By Ben Antonius | Daily Republic | August 20, 2009
Ron Lanza, of Wooden Valley Winery and Vineyards, looks over some of his petite sirah grapes growing in the Suisun Valley Friday. Photo by Brad Zweerink
FAIRFIELD - It doesn't define Solano County like it does the famous valley to the north, but wine is nonetheless a major force locally.
Suisun Valley is home to about 20 winemakers, several of whom operate their own wineries and tasting rooms. It also grows huge quantities of wine grapes for use in out-of-county wines. Benicia is home to one of the largest cork companies in California. Fairfield hosts a 1 million-square-foot bottle distributor.
'There are a lot of wine-related companies in this county,' said Ron Lanza, general manager of Wooden Valley Winery. 'A lot of that has to do with (interstates) 80 and 680 and (Highway) 12. It is just a great strategic spot for transportation.'
Lanza and other speakers at a Solano Economic Development Corp. breakfast this week touched on the growth the industry has experienced during the last two decades.
Benicia-based Cork Supply has grown from being essentially a start-up business to shipping hundreds of millions of wine corks each year.
The company has changed with the times, owner James Herwatt said. As wine companies have started using plastic stoppers and metal screw tops, Cork Supply started distributing them, too.
If there is a dark cloud on the horizon, it may be in the commercial trucking industry, said Matt Schrap with the California Trucking Association.
He spoke on Thursday about the increasing regulatory costs of doing business in the state. He talked about several different state laws imposing varies changes on the industry, mostly in the name of environmental efficiency.
See the complete story at the Daily Republic online.
