How Wildfires are Disrupting Wine Production

02.05.18

October’s wildfires in Northern California mean major property and product losses for wineries — a major setback for the local economy.

The wildfires that engulfed Northern California in October were the deadliest in the state’s history, displacing residents throughout the region and destroying thousands of homes and businesses. As people return to their homes and towns come back to life, one of the biggest questions is what the wildfires mean for wine production in the area. Much of California’s wine country was razed in the wildfires, destroying entire vineyards and exposing grapes to dangerous levels of smoke. As a result, the state’s wine industry could be seriously diminished in years to come.

The Wine Industry in California

The state of California is the world’s fourth largest producer of wine, just behind Italy, France, and Spain. According to the New York Times, the state’s wine industry produces $15.2 billion in taxes annually. In Napa County alone, the wine industry supports 46,000 local jobs — roughly 40% percent of the entire county’s workforce — through the 700 grape growers and 475 wineries in the area. Together with neighboring Sonoma County, Napa’s wine business generates over $10 billion in annual sales.

Wineries are also a significant tourist attraction, with more than 23.6 million tourists spending a collective $7.2 billion visiting California’s wine country in 2016. Unfortunately, October’s wildfires forced many wineries and vineyards to shut down, greatly damaging tourism-based businesses in the area. It may take years for the wine industry — and the local economy — to recover from these losses.

The Situation on the Ground

While only twelve wineries in Northern California’s wine country were significantly or completely destroyed, the wildfires created numerous logistical challenges that impacted virtually every local winery and vineyard. Because the fires knocked out cell towers, communication on the ground has been extremely difficult. Vineyard operators struggled to contact evacuated employees after their vineyards reopened, slowing the picking and production process. Some roads and highways have closed, making it difficult for employees to access vineyards and for trucks to transport and deliver products. While wineries are quickly rebounding and adapting, these on-the-ground challenges at the earliest stages of the wine distribution supply chain could have a long-term impact on wine sales in the year to come.

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The Long and Winding Road

Even as wineries resume operations, there’s still some concern that the grapes on the vine when the wildfires began may have been tainted by exposure to smoke. As the fires raged, crews worked overtime to pick grapes before they would be affected, but it’s impossible to tell if the smoke will affect a wine’s taste before it’s actually been made. Luckily, unusually high temperatures in September prompted many growers to pick their grapes for the season earlier than usual — so as long as their storerooms weren’t damaged in the fire, their wines should still be drinkable (and profitable). For vineyards that did suffer extreme damage, however, it could take three to five years to nurse the soil back to health (and its full wine production potential).

Although the wildfires seriously disrupted the wine supply chain in Napa Valley, other areas have thankfully been spared. The wines out of Napa and Sonoma are typically pricier vintages, but the majority of California’s wine comes from the Central Valley, which was not affected by the wildfires. This means that wine enthusiasts who opt for mid-range wine will not see much of a change in price or selection when they head to their local wine shop to pick up a bottle of their favorite red.