March 2021 As I sat down to write this March 2021 column, out of interest, I looked back at what I wrote in March 2020, when the global pandemic was declared. With the plucky title, “Better Luck Next Time,” I concluded my remarks with, “All I can hope is, when I write this column a […]
One Year On…
Youth Isn’t Wasted On Some Young
February 2021 When I was little, I wanted to be a veterinarian. I was crazy about animals (and still am) and the idea of helping them appealed to me. That lasted until I was told I’d be in school until at least the age of 25–ancient!–if I wanted to be a doctor of veterinary medicine. […]
Looking for Love in 2021
January 2021 Many of us entered the new year with admittedly unrealistic expectations that 2021 would be better than 2020. Immediately! A month in, we’re still waiting for the new year to deliver us from the old year we’re ready to forget. Obviously, it’ll take time for things to unwind. In the meantime, we’ll keep […]
NGRA’S 2021 Officer and Board Elections
At the Annual Meeting of the Members, held virtually on January 25, 2021, NGRA held its annual election of officers and Board directors. We are pleased to renew the terms of all four NGRA officers and five Board directors, and to install two new directors on our Board, as follows: Officers – Elected annually for […]
2021 Rich Smith Award Presented to Donnie Winchell
SACRAMENTO, CA, January 20, 2021 — The fifth-annual Rich Smith Distinguished Service Award for outstanding contributions to the American grape and wine industry was conferred yesterday upon Donniella “Donnie” Winchell, Executive Director of the Ohio Wine Producers Association (OWPA). The award was given in a surprise presentation by the Smith Family, the National Grape Research […]
Red Blotch Research in 2020
In 2020, a number of projects were initiated by teams of enterprising scientists seeking to help stop the scourge of grapevine red blotch virus, a significant and costly disease affecting Western vineyards that, so far, has eluded definitive answers regarding spread and management. Anita Oberholster, extension enologist at UC Davis is leading a project called, […]
A Blessing in Disguise?
One of the benefits of having a newsletter that goes out on the last day of every month is, it’s one of the last things to drop into your inbox for the whole, entire year. What can I say that hasn’t already been said? Or what can I repeat that should be reinforced? Or what […]
Zoom! Went the Strings of My Heart
The NGRA Board of Directors meets three times each year and last week, on November 19, we convened for the last time in 2020. As with all pandemic-era meetings of far-flung people, our Board members gathered virtually, via Zoom, across all continental U.S. time zones for a very productive meeting–signaling an exciting year ahead for […]
Farming Gone Haywire
It’s the end of October. Daylight is waning, the temperature is descending and Daylight Saving Time ends on Sunday. (Not to mention the presidential election two days later.) Change is upon us. But these normal cycles of life seem not so normal anymore. If you read grape and wine industry media regularly, you’ll notice a […]
A Dark Harvest
Harvest is usually a bustling, positive time of year, when the fruits of growers’ labors are ripe and ready for the next phase of their journey, whether that’s drying for raisin production, packing and storing for fresh consumption, or pressing for juice or wine. But from coast to coast, this year’s harvest has had a […]