I've spoken to a half-dozen winemaker in the past two days and asked each how the grapes were looking. I heard a lot of long sighs followed by concerns about when - or if - the grapes would ever ripen in the Northwest.

Ste. Michelle Wine Estates’ operating profit rose 30 percent to $14.8 million in the second quarter, according to a securities filing by its Connecticut-based parent company, UST.