California wine country tries to get back to business despite wildfire destruction

Joanne Jennings:

The tasting room, which also housed the cellar office and a dining room, burned on the ground. But Birebent says he wants to focus on what survived.

Fortunately, he said, the fire has stopped reaching the vineyard, the crushing cushion or one of the barrels of wine stored on the spot; 95% of this year’s grapes have already been chosen.

But, to be sure, Birebent takes these samples to a laboratory to ensure that juice is not too acidic for winemaking. If the crops are OK, staff of 25 employees will have a job to which will return.

While the fires are starting to go back and smoke dissipates, people here begin to wonder when tourists, who feed a large part of the economy, will return.

It is a serious concern for Andrew and Jeni Schliter, who are self -employed and raise a young family.

Andrew Schliter, Andrew’s Tours and Transportation: I do wine visits and transport for people. And my business started doing really, very good. I was on the right track to have the best month of all time.