Three years have passed since devastating wildfires in Northern California turned the skies a haunting orange color and seemed to prevent the sun from rising on one nightmarish day in August. Smoke from that major 2020 wildfire and another one in September choked the skies above San Francisco and drifted ominously over certain sections of high-end wine-growing districts in Napa, Sonoma and other counties.
Now that these wines are available to buy and drink, it is time to ask what effects the smoke ultimately had on the quality of the 2020 vintage—especially the reds. Are many wines showing smoky, ashy aromas and flavors? Should consumers be aware of any health risks from wines made in wildfire years?
The answers, based on Wine Enthusiast reviews and extensive interviews with winemakers, grape growers and California’s leading academic advisor on the subject, are reassuring for wine drinkers.
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Available Bottles Rarely Show Smoke
The wildfires did have a major, disruptive economic and health impact on people who live and work in the wine regions. Several firefighters and residents died and thousands of structures were destroyed, including winery facilities. A significant portion of grapes and wine made from the vintage exhibited smoke effects during the harvest and fermentation period. However, surprisingly little of this shows up in the 2020 products that were eventually bottled and sold.
White wines were generally not problematic since many of them were harvested before
This Article was originally published on Wine Enthusiast
