Afternoon Brief: Wine Market Council Tackles Domestic Wine Industry's Current Setbacks

This past April 2 at the 2025 Wine Market Council (WMC) Annual Research Conference and Members Meeting, held in the City of Napa, there were some illuminating discussions on the overall state of the American wine industry...

When it comes to selling vineyard or winery property, it’s not just about location—it's about clarity, compliance, and confidence. That’s where Ray Carlson & Associates comes in. With more than 40 years of experience in surveying and land consulting, Ray Carlson & Associates helps wine industry professionals protect their investment and maximize value by providing comprehensive, high-precision land surveys. Whether you're selling your estate or subdividing a large property, a survey is more than a technical requirement—it’s a strategic tool. Why a Land Survey Matters When Selling Selling a vineyard or winery often involves complex property features—easements, access roads, water rights, and unique zoning requirements. A boundary dispute or an overlooked flood zone designation can delay or derail a deal. Ray Carlson & Associates offers a suite of services to ensure your transaction goes smoothly: Boundary and Easement Sur

When it comes to buying or selling land, especially in the wine industry, it's crucial to ensure that property boundaries are clearly defined. One of the most important tools for achieving this is an ALTA/NSPS survey - an industry standard for real estate transactions.  Ray Carlson & Associates specializes in provided detailed ALTA surveys for wineries, vineyards and other wine industry properties. Understanding what an ALTA survey entails and why it's important can help ensure that your property transactions proceed smoothly.  What is an ALTA Survey?  An ALTA/NSPS survey is a type of land survey that adheres to specific standards set by the American Land Title Association (ALTA) and the National Society of Professional Surveyors (NSPS). These surveys are typically required for real estate transactions, particularly those involving title insurance. They provide a detailed report of the property's boundaries, improvements, easements, and any oth

Afternoon Brief: What a Century-Old Grapevine Reveals About a Disease That Plagues Wine Country

In a new study, researchers identified a 120-year old grapevine cutting in the UC Davis Center for Plant Diversity that still contained traces of X. fastidiosa DNA from the early 1900s...

Afternoon Brief: California Grapegrowers Race to Beat the Heat

Trucks full of wine grapes clogged roads all over northern California wine country this week as wineries raced to get their precious cargo into tanks before a brutal heatwave shriveled them to raisins...

Andy White, an Account Manager at Lumo and the author of this article, installing a Lumo smart valve.  I need to be honest with you about something…I had the idea for Lumo ten years ago. Well, that might be an overstatement. But at some point, I realized the flow meter was key for automation accountability. In fact, I’d bet you half the vineyard managers in Napa have had that idea at one point or another, because we’ve all found ourselves at the altar of the irrigation gods, praying that nothing is going terribly wrong with that automated timer system we set up a week ago and haven’t had a chance to go back to check on. And sure, from the outside looking in, you might wonder what would drive a vineyard manager to use a system with no built-in accountability, no remote control, no leak alerts or visibility into how much water you’re applying. Why would you put yourself in that position? It’s obviously not where you want to be. Of course it&