California's 2011 crush totaled 3,874,146 tons, down 3 percent from the 2010 crush of 3,986,314 tons. Red wine varieties accounted for the largest share of all grapes crushed, at 1,920,036 tons, down 6 percent from 2010. The 2011 white wine variety crush totaled 1,426,905 tons, down 7 percent from 2010. Tons crushed of raisin type varieties totaled 372,551, up 36 percent from 2010, and tons crushed of table type varieties totaled 154,653, up 25 percent from 2010.
The 2011 average price of all varieties reached a record high of $591.69, up 9 percent from 2010 and 3 percent above the previous record high set in 2009. Average prices for the 2011 crop by type were as follows: red wine grapes, $706.77, up 13 percent from 2010; white wine grapes, $542.41, up 8 percent from 2010; raisin grapes, $265.15, up 23 percent; and table grapes, $219.25, up 26 percent.
In 2011, Chardonnay accounted for the largest percentage of the total crush volume with 14.4 percent. Cabernet Sauvignon accounted for the second leading percentage of crush with 9.9 percent of the total crush. The next eight highest percentages of grapes crushed included wine and raisin grape varieties. Thompson Seedless, the leading raisin grape variety crushed for 2011, held 8.4 percent of the total.
District 13, (Madera, Fresno, Alpine, Mono, Inyo counties; and Kings and Tulare counties north of Nevada Avenue), had the largest share of the State's crush, at 1,495,027 tons. The average price per ton in District 13 was $326.76.
Grapes produced in District 4 (Napa County) received the highest average price of $3,389.82 per ton, up 5 percent from 2010. District 3 (Sonoma and Marin counties) received the second highest return of $2,083.08, up 4 percent from 2010.
For the 2011 crush, the Chardonnay price of $753.95 increased 5 percent from 2010, and the Cabernet Sauvignon price of $1,153.89 increased 12 percent from 2010. The 2011 average price for Zinfandel rose to $560.31, up 27 percent from 2010, while the Merlot average price grew 13 percent from 2010 to $692.55 per ton.
The entire Grape Crush Report is available online at www.nass.usda.gov/ca.