Roy Chapin of 4 Winds Winery shares how WiseConn’s DropControl system enables real-time irrigation management directly from his phone. By monitoring soil moisture and weather data, Roy can make informed decisions to optimize vine health during critical stages like budbreak. This technology allows...

February 16th: Pinot Noir is already bursting at this Russian River Vineyard It's been a little toasty for February. It looks like we're off to an early start this season...again...and with that a particularly dangerous frost season. If you haven't noticed, it's still pretty hard to get stuff....

This month’s report assesses budbreak and cluster counts in the vineyards and starts to form a tentative early picture on the 2021 crop. Latest intel on the state’s bulk wine and grape markets is provided, while Muscat and florals come under the microscope. Click here to sign up for our Global...

Noticeably improved market activity: Where and on what? Bulk wine and grape activity levels since the turn of the year have been noticeably improved versus the final months of 2024, although much of the activity has consisted of inquiries rather than transactions. Publication in February of the...

The weather across California was largely normal through April into early May, perhaps exhibiting a tendency to be slightly erratic, with warm spells of sunshine interspersed by cooler temperatures and some rain. Few if any issues were encountered in the vineyards; the frost risk has now all but...

The jet stream moved further south in February, bringing steady rainfall to Coastal California and also some precipitation to Lodi and the Interior. Significant snow fell at higher elevations: State-wide snowpack levels rose from 50% of normal as of January 31st to 104% by March 4th. This spring...

Yesterday marked the official end of the growing season and what a season it was, amiright?? 2023 has proven to be polarizing. For some growers and winemakers, this was a remarkable year for quality, and others are just thankful to have crop insurance. Let’s take a look at why this is. I wrote...

A cooler than normal spring to date, following a wetter than normal winter, has delayed vineyard development in much of California by between 10 days to three weeks when compared with recent years. The forecast is for continued cooler weather in the first part of May before the eventual arrival of...

We got a lot of rain this year and every time I'm a bit of a Debby Downer about what it means for the 2023 season. Rainfall in the fall is nice, but did I mention that spring time rain is what counts? Well budbreak is right around the corner and unlike 2022, the rain has stuck around. So the big...

Mid-February’s publication of the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s preliminary 2022 grape crush report – showing 3.349 million tons crushed, the lowest figure since 2011 – has failed to stimulate extra activity on California’s grape wine and bulk markets. Such hesitant activity after...