The Vineyard to Market Workshop Series launches this spring as a three-part program designed to support Lake County growers in navigating today’s market landscape. Each session will focus on a critical piece of the grower-to-buyer relationship, from understanding winery expectations to refining how vineyards are positioned and communicated, to gaining clarity around contracts and negotiations. Workshop 1 | April 29, 2026, 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM Buyer Perspectives: What Wineries Are Looking for From Growers An inside look at how wineries evaluate vineyard partners, including current market conditions, quality expectations, and key factors influencing purchasing decisions. Speakers:  Ben Byczynski, Director of Vineyard Operations, Draxton Wines Ryan Decker, Owner, DeckerVIT Workshop 2 | May 20, 2026, 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM Vineyard Branding & Messaging: Communicating the Value of Your Vineyard A practical session focused on how to clearly position and communicate vineyard value. To

The conversations I have about quality tend to focus on red wine. This is especially true in California, where Napa Cabs have historically garnered high prices, followed up by Coastal Pinot noirs and red Rhones. Honestly, in most places I’ve been where the climate allows for ripening red grapes, the reds are the main event with the whites being more of a warm-up act or even an afterthought. As a result, we know a lot about how to grow red grapes for quality – and less about how to grow whites. Consumer tastes are shifting though, and the big reds of yore are taking a back seat. Drinkers want lower alcohol wines with a lighter style and wineries are taking fewer risks with wine they can turn around in under a year. As a result, white varieties are in hot demand. If you’re a grower who can’t sell your grapes, you may very well be considering grafting some of your reds over to white.  So how do you grow a good white? In many ways whites are harder than their r

Study after study has proved that consumers prefer glass over other packaging materials for several reasons: Because it is aesthetically pleasing, is virtually inert and doesn’t interact with the food or beverage it holds, and because it is recyclable. Global Package has a long tradition of promoting glass in the wine and spirits industries for these very reasons. Our latest collection of Wild Glass, produced by Estal Packaging, is 100% sustainable “real cycled” and boasts a production process that is both efficient and ecologically sustainable. It utilizes only post-consumer recycled glass collected from municipalities and its production method uses lower fuel consumption, resulting in a reduction of CO2 as well as less extraction of virgin material. Importantly, glass addresses the sustainability issue that today’s consumers are demanding. According to an article in Chemical & Engineering News: “Glass can be recycled endlessly by crushing, blending

The 3rd annual Healdsburg Wine and Food Experience was a weekend-long celebration that featured the best of Sonoma County and world-renowned food and wines. This year's festival showcased the region's makers – farmers, growers, winemakers and chefs – alongside globally recognized wines, highlighting the vibrant culinary diversity, deep connection to agriculture, and sustainable farming practices of Sonoma County. HWFE is deeply involved in the Sonoma County community, making substantial donations from this year’s ticket sales and sponsorships to local organizations that make a meaningful difference in the lives of farmers and their families, including the Sonoma County Fundación de la Voz de los Viñedos. These funds will help support the Leadership Academy and workforce development for vineyard employees and their families, fostering future leaders in both the industry and the community. As well as being co-founders of HWFE, Sonoma County Winegro

Afternoon Brief, April 30th

Was California’s Wine Revolution Just a Mirage?: A growing chorus of talented winemakers say that the economics of making wine in the state have turned the promise of the “New California” into a cautionary tale...

211: Vineyard Nutrient Management Across the United States When it comes to nutrition in your vineyard, you need to know the environment that your vineyard is planted in including mineral nutrition, soil microbes, nitrogen from rainwater, and nutrients or potentially salt from well water. Fritz Westover, Host of the Vineyard Underground Podcast and Founder of Virtual Viticulture Academy shares a big-picture approach for nutrient management that is practical for any grower. He covers: Why it is important to test tissue both at bloom and veraison How to take tissue samples When macro and micronutrient additions are most essential If you are a long-time Member of our organization then you probably remember Fritz from his days with Vineyard Team in 2013 and 2014. We are thrilled to have Fritz back on air with us for the third time. Plus, I recently had the pleasure of being a guest on his podcast, Vineyard Underground. Search for episode 034: Why Sustainability Certification Programs for