Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/670981
8 WINES&VINES May 2016 A member of Wine Communications Group Inc. President & Publisher Chet Klingensmith Chairman Hugh Tietjen Publishing Consultant Ken Koppel Associate Publisher Tina Vierra Publishing Assistant Tiffany Maxwell EDITORIAL Editor Jim Gordon Managing Editor Kate Lavin Senior Editor Andrew Adams Senior Correspondent Paul Franson Contributing Editor Jane Firstenfeld Northwest Correspondent Peter Mitham Columnists Grapegrowing: Cliff Ohmart and Glenn T. McGourty Contributing Writers Laurie Daniel, Richard Smart, Richard Carey, Chris Stamp, Andrew Reynolds, Craig Root, Ray Pompilio, Andy Starr, Fritz Westover Practical Winery & Vineyard (PWV) Editor Don Neel Wine East Editor Linda Jones McKee DESIGN & PRODUCTION Graphic Designer Rebecca Arnn Design & Production Bridget Williams DATABASE DEVELOPMENT AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Vice President—Data Management Lynne Skinner Project Manager Liesl Stevenson Database & Web Development James Rust, Peter Scarborough EDITOR'S LETTER AFTER TWO GIANT, DEVASTATING WILDFIRES last year, Lake County, Calif., was due for some good news. Now the good news is coming, and from multiple directions. First off, the initial cleanup of 1,300 homes destroyed by the Valley Fire and the Rocky Fire in this mountainous, landlocked Northern California county appears to be well along. It will take many years to rebuild, but during my visit to Lake County in early April, a large percentage of the hundreds of burnt buildings already had been demolished. A procession of log trucks lugged massive, charred tree trunks from the 115 square miles of burnt terrain out of the county as I drove in toward Clear Lake. Vineyards and wineries did not suffer a lot of dam- age, but Lake County is a small community of 64,000 people, and everyone felt the pain. It's not pretty to drive along Highway 175 south from the lake to Cobb Mountain and then to Middletown. The second half of that drive goes through a virtual Mars-scape, where the red-soil hillsides appear to have been burnt so badly by the Valley Fire that the topsoil incinerated along with every growing thing. It was depressing to view even as a spectator, so it was also good to know that fundraising efforts to rebuild the county's infrastructure and people's homes are coming along. In March the #LakeCountyRising campaign raised more than $150,000 in a charity wine auction at the Culinary Institute of America in neighboring Napa Valley. This boosted the total amount of donations gathered by three wine industry organizations—the Lake County Winegrape Commission, the Lake County Winery Association and the Lake County Wine Alliance—to nearly $1 million. At Momentum 2016 in Lakeport, Calif., a one-day conference organized by the Lake County Winegrape Commission, the speakers sought to educate growers and winemakers about supply and demand for their grapes and wine, legislative issues, marketing and even Sauvignon Blanc wine style. Probably the best news at the conference was that prices for Lake County grapes have risen and continue to rise. Prices for Cabernet Sauvignon have increased by $400 per ton in the past two years, accord- ing to grape and bulk wine broker Glenn Proctor of the Ciatti Co., and the grape is now averaging more than $2,100 per ton. Sauvignon Blanc, for which Lake County has long been known, is seeing the same trend, he said. Not coincidentally, the Winegrape Commission and at least some others appear ready to encourage growers and winemakers to focus on those two grape varieties to help Lake County's "brand" crystallize among the wine trade and consumers. "It's an opportunity for Lake County," Proctor said, "to help the county grow and stand out." Andy Beckstoffer of Beckstoffer Vineyards farms 1,300 acres in the Red Hills of Lake County but is based in Napa Valley. He argued that Lake County should become not just a wine region but "wine coun- try," as Napa Valley did in the 1980s, to achieve the greatest success. That means confidently raising prices for grapes and wines, and adding amenities for visiting high-end consumers and trade buyers such as top-notch hotels and restaurants. With the fires of 2015 in the rearview mirror and grow- ing demand for their products, it looks like a great time for the Lake County winegrowing community to move strategi- cally in the direction that Beckstoffer points. —Jim Gordon Probably the best news was that prices for Lake County wine grapes have risen and continue to rise. CONTACT US SUBSCRIPTIONS Email: subs@winesandvines.com Online: winesandvines.com/subscribe Phone: (866) 453-9701 EDITORIAL Email: edit@winesandvines.com MAIL 65 Mitchell Blvd., Suite A San Rafael, CA 94903 CONNECT WITH US facebook.com/WinesandVines twitter.com/WinesandVines youtube.com/WinesandVines1919 Lake County Is Rising From the Ashes