Glass half-full - sacbee.com

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Glass half-full
Wine-grape harvest is tops, but several conditions dampen prices
By Jim Downing - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Friday, October 27, 2006

This year is shaping up as one that California wine fans will remember fondly -- but that some of the state's wine grape growers would rather forget.

Late spring rains, a summer heat wave and a warm and dry October are yielding an average-size but top-quality wine grape harvest that some are predicting will be among the best vintages of the last quarter-century.

But an ongoing glut from the massive 2005 crop, changes in the federal law that governs the blending of different vintages and the growing presence of imports in the U.S. wine market have pushed grape prices down for many varieties. In lower-value regions like Lodi, spot-market prices for merlot have dropped below $200 a ton, compared with an average of $482 a ton in 2005. Each ton of grapes yields between 150 gallons and 180 gallons of wine.

'We certainly are in a global wine market, and it's coming home to roost,' said Brad Lange, co-owner of Lange Twins Wine Estates in Acampo.

The abundance of wine in the state probably won't influence prices for more expensive brands, but consumers can"