WINE STUDY TO FOCUS ON ‘SMOKE TAINT’ CAUSED BY WILDFIRES...

After several major wildfires up and down the West Coast the past couple years, “smoke taint” has become a popular topic in the wine world. Though smoke taint—which occurs when smoke-exposed grapes lead to unwanted flavors in the final wine—is a real threat, the phenomenon isn’t well understood, often causing winemakers to be overly cautious, which can be detrimental in its own right. As a result, the University of California, Davis, backed by the California Association of Winegrape Growers, has launched a study on how wildfire smoke affects the wine industry.