This blog post summarizes the process by which licensed wineries can obtain local government approval for events in Napa County held pursuant to their California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (“ABC”) Type 93 Estate Tasting Permit. As discussed in our prior post, last year Governor Newsom signed into law AB720, granting California wineries that hold an ABC Type 02 winery license the ability to host events, up to 36 times per year, where they exercise tasting room privileges for wine manufactured by or for the winery on either: (1) property adjacent to the licensed premises or (2) a nonadjacent vineyard provided that such property or vineyard is owned by or under the control of the winery. (Cal. Bus. Prof. Code 23399.03.) Neither ABC nor Napa County have provided guidance as to what degree or proof of “control” is required. Under AB 720, these new Type 93 estate tasting events are also subject to local land use controls that can “restrict, but no

If this year is defined by a singular emotion, it’s anxiety. That’s nothing new in farming, however I’m talking about anxiety over the abysmal grape market rather than any natural phenomenon. Many of us were so busy scrambling for buyers, we may have forgotten to notice just how great the weather has been. Why wouldn’t we get handed a great year when most of us can’t sell any grapes? Let’s look at some numbers My gut feeling was that 2025 was similar to 2023 with a few big differences. 2023 saw some record high rainfall in the winter and early spring throughout California. Even the Paso Robles area got around 21” of rain from July 1st 2022 to July 1st 2023, up from a whopping 6.5” the year prior. That amounted to lots of nice canopy development early in the year and some good yield potential, provided you didn’t get shatter during the chilly springtime. This year however, the Central Coast was back to a measly <7” of rain w

Introduction: Raising the Bar for Quality and Efficiency in Winemaking In today’s competitive wine industry, producing a high-quality product is no longer optional - it’s essential. Wineries of all sizes are constantly looking for ways to optimize their processes and improve quality. With Pall Crossflow Filtration, KH Tec Gas Management and Krones / Kosme Bottling Equipment, Peregrine is at the forefront of technology. In today’s report we want to focus on the critical area that often gets overlooked: filtration. At Peregrine Mobile Bottling, we believe the right filtration technology operated by an experienced technician can be a game-changer. That’s why we’ve invested in the latest crossflow filtration systems to ensure your wines maintain their integrity, clarity, and taste from tank to bottle. In this article, we’ll explore the transformative power of crossflow filtration technology and how our services can help wineries in Napa, Sonoma, Mendoci

Napa Organizations Partner to Educate the Community on Fire Protection

Napa, CA (March 4, 2024) – The Napa Valley Grapegrowers (NVG), Napa Valley Vintners (NVV), CAL FIRE/Napa County Fire, and Napa Firewise are co-hosting the 3rd annual community-wide Fire Resources Fair […]

Afternoon Brief, March 24th

Napa Organizations Join Forces to Protect the Community from Wildfire: This annual fair brings together members of the wine industry, Napa residents, community organizations and local businesses to learn how they can help prevent or mitigate wildfires...

With the Season of Giving upon us, we have been thinking through all of the wonderful charitable organizations “on the ground” in Napa and Sonoma Counties, and how we can best support them this year. Many found our annual list helpful so here we are with the 2022 edition. As you shop for the season please keep these in mind, and join us in giving generously! Charitable Organizations in Wine Country These organizations vary from specific funds such as animal to more expansive education and service organizations. Napa Valley Education Foundation (website) Sonoma Community Foundation (website) Napa Valley COAD (website) Sonoma County Grapegrowers Foundation (website) Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation (website) La Luz in Sonoma (website) Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch (website) Napa Community Animal Response Team (CART) (website) Napa Humane (website) Sonoma Community Animal Response Team (CART) (website) California Fire Foundation (website) Queen of the Valley Medica

A second consecutive lighter-than-average harvest across the state has further solidified the tightening of bulk wine actively for sale. There are currently fewer lots available than we ever have listed in mid-January, and the last time we had as few gallons available at this time of year was in 2012 following the light 2011 harvest. The primary difference in the supply picture today is the lack of older vintage wines. From 2014 to 2020, Turrentine Brokerage listed an average of nearly 10 million gallons of past vintage wine. Currently, there are approximately 4 million gallons of 2020 or older vintage wine available and there likely will not be much of an increase moving forward. Supply contract approvals are ongoing, and 2021 vintage wines are being listed for sale every day as producers identify what they will have available.  The tighter supply has brought sporadic bulk market demand; a marked change in demand from last year following the post-fire surge from a few large wine

With the recent launch of our new website (!!!), we are excited to share even more valuable and insightful information on how BERGIN crafts distinctive packaging solutions that elevate your brand.  Whether it's one of our screen printing, etching or dressing projects, when you visit our new SHOWCASE page, you will find a plethora of content walking you through each process of working with our clients to achieve their packaging visions. We hope this series will make you fall in love with bottle decorating (trust us, it's addicting) and further explain what to expect when you choose to work with our BERGIN family. Behind The Bottle Canard Vineyard lost all Napa Valley estate wines in the 2020 Glass Fire, including their much beloved Coucher de Soleil Estate Rosé. Managing Director, Adam Fox, asked us to help design a rosé label honoring those who lost so much in the devastating 2020 fire season in Napa and Sonoma County. In a true multi-AVA

Harvest weather in California has been good in recent weeks, with no diseasefriendly conditions reported, nor extreme heat. That said, temperatures have still been in the 90–100°F+ region on a consistent basis, speeding up ripening so that the harvest is ahead of normal in many areas – to varying extents but, in general, by approximately a week or so. The severe state-wide drought has inevitably played a big part in the quick ripening: Water curtailment mandates are in place up and down the state’s rivers and there have been drought stress issues visible on some vines, including lack of berry sizing and desiccated foliage.  Consistent heat and longstanding drought have led to some compaction in picking readiness. For example, some vineyards in the Central Valley – where it has been particularly dry and hot – have reported picking Merlot and Cabernet already, ahead of Sauvignon Blanc. Sometimes sugar levels are ready but other parameters are not, a