Spotlight: California Wine Sales Reach All-Time High

Sales of California wine reached an all-time high in 1996 despite a shortage of premium grapes, industry analyst Jon Fredrikson told the annual Unified Symposium in Sacramento this week. Shipments of premium wines grew 11% last year and accounted for a third of U.S. wine shipments. However, there are signs that sales may wane, under the pressure of price hikes and fruit shortages. One troubling sign was the 2% decline in December holiday sales, according to Nielsen Winescan, which tracks monthly sales.