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With all of
the mergers and changes of ownership, it's hard to keep track of who
owns what winery in California. While it may no longer qualify as "news," 2006 saw a flurry of notable acquisitions of historic estates. Francis Coppola took over
Chateau Souverein in Sonoma and renamed it Francis Coppola Family
wines.
Michael Mondavi purchased Carneros Creek Winery from
the Mahoney family. The winery is now the home for
I’M, Oberon, and Hangtime wines, while Francis Mahoney retains
the Mahoney Vineyards and Fleur de California Brands, which continue
to be produced at the winery.
And Jess Jackson and family
purchased Napa Valley's Freemark Abbey Winery, Sonoma Valley's Arrowood
Vineyards & Winery, and Santa Maria's Byron Winery in a bankruptcy
sale.
Fun
Facts from Sonoma County Grape Growers Association
Sonoma
County: 52 miles wide, 47 miles long, 190 wineries
Sonoma
County Total Acreage: 1,050,000
Grape
Acres in 2000: 55,877
Grape
Value: $390 million, 67% of Ag total.
Leading
acreage:
Chard:
16,100
SB:
2,100
Other:
1,600
CS:
11,000
Merlot:
7,600
PN:
8,600
Zin:
5,100
Others:
3,800
Sonoma
County population:
1970:
204,000
2000:
450,000
Sonoma
County grape acres:
1970:
12,600
2000:
55,877
Sonoma
County had 23,500 acres of grapes in 1893.
Single
acre Sonoma County Vineyard Averages:
5
tons of grapes or 10,000 lbs.
13.5
barrels of wine or 7,552 oz
797
gallons of wine at 128 oz.
3985
bottles of wine
One
barrel of wine contains:
740
pounds of grapes
59
gallons
24.6
cases of wine
One
case of wine contains:
30
lbs of grapes
307
oz. Of wine
12
bottles
One
bottle of wine contains:
2.4
pounds of grapes
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