California is a state with an astonishing number of wildfires per year. Only this year, they had about 4,200 of them, which is 1,500 more above average. Not only are the fires themselves a serious bane upon all wildlife, but they could be leaving some serious consequences for a lot of people – especially the vintners.
Approximately 70,000 acres in Lake, Yolo, and Colusa countries have been burned so far. And with a fire that huge, of course that mountains of smoke have risen from the hellish infernos that beset these places. Now vintners near Napa Valley are concerned that all that smoke could pose a serious risk to their red grapes which are used in the winemaking process. Just to make sure, they are sending their grapes to be analyzed and to check whether any serious damage was done.
California supplies 90% of all American wine, and should the smoke prove to be affecting the grapes the consequences could be dire. The state sold about billions of dollars worth of wine last year, and should they be mauled by this catastrophic situation they will have a hard time recovering.
