West Coast vines dangerously advanced

I could hardly believe how green the vineyards of the Napa Valley were already in mid April. They looked almost as advanced as many European vineyards do in June. A spell of exceptionally hot weather in March encouraged budding and leafing to unparalleled levels. There was much talk of possible frost danger – although perhaps an economist with a macro view might feel that a little natural crop reduction would be no bad thing for an industry still suffering from the effects of several years of glut.

The most extraordinary thing is how rapidly the focus of the California wine...