Not so long ago, “we’re going to wine country” was a typical weekend plan for folks everywhere from the Bay Area to Los Angeles. That’s not so much the case anymore, as California’s wine industry struggles to attract the kinds of crowds that were steady for decades and then surged during the pandemic. While certain wineries continue to thrive, and in some cases grow, the general trend is that wine sales are slacking and tasting room traffic is sparse.
Could a nearly invisible fee on every bottle sold rejuvenate a passion for visiting these regions and buying their wines? Numerous appellations across the Golden State are betting on it.
Employing a relatively new concept called a “wine improvement district,” appellations like Temecula, Livermore, Santa Barbara, and Amador County are now tacking on an extra 1 to 2% fee on every bottle sold in their regions to enhance the coffers of their vintners associations. Lodi and Santa Cruz Mountains just enacted their own, while regions like Paso Robles to Sonoma have flirted with the notion as well…