Posted in NVG News, Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation on Mar 05, 2017
By Henry Lutz
A new initiative may soon have more Napa high schoolers eyeing futures in the local wine industry.
Fields of Opportunity, an eight-week paid summer mentorship program for high school students within the Napa Valley Unified School District, opened this week for applications.
Stemming from a partnership between the Napa Valley Grapegrowers, the Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation and the school district, the program is designed to cycle 16 students between four host companies, offering participants an interactive cross-section of the many occupations that drive the county’s staple industry.
Posted in Growing Season, NVG News on Feb 25, 2017
By Henry Lutz
“We’re not going to be able to turn all this water into wine.”
That’s one grapegrower’s take on the surplus rainfall of recent months and what it will mean for vineyards in Napa County as the rain season ebbs and the growing season draws near.
Posted in Press Releases on Feb 09, 2017
NAPA, CA (February 9, 2017) – Despite heavy rain and muddy vineyard rows, the Napa Valley Grapegrowers’ (NVG) and Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation held its 16th Annual Napa County Pruning Contest at Beringer’s Gamble Ranch Vineyard Wednesday. 86 men and 18 women competed.
Posted in NVG News, Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation on Feb 09, 2017
By Henry Lutz
YOUNTVILLE — It’s pruning season in the vineyards, and at this year’s Napa County Pruning Contest the only thing sharper than the shears were the whetted skills of the contestants handling them. Braving a steady downpour Wednesday afternoon, a record turnout of more than 100 contestants competed among the vineyard rows at Beringer Vineyard’s Gamble Ranch property for the 16th iteration of the annual contest.
Posted in Growing Season, Industry News, NVG News on Nov 22, 2016
By W. Blake Gray
Imagine if I could tell grapegrowers a way to produce more wine from the same vineyard that is also actually better. Happy Thanksgiving winegrowers, I’m here for you!
There’s another culprit to add to the list of reasons wines are unintentionally getting higher in alcohol: crop-thinning. This revelation comes from Rootstock, Napa Valley Grapegrowers’ annual technical conference for its members.
The word “unintentionally” is important. Many vintners, especially in Napa Valley, want their wines to have higher alcohol because it brings greater body and more perceived sweetness, not to mention higher scores from last-generation critics. But plenty of others, especially Pinot Noir producers, claim to have little control over alcohol levels. They like to say they give us what nature gives them.