California Wine Country In Danger From Wildfires, Low Tourism Amid Pandemic

Between the wildfires and strict safety guidelines amid the coronavirus pandemic, some winery owners in Northern California have had to make some major adjustments to keep their businesses afloat.

The last few weeks have been particularly hard on wine country. From a “fire tornado warning,” to the growing number of wildfires in the state, and COVID-19 safety restrictions, wineries have been struggling. Most of the vineyards that depend on tourists who visit to indulge in wine tastings and facility tours have also seen a decline in customers, the Associated Press reports.

As noted by the outlet, three of the past four years have seen major wildfires take place in Napa and Sonoma counties.

Corey Beck, the CEO and winemaking chief at Francis Ford Coppola Winery in Geyserville, said that he’s been finding it hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“This year, you throw COVID on it, and what did we do to deserve this? We really hurt more from the lack of tourists. That has been our Achilles’ heel during this time,” he said.

Meanwhile, Janet Tupper, the president and creative director of Mercantile 12, a wine country-themed wholesale business, revealed that wineries are running out of ways to earn a profit after many businesses were forced to switch to outdoor wine tastings in order to meet state safety regulations.

“You can’t sit inside because of the pandemic, and you can’t sit outside because of the smoke,” she explained.

In addition to the aforementioned challenges, the wildfires have also caused some owners to harvest their grapes earlier than usual to avoid “smoke taint,” a burnt taste in wine as a result of grapes with skins permeated by smoke, and losing their crops to the blaze.

California isn't the only location that has had to shift its wine business due to the current climate. It was revealed earlier this month that locations in Italy have started using medieval wine windows as a way to make contactless deliveries to customers.