US: Could the drought hurt NorCal's wine production?

(KCRA) —Winemakers and grape producers said Monday they are concerned this year's crop could be stunted by California's drought.

The lack of rain has an impact on the state's entire wine industry.

“This is statewide," said Derek Irwin, the winemaker and vineyard manager at Naggiar Vineyards and Winery, near Grass Valley. "This is not just unique to us."

While the vines are dormant right now, they will soon need water. If they don’t receive it, winemakers will get a late start to the growing season.

"If we don’t receive any more rain and the soil profile is completely dry, it’s going to basically stunt the growth of the vines,” Irwin said. “If we get hit with a heat wave in the summer, or numerous heat waves, we could start losing foliage. The worst-case scenario is the fruit doesn’t develop properly."

Winemaking is only part of the problem.

Naggiar grows grapes for several winemakers in Napa Valley.

"My biggest concern is that we sell about two-thirds of our grapes to Napa," Irwin said. "And that represents a large amount of income for us. If we end up having a smaller-than-average harvest, that’s reduced tonnage for us -- that’s reduced tonnage for the vintners in Napa who rely on us.”

The owner and founder of Naggiar believes his winery will be OK because of a water canal and commitments from a local water agency, but he knows he will have to to scale back expectations if the lack of rain continues.

“We have some wine inventory, so it’ll help us to continue to sell the wine,” said Mike Naggiar