Nov 25, 2025

Santa Cruz-area winegrowers create new heritage district to attract tourism

The new Santa Cruz Mountains Heritage District is located within the Santa Cruz American Viticultural Area, which comprises approximately 1,600 acres of vineyards.

Sarah Stierch/Bay City News

Sep 25, 2025

Falcons help local winemakers protect their crop at harvest time

“The birds sit on top of those wires, and as you can imagine, they come down and snack on grapes all day," says Bouchaine Vineyards' head winemaker.

Tina Caputo

Sep 05, 2025

Climate change forcing Napa vintners to make hard choices

Some Carneros growers have begun planting varieties more suited for warmer climates, such as merlot.

Glen Martin/Bay City News

Sep 04, 2025

As harvest season nears, fears over federal immigration raids grow

North Bay vintners and growers are hosting workshops for employees, putting up 'No Trespassing" signs and keeping their ranch gates locked during business hours..

Tina Caputo

Aug 27, 2025

KRCB Wine Beat: Wineries adapt to a rise in nondrinking visitors

In previous years, said one industry insider, maybe 3 or 4% of tasting room visitors didn’t drink. Now, it’s closer to 20%.

Tina Caputo

Aug 11, 2025

Six local small producers join forces under new wine collective

Organizers say the business model allows small wineries to do something they could never afford to do on their own—hire a national sales team to sell their wines.

Tina Caputo

Aug 08, 2025

Some California winemakers don’t want tariffs on their European competitors

'The chaos that is present now is an existential threat to the world that we live in."

Levi Sumagaysay/CalMatters

Jul 30, 2025

Sonoma County winegrowers and vintners explore a 'Wine Improvement District'

Not everyone supports the idea, which would apply an assessment on direct-to-consumer sales.

Michelle Marques

Jun 05, 2025

New wine industry reporter highlights silver linings amid challenges

Though wineries say they don’t expect to increase their sales in 2025, they do report feeling optimistic about the potential for growth over the next five years.

Tina Caputo

Apr 11, 2025

The North Coast Wine Challenge shines a spotlight on local wines

This year the contest featured some new wine categories that reflect current trends in the market.

Tina Caputo

Apr 02, 2025

Yountville aims to entice tourists with town-wide discounted wine and beer tastings pass

The Wine & Beer Passport costs $95 for two people.

Sarah Stierch/Bay City News

Mar 14, 2025

KRCB Wine Beat: Industry players say tariffs on Canada are bad business for CA wineries

After a 30-day pause, the new taxes went into effect on March 4.

Tina Caputo

Mar 10, 2025

Are California wines really full of scary additives?

For the last few years, ads on social media have been telling consumers that there’s a lot more than just grapes in the average bottle of California wine.

Tina Caputo

Feb 11, 2025

The U.S. wine industry is in a ‘demand reset,' industry watchers say

California grape grower ripped out 20,000 acres of vineyard last year as demand for wine fell.

Tina Caputo

Jan 27, 2025

Trump's promise of mass deportations looms over California's wine industry

A recent U.S. Department of Labor survey estimates that undocumented immigrants make up 51 percent of the state’s agricultural workforce.

Tina Caputo

Jan 26, 2025

Ukrainian winemaker and US veterans team up to show the best of Ukraine, a glass at a time

A group of American veterans and diplomats who served in Kyiv are teaming up with a Ukrainian winery owner to bring a taste of the Black Sea coast to a U.S. audience.

Ellen Knickmeyer/Associated Press

Dec 18, 2024

Sonoma County honors legacy farming families who have farmed for at least 100 years

There were 22 families honored at the inaugural Century Club celebration hosted by Sonoma County Winegrowers.

Michelle Marques

Dec 13, 2024

Alexander Valley wine workers fight for back wages

The employees of Reynoso Family Vineyards say they're owed unpaid wages dating back to May.

Noah Abrams

Dec 03, 2024

Local wine businesses brace for potential tariffs in 2025

Winemakers say tariffs would result in a host of negative effects that would put additional pressure on the U.S. wine industry in a down market.

Tina Caputo

Oct 21, 2024

Wine industry still feeling the ‘Sideways effect’ after 20 years

USDA figures show that merlot plantings in California declined 35 percent between 2004 and 2023. Meanwhile, pinot noir acreage almost doubled.

Tina Caputo

Jul 21, 2024

Woman wins Wine Country half marathon for first time

The event raised $62,000 for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

Janis Mara/Bay City News

Jun 12, 2024

Ukrainian winemakers visit Napa Valley to learn how to heal war-ravaged vineyards

The six vintners visited the Grgich Hills Estate winery last week to learn about regenerative organic farming.

Haven Daley & Olga R. Rodriguez/Associated Press