Damage Toll Not Yet Tallied For Napa Valley Vintners

The Napa Valley Vintners trade association said it is still assessing the effects that Sunday’s earthquake had on Napa County’s wine industry.

Napa Valley Vintners is serving as a centralized resource for its 500 members and is planning an information workshop later this week, group spokeswoman Cate Conniff said.

“The earthquake did not impact vineyards or grapes on the vine, and the majority of Napa Valley’s wineries are open for business,” Conniff said.

“It is too early to provide damage or loss estimates for wine, equipment or facilities,” she said.

[Related: BAY AREA QUAKE: Click here for Patch’s Full Earthquake Coverage.]

Some wineries did sustain damage to their barrel storage areas, wine inventory and production equipment over the weekend, but details are not yet available, Conniff said.

“The majority of the wine that is at the wineries right now is from the 2012 and 2013 vintages -- the two most abundant vintages ever,” Conniff said.

Some individual wineries may experience shortages because of the quake, but it’s not expected to have a significant impact on Napa Valley wine inventory in general, she said.

There were no reports of wine industry employees injured in the earthquake, Conniff said. Resources are being made available to those that did suffer equipment or facility damage, including temporary tanks and other equipment to get vintners through the next few weeks, Conniff said.

There were no reports of significant injuries or structural damage in Sonoma County and most wineries, shops and restaurants there are open for business, said Ken Fischang, president and CEO of Sonoma County Tourism.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with our Napa Valley neighbors. It will only be a matter of time before all of Northern California’s famed Wine Country is fully back in business,” Fischang said.

--Bay City News

Photo courtesy of The Hess Collection on Facebook: “ Leave it to our Creative Director, Kristina Tarazoff, to get a unique view of things. You can see the door where our damaged tanks reside, and follow the trail of wine as it flooded the garden. We began cleaning it up a bit and then decided, hey, let nature take its course. Come walk in the garden and help grind it...well, you know, back to normal.... — with 2013 Hess Collection Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon.” Like and follow the winery here on Facebook.