Has the Tasting Room Lost Its Way?

I'm old enough to remember when the tasting room was a plank across a couple of barrels in a corner of the actual winery. You walked in, got a small, cheap excuse for a wine glass, the tasting list was on a chalkboard on the wall, and you tasted while standing at the bar. You either purchased or you didn't, but you went on your merry way after a half hour, no charge. The purpose, like the tasting room, was simple, to introduce you to their wines and hope to make you a customer.

Things have changed. It's not everywhere, but the Disneyland style is spreading.

Tariffs and the Wine Industry

What are the likely effects of the American tariffs and retaliatory tariffs on the American wine industry? This is educated guesswork, but we'll know for sure if the tariffs are still in place in a few months.

Why should you care? Besides price increases, there are well over a million jobs at stake.

Alternatives to Wine in Sonoma County

So you're not much of a wino, or someone in your group travelling to Sonoma County couldn't care less. What to do?

The Difference Between Inexpensive and Premium California Wines

   The biggest difference in wine quality relating to price is in the ten and twenty dollar bottles. Premium wines start in the $20 or $30 range. Upward from there, you will usually find increasing quality, but with diminishing returns. So what are the major distinctions between the cheap and the fancy stuff?

California Agriculture

California agriculture is big! How big is it? In production value, it leads the nation. Part of the reason is the number of high value crops such as nuts, dairy and, of course, wine grapes. It's a $60 billion industry, with $23 billion of it exported. The value of organic products is increasing significantly.

The next biggest ag states are Iowa, Texas, and Nebraska.

Sonoma County Events -- Summer 2025

A look at what's happening for the warm weather season in Sonoma County. Following are events scheduled from May through Sept 2025. This was published in late March, so there may be events added later.

Interesting Wine Trends

 Below are a few graphs on trends in wine. The first three are from the American Assoc. of Wine Economists, a world-wide organization based in New York. The last one from Gomberg-Fredrikson, of Sonoma, CA.

Who Makes California's Best Zinfandel?

Ah, Zinfandel, it's sort of California's own. There's quite a history to Zinfandel that was very mysterious until about 30 years ago. The short version is Zinfandel comes from a rare Croatian grape that took off in Italy as Primitivo and in California as Zinfandel.

So who are some of the top producers? Let's take a subjective look.

Why Low/No Alcohol Wines Taste Like Crap

There are some low or no alcohol beers that are pretty good, that taste similar enough to regular beer to be enjoyable. It seems like the wines aren't good enough, yet anyway. So why are low and no alcohol wines so crappy?

Old Style Napa

This is an interesting read about a few grape growers and winemakers who are stuck in the mid-20th century, and I mean that in a good way.

Cathy Corison, a hero to some
image from wannabewino

Napa Traditionalists from The New Wine Review.

Carbon Footprint of Wine Production

The carbon footprint of a business is the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by the organization or product. Greenhouse gases are what is causing our climate to change so rapidly. Wineries, like any business, are part of the problem, and many are looking at what they can do to limit their effect. Good for them.

The Great Grape Migration

As temperatures warm, vineyards will have to move. Premium grapes are very susceptible to temperature changes, as each variety operates in a small window of temperatures.

Historical Wineries in Napa & Sonoma

Wineries for the history buff.

High Tasting Rooms Fees and the Visitor Slowdown

It may not be news to you that wine bottle prices and wine tasting fees have gone up substantially since the end of the Pandemic lockdown. Why? Supply and demand. People wanted to get out and do things, whether it was wine tasting in Napa or buying a new car. Consumers were throwing their credit cards around and saying, "Here, take my money!"

It wasn't just the wine, as lodging and restaurant prices jumped. All of a sudden, a trip to wine country was going to cost real money. 

The Small 2024 Calif Grape Crush

Per the U.S. Dept of Agriculture (USDA), the 2024 California wine grape crush was the smallest in 25 years. Total crush size was 2.844 million tons, a 23% decline for 2023's 3.7 million tons. Average grape prices fell 5%, but the previous year was the highest ever, so not really a meaningful decline. 

These numbers are state-wide. Three-fourths of California's wine grapes come from the Central Valley. Napa and Sonoma Counties are each about 4% of the state's total.

Watering Back Wine

Watering back wine is the practice of diluting the grape juice before fermenting it into wine. The purpose is to decrease the alcohol content of the finished wine. At least that was the idea when the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau that controls wine in the U.S. first allowed the practice in 2002.

Things may have gone awry. 

Wineries That Built Sonoma County

Sonoma County came to prominence as a premium wine producer in the last three decades of the 20th century. Following are some of the wineries that put Sonoma on the wine map. A few of these are historical properties, others came along with the 1970s and 1980s boom time for premium wines. You could say these wineries defined what Sonoma County wine is now.

Appellation of Origin on a Wine Label

The Treasury Department sets labeling laws for alcoholic products. These are usually set and occasionally modified by feedback from interested parties, aka lobbyists. One that needs a change is for wines labeled as American, as in American Merlot. 

Rosé

Rosé wine is a big deal in the U.S. It wasn't always this way. Rosé sales for wine over $7 went from a measly 150,000 cases in 2010 to 2.3 million ten years later!

A look at rosé in the U.S.

The Wine Country for All of Us

Travelzoo is a travel club. You join to get special offers for trips. 

For 2025, Travelzoo chose Sonoma County as one of their nine worldwide best bets calling it the wine country for all of us.

You've been to Napa and Sonoma, now what?

If you've had trips to Napa Valley and neighboring Sonoma County, but want something new, where do you go? 

Alcohol Warning Labels

 The outgoing Surgeon General would like to put cancer warning labels on all alcoholic beverages. Dr. Brian Lawenda, a Harvard-trained oncologist, thinks wine might be the exception. He is on Facebook if you'd like to read what he has to say.

 Dr. Lawenda stated that some studies show the moderate consumption of wine may not increase your cancer risk and may actually decrease the risk for certain types of cancer. This isn't definitive, that's why he says, may not increase your risk.

 There is a lot of detail on his Facebook post dated Jan 5, 2025. Read it and decide for yourself. Wine may be the wise choice.

Excerpt from his post

 Thanks to FB user Sierra Wine Guy for bringing this to my attention.

About Pinot Noir, Part 2 (California)

  The previous post, About Pinot Noir, Part 1, is concerning the origins and characteristics of Pinot. This one relates to Pinot Noir in California and Sonoma County.

About Pinot Noir, Part 1

  You could call it America's most trendy premium wine. Part 1 is a short history of Pinot Noir and some of its unique characteristics. The next post, Part 2, is on Pinot in California.

True Family-Owned Wineries

Some visitors are interested in visiting the smaller, family-owned wineries rather than those with some sort of corporate ownership. Finding true family operations is not that easy, as there's a definite gray area. Let me explain.

Oh oh, here's what's up for 2025 in wine

Trust me. It'll all come true.

Wine One-Liners

 It's a good way to start off the new year.