It’s not hard to see the promise of AI on a vineyard: process a ton of information and get meaningful answers quickly. The problem is that no one knows how to get started. There are no clear standards, few proven playbooks, and almost no shared examples of AI delivering measurable results inside real vineyard operations.  How can you use AI on your vineyard? Keep reading... This article looks at how one vineyard management team approached AI not as a trend to adopt, but as a constraint to manage. They had too much information, too many variables and far too little human capacity to process them all. This is how they did it. The Question You Should Be Asking First A vineyard operations leader managing large-scale acreage described a situation where scale magnifies every inefficiency. Across thousands of acres and dozens of properties, the team was already using sensors, labor tracking systems, equipment data, compliance tools, and agronomic models. The problem was not lack of infor

If something is going to break this season, it won’t happen today. It’ll happen on your busiest day.  Spring is here — and for wineries, that means things are about to ramp up fast: More visitors. More orders. More shipments. More pressure on your systems. By the time something breaks, it’s already too late to fix it easily. So here’s a simple check most wineries overlook: Place a test order on your own website today. Go through the full experience like a customer: Is checkout fast and easy? Do discounts and club pricing apply correctly? Does the confirmation feel clear and professional? Does the order flow cleanly into your system? You’d be surprised how often this reveals small issues — before they become big problems. Many wineries are upgrading to Shopify for a faster, more modern storefront. And with Activ8 Commerce, that experience is fully connected and seamless — your orders, club activity, POS, and reporting all st

For winemakers and distillers, crafting exceptional beverages is only part of the journey. To ensure your product maintains its premium quality and reaches consumers in perfect condition, the preservation of both its taste and appearance is critical. This is where the often-overlooked factor of glass color comes into play. The color of your bottle can have a profound impact on the longevity, flavor stability, and overall appeal of your wine or spirit. By understanding how different glass colors protect against light damage, you can make more informed packaging choices that safeguard your product’s quality and enhance its shelf life. In this article, we’ll explore the science behind glass color and light exposure, explain how traditional and modern glass choices can protect your product, and provide insights into balancing practical preservation needs with aesthetic considerations. Whether you’re crafting aged whiskey or fine wine, the right glass color is more

Marketing budgets may be getting leaner but visitor expectations sure are not. One of the smartest moves a winery can make isn't a bigger spend: it's a shared one. Pooling resources with neighboring wineries doesn't dilute your brand. It amplifies it, elevates your entire area as a destination, and gives visitors a richer experience that keeps them coming back. At HipMaps we create custom-designed maps with an app that help wineries amplify their marketing, enhance the visitor experience, and easily refer business to each other in a unique and engaging way. Here's how it works: a group of wineries — whether a formal association like Alexander Valley Winegrowers or an informal collection of neighbors — pools together to create one beautiful, branded map featuring all of their locations, in the style and branding that reflects their area. Hear from HipMaps Founder Rachel LeRoy, see examples of how Alexander Valley Winegrowers and others are utilizing their Hip

Vineyard irrigation has a familiar frustration. You can do everything right and still end the day wondering whether each set actually ran the way you intended. A stuck valve, a pressure issue, a line break, or a simple timing miss can quietly turn into wasted water, uneven blocks, and unnecessary stress. In many vineyards, the only reliable way to catch those problems is still the old way. Drive out, walk the line, and check. At a time when the wine industry is navigating declining demand and tightening margins, lowering operational costs matters more than ever. Growers are looking for ways to cut labor, reduce water waste, and get more certainty from every dollar invested in the vineyard because the broader wine market continues to face headwinds. Global wine consumption has seen persistent downward pressure in recent years, and many regions are adjusting acreage and operations in response to weaker demand. Visit Verdi at Unified Verdi will be exhibiting at the 2026 Unified Wine &

WHY DEMOGRAPHICS STILL MATTER IN WINE At first glance, it may seem logical to take a broad approach to wine marketing—after all, shouldn’t the goal be to sell wine to anyone who’s willing to buy it? Not exactly. In practice, marketing to “everyone” is a fast track to appealing to no one. You water down your message, misfire your tactics, and wind up wasting both budget and energy trying to reach people who were never going to buy from you in the first place. Smart marketing is selective, not scattershot. And that’s where demographics come in. At their core, demographics are just the quantifiable details about your customers—things like age, gender, income, education, and marital status. But in the hands of a capable marketer, demographics become strategic tools. They help decode how different consumers make decisions, what cultural cues they respond to, and how best to approach them with offers they’ll actually care about. Wine, with all

Vineyard Robotics is transforming how wine grape growers monitor and manage their crop. Our AI-powered camera systems gather precise, vine-level data from bud break to bloom to harvest. Easily mount the system to any ATV, tractor, or farm vehicle and drive any speed from 1–12 mph past your rows. Our cameras capture accurate fruit counts, cluster size, color, bloom data, canopy vigor, and more. FruitScope OS lets you take action on your data in the field so you can plan efficiently, forecast reliably, and manage your vineyard with precision. Stop by booth 415 at the WIN Expo on December 4 and use promo code VIN415.

For many North Coast growers, Fleabane has gone from an occasional nuisance to a persistent challenge. Once it takes hold between rows or drip lines, it competes with young vines for moisture, slows canopy growth, and creates long-term pressure that can be costly to manage later in the season.  What’s catching many growers off guard right now is timing. Fleabane does most of its damage before spring even begins. By the time it becomes tall, fibrous, and woody, mechanical removal struggles, contact herbicides lose effectiveness, and regrowth surges after bud break.  Why Fleabane Persists  Unlike many annual weeds that fade with summer heat, fleabane germinates and seeds aggressively over winter, forming low mats that harden into upright stalks by early spring. That’s why post-harvest through dormancy (Q4) is often the most strategic time for control, not April or May when vineyard crews are already stretched across canopy management an