Huge jump in grape production in '05Half-billion dollar total up nearly 55 percent from last year

By JAY GOETTING, Register Staff Writer

The wine grape is still king in Napa County.

The 2005 Napa County Agricultural Crop Report, released Tuesday, reveals the total gross value of all agricultural production in the county topped a half-billion dollars at $548,620,550.

Wine grapes accounted for nearly $540.9 million, up a whopping 54.7 percent from the previous year. The most expensive varietal was once again petit verdot, a grape used primarily for blending. It came in at $4,975 a ton.

Napa County Agriculture Commissioner Dave Whitmer said 2005 was "a trifecta" for wine grape growers, as a perfect combination of weather, growing conditions and harvest timing combined to make the harvest by far the largest ever.

Whitmer said if extreme heat or rain had struck as harvest neared last fall, winemakers would have run out of tank space, adversely affecting production and quality.

Cabernet sauvignon represents the most planted varietal, with 18,927 acres producing 69,326 tons at an average price of $3,970 a ton.

Of the white grapes, chardonnay reigns with just more than 7,000 acres producing 33,966 tons at an average of $2,112 per ton.

Not just grapes

Floral and nursery crops are a distant second in agricultural categories, down slightly from the previous year with a value of $3.2 million.

Livestock followed with $2.4 million. Poultry, timber, field crops and vegetables remained as also-rans.

Other crops in the fruit and nut category, which contains wine grapes, showed impressive growth. Olives nearly doubled to 755 tons, with a total value of $413,500. Strawberries jumped 54 percent to a total value $330,500.

Sharpshooter still a danger

County inspectors have discovered at least two glassy-winged sharpshooter egg masses in plant shipments brought into Napa County in recent days, and Whitmer's office, grapegrowers and nurseries are all on high alert.

"I don't want to put a black cloud over the report," said Supervisor Diane Dillon, calling attention to the pest and its potentially devastating effect on grapes.

"I'd rather look at it as a bright spot," said Whitmer, noting that it means the county inspection program is working.

Whitmer is in constant contact with his Southern California counterparts, and nurseries around the state are imposing measures in order to limit the spread of the pest.

Whitmer said a moratorium on new nursery stock entering Napa County was considered and rejected. Whitmer said the county would rather retain control over incoming plant stock, since demand would remain high and people would go outside the area to bring in potentially hazardous plant material.

Coincidentally, supervisors earlier declared May as Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter Awareness Month.

The crop report is an annual requirement of the state's Secretary of Food and Agriculture. Except for the massive increase in wine grapes, Whitmer said other categories were "within norms," although a spike was noted in timber harvesting.

Once again, the report is adorned with the artwork of local students. An acrylic painting, "Red Barn," by St. Helena High School senior Ryan Chandler, was the first prize winner and appears on the cover. Caitlin and Patrick Schmitz were second and third winners. They attend Justin-Siena and St. John the Baptist Catholic School, respectively.

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