The 70 million-case E. & J. Gallo Winery, Modesto, has agreed to purchase 300,000-case Edna Valley Vineyard from Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines and Paragon Vineyard Co., which have held Edna Valley Vineyard in a joint venture. Gallo will continue to partner with Paragon as a source of grapes for Edna Valley Vineyard wines. Included in the purchase are the winery, the brand and 62 acres, of which 44 acres are planted to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The vineyard and winery are located just 5 miles from the Pacific Ocean in San Luis Obispo.

Stingerless wasps battle LBAM
Trichogramma platneri, a stingerless pale yellow wasp no bigger than a grain of rice, is the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s latest integrated pest management tool in the ongoing effort to control infestations of the light brown apple moth (LBAM). Crews will place small cards with the wasp pupae on outdoor plants throughout infested neighborhoods. When adult Trichogramma emerge, they seek out LBAM egg masses and lay their own eggs inside the LBAM eggs, eventually killing the developing LBAM when the wasp larvae emerge. Visit: cdfa.ca.gov/lbam.

Artesa appoints LaVine
Codorníu Group has appointed Keith LaVine as president of 99,000-case Artesa Vineyards & Winery in Napa. LaVine brings 23 years of sales, marketing and winery management experience to his role at Artesa, most recently serving as managing director of Sonoma-Cutrer Vineyards and Lynmar Estate Winery. Artesa is owned by the family-owned Codorníu Group based in Spain.

Brown vetoes card check legislation
Kim Ledbetter Bronson, chair of the California Association of Winegrape Growers, commended Gov. Jerry Brown’s veto of Senate Bill 104. Bronson stated that Brown’s veto assures that agricultural employees will continue to have the right to decide the question of union representation without fear of harassment.

DeLoach releases first Marin vintage
DeLoach Vineyards, the 150,000-case Russian River Valley producer of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Zinfandel, has released its first vintage of wines from Marin County. The four Marin wines, all 2009 vintage, include Stubbs Vineyard Pinot Noir, Stubbs Vineyard Chardonnay, Skyview Pinot Noir and Marin County Pinot Noir—a blend from county vineyards. Visit: deloachvineyards.com.