Terroir There is a great deal of emphasis placed on the region grapes are cultivated. This emphasis, for better or worse, leads to the creation of isolated markets. Often, there is little correlation between price from region to region. â��For example, in 2007, average price of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes grown in Napa County California was $4,300 per ton compared to $125 per ton for Cabernet Sauvignon grapes grown in the southern part of the central valley of Californiaâ��. 
The Finger Lakes region has a national reputation. It allows for the sale of Finger Lakes Wine across the United States and beyond. Such a reputation opens up new markets and potentially allows for exponential growth. In turn, it forces wineries to compete with other nationally and internationally acclaimed regions. In many ways Finger Lakes Wineries are similar to Napa Valley and their access to a worldwide market.
The Lake Erie Region has not yet made an international name for itself, much like parts of the south central valley in California. 
Wine grapes in this region had a greater reliance on local consumption. The scale of production is entirely different. The majority of sales, for value added products, originate within this region for visiting tourists and local residents. Due to our competitive advantages in cool climate bulk production, the sale of bulk juice to similar climates has continued to expand.  This market brings the potential for significant expansion.  With that expansion comes significant risk.  Growers of hybrids and natives are exposed to an unusual amount of risk when their product is marketed in the mid-west.  Geographic distance allows for the market to be more transactional and less personal.  One would assume our local growers will find demand for their product is the first reduction non-local wineries make.  Assuming this market risk allows growers to plant meaningful quantities of hybrid varieties and has reduced the costs of production.  
As for value added retail wine, most of our producers do not rely on the highly competitive national market. This market structure increases the reliance our producers have on the health of the local economy. It also limits the ability of wine industry to expand. At the same time, it helps to isolate the local market from price fluctuations elsewhere.
Marketing Wine Grapes The wine grape market in the Lake Erie Region should react very quickly to changes in economic conditions. Research in the California market shows, not surprisingly, that spot market participants see rapid movements in price. Those with contracts, experience a lag in price movements. 
Long-term contracts would further insulate regional markets from dramatic short-term price fluctuations. Long-term contracts offer further benefits. Rational harvests and other quality controls can be easily and equitably enforced. Fifty one percent of California acreage was under a contract of three years or greater. Planting contracts are typically ten year contracts, long enough to recoup the initial capital investment.
Growers have successfully developed a relationship with Constellation wine, fortunately. In part because of the flexibility in formulations, Constellation has announced changes in demand and contracts with some time for growers to adjust to a new reality. While these short-term contracts could be eliminated for the 2011 crop year, Constellation has put off those significant modifications for the 2012 crop year.
Currently, contracts are very rare in the wine grape market. Most growers are participating in somewhat of a spot market. While not as liquid as most spot markets we think of, prices are subject to change and tonnage may or may not be ultimately accepted. ConclusionsProtection from price swings can be found in marketing techniques. Ideally growers should seek out long-term contracts. Relationships with wine-makers can be forged in other ways. Communication relating to best practices and high quality production can also build a relationship that may help provide a steady market. However, without a long-term contract the temptation of a better deal may undermine that relationship. Wineries should be cautious in their reaction. There is value in maintaining a steady supply and having the ability to control quantity. That value does not exist in the bulk spot market.

  Heien, Dale; Price Formation in the California Winegrape Economyâ��. Journal of Wine Economics, Volume 1, Number 2, Fall 2006, Pages 162â��172 .