California’s grape crush dropped by more than a fifth last year, US government data shows.
According to figures from the US Department of Agriculture, California’s grape crush for wine stood at 2.88 million tons last year, which marked a 21.7% decline versus 2023.
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Data provided by the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service showed the crush was the lowest since the 2.78 million tons produced in 2004.
Red wine varieties accounted for the largest share of the grapes crushed, at 1.47 million tons, although that was down 25.7% from 2023. There were 1.42 million tons of white wine varieties crushed, some 17.2% lower than the previous year.
The average price for red wine grapes dipped 0.7% to $1,335.93. For white wine grapes, the average price was $706.84, down 3.6% from 2023.
At 17.8%, Chardonnay continued to account for the largest percentage of the total tonnage crushed. Cabernet Sauvignon accounted for the second-largest percentage at 15.4%.
Grapes produced in Napa County received the highest average price at $6,938.96 per ton, down 1.3% from 2023.
