(Wines&Vines) - Speaking at the 64th annual meeting of the Allied Grape Growers last week, Nat DiBuduo told the audience that the 2016 crop “seems to be getting smaller.” Adding that Allied Grape Growers is still compiling estimates, he said it appears total tonnage in California will be about 4 million tons, more than the small harvest of 2015. This is below “average,” after a number of big years, but it’s not clear what average is with new plantings producing higher yields.

Allied Grape Growers held events in both Fresno and Santa Rosa to accommodate the group’s members in both regions. Wines & Vines attended the meeting in Santa Rosa, in the North Coast, where Allied Grape Growers had roughly 1,500 acres under contract in 2010 and represents more than 2,500 acres today.

This growth has led the organization to add another grower from the North Coast to its seven-member board, and Brian Capp of Capp Bros. Vineyard Management in Napa, Calif., was elected to that position.