The California grape harvest dropped seven percent last year from 2014. Both tonnage and prices were lower.
California grape growers crushed 3.8 million tons of grapes last year, down from 4.1million in 2014, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Weather caused one of the earliest harvest in years.
Tim Holdener who owns Macchia Winery in the Lodi area says the vineyards didn't have enough cold weather and a warm February prompted grapes to bud early. He's hoping this year will be different.
"We're going to have to see what happens between now and bud break,” say’s Holdener, “Hopefully we'll have the cooler nighttime temperatures to keep the vineyards still dormant and locked up until they break at the correct time of year."
Prices dropped 10 percent for all wine varieties, but Holdener says the decrease was only at the wholesale level and consumers are not likely to see lower wine retail prices.
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