1. How many acres of wine grapes are there in the state?
The California Grape Acreage Report provides an estimate of overall grape acreage, including changes from the previous year. The most recent 2021 Grape Acreage Report indicates total grape acreage in California is 881,000 acres with an estimated 615,000 acres of wine grapes and with the remainder being table and raisins grapes. This is a slight decline (-1.6%) from last year’s acreage of wine grapes. Of those total acres, 575,000 were bearing and 40,000 were non-bearing.
2. How many acres are there of each wine grape varietal?
The second part of the annual report provides detailed data on wine grape varietals being grown. For California the most prominent varietal continues to be Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by Pinot Noir and Zinfandel. The data in the report can be informative for the more unusual wine varietals, for example Montepulciano grapes. The report indicates less than 100 acres of Montepulciano grapes are being grown in California.
3. Which varietals are grown in each county?
The acreage by grape varietal and county provides important information at the local level, especially for business decisions related to planting and grape sourcing. For example, Sonoma County remains the largest grower of Pinot Noir grapes, followed by Monterey County. The data will still also capture significant new plantings in non-traditional areas, with new varieties.
4. How has grape acreage changed over time?
In order to comprehend the complex and diverse landscape of grape growing in California, an understanding of its historical context is useful. The Wine Institute provides a listing of California Winegrape Acreage Historical Totals, which goes back to 1985. Since 2014, we’ve added 100,000 acres of wine grapes. Grapevine acreage has been compiled by different agencies since the early 1850’s, but not consistently. Wine historian Ernest Peninou compiled a review of California’s wine acreage in A Statistical History of Wine Grape Acreage in California, 1856-1992.
5. What varietals were grown decades ago?
The grape varietal data in the California Grape Acreage Report is available back to the 1970s. The leading varieties in California in 1972 were Barbera, Ruby Cabernet, Rubired and Chenin Blanc. The varietals by county level data provides important information on what has historically grown in the region. A wine grower looking to establish a business in a particular location could use data on types of grapes grown to assess the viability of new or particular grape varietals.
About the Grape Acreage Report
The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) in collaboration with the USDA National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) conducts the annual acreage survey. A questionnaire is mailed to all 8,800 California grape growers in the fall asking for an update on crop, variety and acreage information. The results are released in a Summary Report and as a Full Report.
Limitations of the Report
The report has its limitations. It’s a voluntary survey, not required like the Grape Crush Report. Besides the survey being voluntary, it is also challenging to identify growers who are planting grapes for the first time. In order to compensate for the missing information and to get a better estimate for overall grape acreage, the data was compared with the pesticide applications from the County Agricultural Commissioners and the Department of Pesticide Regulations to provide more accurate estimates.
Analysts Using the Data
Similar to the Grape Crush Report, the data is provided in spreadsheets to be downloaded and analyzed from the USDA National Agriculture Statistics Service website. Analytical tools can convert these tables into reports or dashboards. Gabriel Froymovich of Vineyard Financial Associates uses the Grape Acreage Report, as well as the Grape Crush Report to build the “Grape Data Tool.” Allied Grape Growers uses the Grape Acreage Report as a starting point for estimating acres by analyzing yields and determining missing acres by comparing it to the crush report.
