Small Business Resources, Business Advice and Forms from AllBusiness.com

California hopes small grape harvest makes high-priced wine more competitive.

California hopes small grape harvest makes high-priced wine more competitive: With the California grape harvest starting this month, the state's wineries and grape growers are hoping an expected decrease in grape production will ease price pressure that has led to the rise of highly competitive,

low-cost wines. This year's harvest is expected to decline 3 percent from 2002 to a five-year low of 3.05 million tons.

Rich Cartiere, publisher the Wine Market Report newsletter, said growers this year have uprooted some 35,000 acres of vineyards in California's Central Valley, where inexpensive grapes used to make value brands are grown. The numbers provide a contrast to recent years as rising California grape production contributed to a worldwide glut of wine and sharply lower prices for grape growers.

In addition, make sure to read these articles: