Need Napa Cabernet grapes for harvest 2009? No problem. Russian River Pinot Noir can be had by the truckload. California is facing its worst oversupply of fine-wine grapes in decades. Veteran grower Andy Beckstoffer says it may be the worst market since the mid-1970s, when California wine was in its infancy and a considerably smaller industry. While that's bad news for growers, consumers are in for a potential bonanza in the next year or two.

With harvest just weeks away, contracts typically would have been signed months ago, but growers in Napa, Sonoma and beyond have been left hanging, along with their grapes.   Read more...