Iowa’s wine industry has $234 million impact

A visit to a local convenience store or supermarket will make it apparent why Iowa's wine and vineyard industry had an estimated $234 million economic impact on the state in 2008.

Bottles of wine from Iowa's 82 wineries are showing up in store displays as the state's once struggling micro-winery industry has flourished in recent years.

Iowa wineries produced 186,700 gallons of wine in 2008, according to a study by the Iowa Wine Growers Association, for a total of

$7.6 million in retail value of the wine sold. The study also found that the industry supported 1,773 jobs and $50 million in wages.

“We are just scratching the surface for the economic impact Iowa wine can have for the state,” said David Cushman, president of the Iowa Wine Growers Association. “Iowa's per capita wine consumption trails the national average by more than five bottles per person per year. I would expect the resurgence of a native wine industry in Iowa will increase the awareness and accessibility to wine in general and will bring our resident wine consumption closer to the national average.”

Cushman said Iowa has the potential for $120 million in wine sales. The association's economic impact study showed that for every $1 spent on Iowa wine, another $30 is cycled through Iowa.

In 2008, Iowa had 74 licensed wineries, 400 grape growers and 1,000 grape-bearing acres. By January of this year, the state had 82 licensed wineries, 400 grape growers and 1,200 grape-bearing acres.

Iowa has a way to go before it catches up with states like California and New York in wine production. The state ranks 14th nationwide in the number of wineries and 22nd in wine production.

Jeff Quint, president and owner of Cedar Ridge Vineyards Winery and Distillery in Swisher, grows grapes on 27 acres off Highway 965. Quint said a lot of new wine varieties have been developed over the last decade.

“They're called French-American hybrids, a cross between classic French vinifera and the American varieties,” Quint said. “Vineyard owners are looking for the winter hardiness of the American varieties and the winemaking qualities of the classic French vinifera. Most of the grapes that we grow at Cedar Ridge Vineyards are these French-American hybrids.”

Quint said Iowa's fledgling micro-distillery business with two distilleries in operation and a third expected to begin operating this year has the opportunity to make an economic impact on the state with its use of corn as a raw material.

“Most distilled spirits are made from corn,” Quint said. “Last year, Iowans consumed $300 million worth of distilled spirits. All

$300 million of distilled spirits was imported.

“Almost 5 percent of the wine we consume in Iowa is made in Iowa. We have an opportunity to see the same thing happen in distilled spirits.”