California wine company Gallo closing Napa Valley winery, laying off nearly 100 workers

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FILE - Red wine being poured from a bottle. (ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images)

NAPA COUNTY, Calif. - Gallo – the largest winemaker in the country – is closing one of its Napa Valley facilities and laying off dozens of workers across four other wineries and tasting rooms in Napa and Sonoma counties.

What we know:

The winemaking giant will permanently close The Ranch Winery in St. Helena, which will result in 56 employees losing their jobs, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notice (WARN).

The WARN notice also listed impending layoffs at the Louis M. Martini Winery and the Orin Swift Tasting Room in St. Helena, and at the J Vineyards & Winery and Frei Ranch in Healdsburg. In total, 37 positions will be terminated across the four locations.

"GALLO is aligning parts of our operations with our long‑term business strategy to ensure we remain well‑positioned for future success," a company spokesperson told KTVU. "As part of this process, we made the difficult decision to reduce certain Wine Country operations. These changes are driven by market dynamics, evolving consumer demand, and available capacity across our wineries."

Big picture view:

The layoffs are scheduled to go into effect on Apr. 15.

The downsizes and closures affecting Gallo come as the drinking rate among Americans has reached a record low, which has also spelled trouble for other prominent alcohol brands.