dara reported a recent resurgence of the Western Grapeleaf Skeletonizer in California. Watch this brief interview with Dara, as he shares where the pest is resurfacing and how growers can manage it both conventionally and organically. Read more about it in American Vineyard Magazine. Don’t currently receive the publication? Subscribe for free at https://malcolmmedia.com/american-vineyard-subscriptions/.
Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Napa Valley, CA), the founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Wine Caucus, announced today that Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Yakima Valley, WA) has been selected as the new Co-Chair of the Wine Caucus. Newhouse, a lifelong farmer and winegrape grower, represents the premier wine regions of Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley and the Walla Walla Valley. Newhouse will serve as only the fifth Co-Chair of the Wine Caucus in its 20-year history and the first Co-Chair from outside of California.
“Over the years, Mike has built the Wine Caucus into a bipartisan institution on Capitol Hill and an invaluable resource for the 10,000 wineries all across the country,” said Robert P. “Bobby” Koch, President & CEO of Wine Institute. “We are thrilled with the selection of Rep. Newhouse as the new caucus Co-Chair and know that he and Mike will continue to do everything they can to support and grow value-added agriculture like wine. Rep. Newhouse’s vast experience in agriculture in the Pacific Northwest will only strengthen the caucus as it pursues key industry priorities including renewal of the Craft Beverage Modernization Act and opening up critical export markets.”
“When the Congressional Wine Caucus was founded, we had a mission to educate our fellow Members about the strong economic contributions made by grapegrowers and winemakers to our communities and to ensure they have a voice in Congress. I am proud that my new Co-Chair, Rep. Dan Newhouse, is a fellow grapegrower and knows these issues firsthand,” said Thompson. “Together we will continue our mission of advocacy and education in order to support our nation’s incredible wine community from the vineyard to the glass.”
“I am proud to represent the flourishing, high-quality wine region of Central Washington, and I am honored to join my friend and colleague Rep. Mike Thompson to serve as the first Co-Chair of the Congressional Wine Caucus from Washington State,” said Rep. Newhouse. “Mike truly understands the priorities and concerns of the wine community, and I look forward to working with him to ensure that our nation’s wine industry – from winegrape growers to winemakers and sellers – can continue to thrive and grow.”The Congressional Wine Caucus was founded in 1999 to educate Members of Congress on the many benefits and challenges of growing winegrapes and making wine. The Caucus hosts numerous events and policy briefings throughout the year designed to foster collaboration between policy makers and grapegrowers and winemakers with the goal of promoting a vibrant and sustainable American wine industry.
Wine Institute is the public policy advocacy association of nearly 1,000 California wineries and affiliated businesses working at the state, national and international levels to enhance the environment to responsibly produce, promote and enjoy wine. California wineries are responsible for 81% of U.S wine production and more than 90% of U.S. wine exports. They also contribute $114 billion annually to the U.S. economy and create 786,000 jobs across the country of which 325,000 are in California, bolstering economies through hospitality, taxes and tourism and enhancing communities through environmental and social sustainability. See: www.wineinstitute.org.
California’s 2018 grape acreage totaled 925,000 acres. Of the total grape acreage, 863,000 were bearing while 62,000 were non-bearing. The wine-type grape acreage is estimated at 637,000 acres. Of the total acres, 590,000 were bearing and 47,000 were non-bearing. Table-type grape acreage totaled 132,000 acres with 121,000 bearing and 11,000 non-bearing. Acreage of raisin-type grapes totaled 156,000 acres, of which 152,000 were bearing and 4,000 were non-bearing.
The leading wine-type varieties continued to be Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. Flame Seedless was the leading table-type grape variety. Thompson Seedless continued to be the leading raisin-type variety and was utilized for raisins, fresh market, concentrate, and wine.
OBJECTIVES
The California Department of Food and Agriculture partners with the Pacific Regional Office of the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) to conduct an annual acreage survey of California grape growers. The purpose of this survey is to provide annual grape acreage with information on new plantings and removals. It is a continuation of a long series of industry- funded grape acreage surveys.
This report consists of two parts:
Estimated grape acreage — bearing, non-bearing, and total.
Detailed data by variety, and year planted — as voluntarily reported by grape growers and maintained in our database.
With perfect information, the estimated grape acreage and the detailed data would be the same. However, this will never be the case for the following reasons:
A voluntary survey of approximately 8,300 grape growers is unlikely to attain 100 percent completeness.
It is difficult to detect growers who are planting grapes for the first time.
The detailed data reflects vine removals from over 17,000 acres during the past twelve months. Of this number, significant acreage was harvested in 2018 prior to being pulled out. As a result, harvested acreage removed in 2018 is included in the estimated acreage, but excluded from the detailed data.
PROCEDURES
The major source of the grape detailed data was a questionnaire mailed to all grape growers from our database. The mailing was sent in late October 2018 to approximately 8,300 grape growers. The questionnaire contained previously reported crop, variety, and acreage information preprinted. Producers were asked to update the information with new plantings, removals, and any other corrections; new growers were mailed a blank questionnaire. Growers were given six weeks to respond by mail. A telephone follow-up was then undertaken. Field personnel personally visited large growers who did not respond by mail.
To arrive at the estimated grape acreage, the grape acreage data base was compared with data provided from the 2017 Census of Agriculture and the Department of Pesticide Regulation.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We sincerely thank the many farm operators, owners, and management firms providing the information. Funding was provided by an assessment on wine grapes plus funding from the California Table Grape Commission and the Raisin Administrative Committee.
Insects are much easier to manage when they start off the season in similar stages of development. Unfortunately, that is not always the case, especially when you start off the season with inconsistent weather patterns. Watch this brief interview with UCCE Entomologist out of Kern County, David Haviland, as he explains this with regard to mealybugs.
The 2018 crush totaled 4,506,583 tons, up 6.2 percent from the 2017 crush of 4,241,945 tons. Red wine varieties accounted for the largest share of all grapes crushed, at 2,447,930 tons, up 8.8 percent from 2017. The 2018 white wine variety crush totaled 1,833,755 tons, up 3.8 percent from 2017. Tons crushed of raisin type varieties totaled 82,508, down 12.5 percent from 2017, and tons crushed of table type varieties totaled 142,391, up 8.0 percent from 2017.
The 2018 average price of all varieties was $831.63, up 6.8 percent from 2017. Average prices for the 2018 crop by type were as follows: red wine grapes, $1,019.03, up 5.5 percent from 2017; white wine grapes, $634.84, up 8.0 percent from 2017; raisin grapes, $299.48, up 18.4 percent; and table grapes, $192.01, up 7.6 percent.
Leading Grape Varieties and Districts
In 2018, Chardonnay continued to account for the largest percentage of the total crush volume with 15.8 percent. Cabernet Sauvignon accounted for the second leading percentage of crush with 15.1 percent. Thompson Seedless, the leading raisin grape variety crushed for 2018, was only 1.5 percent of the total crush.
District 13, (Madera, Fresno, Alpine, Mono, Inyo Counties; and Kings and Tulare Counties north of Nevada Avenue (Avenue 192)), had the largest share of the State’s crush, at 1,370,068 tons. The average price per ton in District 13 was $318.38.
Grapes produced in District 4 (Napa County) received the highest average price of $5,571.44 per ton, up 6.6 percent from 2017. District 3 (Sonoma and Marin counties) received the second highest return of $2,817.92, up 0.3 percent from 2017. The 2018 Chardonnay price of $970.76 was up 5.1 percent from 2017, and the Cabernet Sauvignon price of $1,683.25 was up 8.3 percent from 2017. The 2018 average price for Zinfandel was $600.21, up 1.5 percent from 2017, while the Pinot Noir average price was down 0.9 percent from 2017 at $1,674.62 per ton.
Don’t miss the May issue of American Vineyard Magazine for a full analysis of the 2018 California grape crush. Click on the image below to view the entire Grape Crush Report from USDA.
Nematodes are are pests of a host of crops, but what are the options for controlling them in vineyards? Watch this brief video interview with UC Cooperative Extension Viticulture Advisor Karl Lund as he shares both pre and post-planting options for managing nematodes. Some of these options are even compatible for organic growers, so check it out, and read more about it in American Vineyard Magazine.
Looking for instant pest, disease and nutritional recommendations in the palm of your hand? Download the new Vineyard Advisor app, free and applicable to grape growers nationwide. The app was developed by viticulture experts at Texas Tech University, as represented by Ed Hellman in this video interview. Watch the brief interview as professor Hellman as he shares more details about this new app.