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22 W i n e s & V i n e s M AY 2 0 1 4 S an Luis Obispo, Calif.—Winery owners and growers in California's Central Coast region remain opti- mistic and plan to expand their businesses in coming years despite serious concerns about water. California's drought has hit San Luis Obispo County and the rest of the Central Coast particularly hard. While Sonoma and Napa counties enjoyed some late-winter storms that eased water worries a bit, most of that precipitation missed the Central Coast. Added to the drought are concerns about overdraft from the groundwater basin surrounding Paso Robles, Calif. At the recent Central Coast Insights sym- posium hosted March 13 by the Wine Industry Symposium Group, the group's president Kathy Archer highlighted some of the findings from a recent survey of Cen- tral Coast winemakers, growers and others in the wine industry. Water supply and unusual weather are now viewed as the top factors that will have a negative impact on the Central Coast's wine industry during the next three years. That's changed from a year ago, when envi- ronmental regulations and a slow economic recovery were the biggest worries. Almost 80% of those surveyed cited water availability as their top concern. To deal with the situation, 76% said they'd add "water-saving technology" and 27% would look for untapped water resources, but 20% admitted they were not prepared for the drought. Yet the same survey found that a majority of wineries are planning to expand their pro- duction in coming years. Nearly 65% reported they expect to expand production in 2014, and slightly less than 70% said they expect to make more wine than in 2013. Of those planning to increase production, 28% said they're planning a 10% increase, and 26% said they would expand by 20%. Most of this growth can be attributed to the large 2012 harvest, but when asked about how they plan to use available capital in the coming year, 60% said they would be spend- ing their money on vineyard redevelopment. —Andrew Adams Still Looking to Expand Concerns about water supply top survey of Central Coast industry players Survey results released at Central Coast Insights shed light on industry priorities. Growth and increasing sales Water supply availability Direct to consumer focus Increase marketing budget 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0 Central Coast Priorities for 2014 ©WIne InduSTry SyMPoSIuM GrouP 75.4% 50.8% 47.5% 37.7% M A Y N E W S LIQUID NITROGEN HANDLING SPECIALISTS SINCE 1958 Tel 1-781-933-3570 Fax 1-781-932-9428 sales@vacuumbarrier.com www.vacuumbarrier.com LIQUID NITROGEN DOSING Liquid Nitrogen Handling Specialists Since 1958 Keep dissolved oxygen levels to a minimum with the new MiniDose • Designed to discrete dose up to 200 CPM • Compact size ideal for filling lines, mobile bottlers and R&D facilities The NITRODOSE ® MiniDose system is sold only through Vacuum Barrier and their select group of worldwide distributors