Wisconsin’s history as a wine region goes back to the mid-19th Century when future California wine pioneer Agoston Haraszthy planted grapes near the Wisconsin River and created what is now Wollersheim Winery. The first modern era winery, von Stiel, opened in 1967, and today the state has more than 100 producers. Wisconsin is part of the … Read more

DC Update DC is still very quiet these days in terms of legislation of interest to WineAmerica, but next week we expect the conflict to resume in battles over the budget—again. One of the continuing resolutions to avoid a government shutdown expires on January 19, and another in early February, so the usual fighting will … Read more

West Virginia is one of the smallest wine states but has three AVA’s: Kanawha River Valley, Ohio River Valley, and Shenandoah Valley, with the latter two shared with neighboring states. The climate can be challenging, but French-America varieties generally do well. Great Grapes: Baco Noir Created in France in response to the phylloxera epidemic, Baco … Read more

DC Update Congress is now gone for the year, and maintained its record of having the least productive legislative session in 92 years. It also teed up next year as even worse, with new budget deadlines in late January and early February, plus impeachment hearings on President Biden and a possible contempt citation of his … Read more

Washington State is like a mini-California and a maxi-New York.  It is by far the second largest grape and wine producing state, though its 836 wineries are only about a fifth of California’s 4,795—but nearly twice New York’s 470. And the growth has been explosive: When I came to the industry 41 years ago, New … Read more