In Sonoma Wine Shoots Down Cannabis

"Big wine" wins for now.

The little town of Sonoma (pop. 11,000) is known for boutique shops, restaurants, visitors, and, oh yeah, wine tasting rooms. Under California Prop 64 voters legalized marijuana sales for recreational use. Well, the town of Sonoma isn't about to let in that competition. In fact, they don't even have a beer taproom downtown. Hmm.

Voters were going to decide this November on allowing cannabis businesses in town. The city council decided to delay the vote for a couple years. Maybe in that time people will just kinda forget about it?

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What to Drink for the Rest of the Summer

It's still summer and it's still hot in most places and maybe you're tired as hell of rosé. Or like me you never got too excited by the rosé fad. What can you do?

Napa's Monocropping vs Sonoma's Diversity

  In agriculture monocropping is defined as growing one crop year after year on the same land. Obviously with vines you can't exactly rotate crops. What I mean here is the varieties of grapes  planted in the vineyards.

Getting More People Engaged With Premium Wine

Pretty much every wine made in Sonoma County, and most of coastal California, falls into the premium wine category. What is premium wine? It's anything over $20 or thereabouts. The inexpensive stuff, certainly under $10 is commercial grade. This wine is about quantity and made mechanically in an industrial setting.

How do you get more people engaged with more expensive wines?

Sonoma County Wine Shipments

The numbers for direct-to-consumer (DTC) shipping from Sonoma County's tasting rooms show strong sales. Overall wine shipments are flat in the U.S., but Sonoma County's are up 12% from last year.

The Three-Tier System

What is known as the 3-tier system for alcohol sales was set up after Prohibition. It separates producers, wholesalers, and retailers. During Prohibition you had mobsters bootlegging alcohol and they moved into the wholesales business after legalization (plus into other fields) and took their corrupt practices with them.

Here's a good read on the modern day problems with this system.

Alcohol Sales Control & Corruption from the Fermentation wine blog. 

California Agriculture and the Trade War

California is responsible for 11% of total U.S. exports. After Mexico and Canada, China is the state's next largest export destination. Computer equipment is high on the list of exports with China, but so is agriculture.

Top ag exports to China are nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios), cotton and wine.

Healdsburg, Sonoma County, California

Why should you come to Healdsburg and what fun can be had in town? Well, if you like to eat, drink, and shop there is plenty to do in Healdsburg with most of it within walking distance.

The town has gotten numerous glowing reviews from travel and wine writers over the past few years. Here's the latest from Vogue.

Beer is Flat

Okay, beer sales are flat. The incredible growth in the craft beer business couldn't go on forever. The American beer conglomerates, basically Anheuser-Busch and Miller-Coors, have been shrinking in share to beers with flavor. Who is winning in this battle? It appears wine.

Visiting Sonoma County This Summer? How to Pack

The weather in the Northern California wine country is not typical of most of the country.
Lots of visitors aren't prepared for the variable temps. If it seems a little crazy just remember the climate here is why we make such fantastic wine.

Friday's (not so PC) Wine Memes

It's Friday!
😀

Red, White, and Blue for the Fourth of July

Sorry about that blue wine shit.   :)

Fourth of July in Sonoma County

Here are the happenings for the mid-week holiday around the county. Lots of fireworks shows, of course.