California’s 2011 grape crush totaled 3,869,894 tons, down 3 percent from the 2010
crush of 3,986,314 tons. All wine varieties crushed totaled 3,342,689 tons, down 7 percent from 2010. Red wine varieties accounted for the largest share of all grapes crushed, at 1,917,132 tons, down 7 percent from 2010. The 2011 white wine variety crush totaled 1,425,557 tons, down 7 percent from 2010. Tons crushed of raisin type varieties totaled 372,551, up 36 percent from 2010, and tons crushed of table type varieties totaled 154,653, up 25 percent from 2010.

The 2011 average price of all varieties reached a record high of $588.96, up 8 percent from 2010 and 3 percent above the previous record high set in 2009. Average prices for the 2011 crop by type were as follows: red wine grapes, $702.70, up 12 percent from 2010; white wine grapes, $541.11, up 8 percent from 2010; raisin grapes, $265.15, up 23 percent; and table grapes, $219.20, up 26 percent.

In 2011, Chardonnay accounted for the largest percentage of the total crush volume with 14.4 percent. Cabernet Sauvignon accounted for the second leading percentage of crush with 9.9 percent of the total crush. The next eight highest percentages of grapes crushed included wine and raisin grape varieties. Thompson Seedless, the leading raisin grape variety crushed for 2011, held 8.4 percent of the total.

Grapes produced in District 4 (Napa County) received the highest average price of $3,407.56 per ton, up 5 percent from 2010. District 3 (Sonoma and Marin counties) received the second highest return of $2,081.12, up 3 percent from 2010. The 2011 Chardonnay price of $752.30 was up 5 percent from 2010, and the Cabernet Sauvignon price of $1,147.10 was up 11 percent from 2010. The 2011 average price for Zinfandel was $559.00, up 26 percent from 2010, while the Merlot average price was up 13 percent from 2010 at $691.05 per ton.

This preliminary report includes all grape tonnage crushed during the 2011 season, as well as purchased tonnage and pricing information with final prices prior to January 10, 2012. The Final Grape Crush Report will be available March 9, 2012.

The entire Grape Crush Report is available online at www.nass.usda.gov/ca.