After a depressing year in which nearly half of all wine grapes in California might not have been harvested, wineries might find themselves scrambling to find grapes this summer, according to an industry analyst.
The opposite is true for whiskey. American distilleries are so full of inventory that some big companies not only won't make whiskey this year: they might not make any for several years.
California's official grape crush report won't be issued until February, but bw166 founder Jon Moramarco estimated Thursday that it will be just 2.25 million tons, which would be the smallest crop in 46 years. It would be 24 percent less than 2024, and less than half of the size of the 2018 crop. The only good news out of that is that Moramarco thinks the state's wine industry may finally reach a balance this year between supply and demand.
In fact, because many farmers might choose not to tend their vineyards this year, Moramarco thinks it's possible California may even have a grape shortage.
"In June or July of this year we could see wineries needing grapes and not being able to find them," Moramarco said. "Time will tell."
But the US wine industry has lost market share in the last decade. Moramarco said domestic still wines made up 64 percent of the US market in 2018, and just 56 percent today. Imported sparkling wines (mostly Prosecco) have claimed much of that share.
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