Wine Production Forecast: lowest since 1961

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richmke

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Hmmm... people are drinking less wine (lowest production but still a surplus over demand).

Global wine production sinks to lowest level since 1961

Worldwide wine production is set to drop 8.2 percent from last year’s amount, the lowest level for almost 60 years. Harsh weather in Europe was to blame for the dip, but production in the Southern Hemisphere was up.

...

There are fears that reduced global production, which is expected to fall to 246.7 mhl by the end of the year, could diminish a surplus over demand seen in recent years. This could in turn affect prices as actual market supply becomes increasingly dependent on stocks from previous years and the availability of quality wines from landmark regions.

http://www.dw.com/en/global-wine-production-sinks-to-lowest-level-since-1961/a-41093924
 
What caused that?

A combination of things, mostly an inexperience vineyard manager that did not know how to adjust to the extraordinary circumstances.

Coming off years of drought to one of the wettest winters on record, the vines went crazy. The number and the growth of the shoots was crazy. We did a shoot thinning, but that did little to stem the tide of shoot growth. Then in June we had a freak rain storm, followed immediately by 100 degree weather. With all our vines being head trained, it created an umbrella that trapped the moisture. Spraying was not that effective, because of the foliage cover. Another shoot thinning pass was too little, too late. We lost 2/3 of the normal 50-60 tons of the crop to mildew.

In hindsight, we should have made 3 shoot thinning passes, one right after the other. The Cab Franc and Petite Sirah were hit hard, the Mourvedre and Petit Verdot, which were 60 feet away were almost unaffected by the mildew. Unfortunately the majority of our vines are Cab Franc and Petite Sirah.
 
Hmmm... people are drinking less wine (lowest production but still a surplus over demand).

I had read that wine consumption has been trending up.

An example based on the CA wine industry:

2016 California Wine Sales in U.S. Hit New Record: 238 Million Cases with Retail Value of $34.1 Billion

Not only that, but the 'Millennials' are an increasing market:

Millennials drink more wine than any other generation

Turning more and more towards wine and away from beer:
Goldman downgrades beer stocks because millennials like wine better :b

So all those vineyard owners out there...keep those vines healthy! There's increasing demand in the U.S. and worldwide overall.
 
My wife sometimes wishes there were a decrease in our production, but that just doesn't seem like it is going to happen.

Whenever I want to make my wife mad, and I mean MAD, I simply purchase another tank. Here is a photo from the last time I brought home a tank.....


images
 

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