It’s the recession in a bottle. The wine grape harvest has started in California, but the nation’s chilly economic climate is casting a shadow over the wine industry, as consumers shift away from the more expensive bottles.

But therein lies the opportunity for Kings County’s 3,300 acres of wine grapes, which usually are used for cheaper wines.

The county’s wine vineyards make up a tiny part of the local agricultural economy. Still, grapes hauled in a respectable $8.7 million in 2008 and the harvest is an important part of some farmers’ crop portfolios.

California represents the bulk of the nation’s wine grape supply, producing more than 90 percent of domestic wine.

Gary Esajian is one of the biggest local growers, with 300 acres of merlot and 40 acres of cabernet sauvignon grapes — some near Kingsburg, others near Kettleman City — that he sends to the Gallo winery.

He noted the lower prices he gets for his grapes, which lack the prime growing conditions that foster the more premium varieties in Napa Valley and around Paso Robles.

Hot nights in Kings County mean that local wine grapes aren’t in the same category as their famous Napa Valley cousins. But local vineyards can still crank out a decent glass of relatively affordable wine.

“I would think that the Gallos of the world are probably doing OK. They’re bottling a lower-end price point. You don’t have to be a millionaire to drink Gallo wine,” Esajian said.

He makes it profitable by getting higher yields per acre than Napa Valley, Esajian said.

He said the price isn’t high, but is holding steady.

“We’re doing OK with wine grapes,” he said.

Ted Sheely, a grower in Kings and Fresno counties, with 160 acres of ruby cabernet grapes on the Westside, said he locked in long-term prices and is more worried about the cost of fertilizer than what wine drinkers are doing in the recession.

Demand for wine has actually increased during the recession, but connoisseurs are trading down to cheaper brands.

Sheely declined to state which winery his grapes go to, but he said that most Valley wineries have been geared more to the mid-range wines — say, in the $10- to $15-a-bottle range.

Sheely figures wine drinkers can drop down into that price category without losing much quality.

Sheely said he makes a profit on his grapes by carefully monitoring on the amount of fertilizer he applies to the vines. He said he’s been approached by his winemakercq to expand.

But with grape prices not going up much, and high steel prices for the cables and stakes needed to set up new vineyards, he’s holding off.

Meanwhile, in related news, Kings County supervisor Richard Valle is pushing a plan to bring wine tasting to Kettleman City as part of a strategy to boost that town’s chronically weak economy.

Esajian said he hopes it works out.

“As far as I’m concerned, if it pours a glass of wine, it’s a damn good idea,” he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. The reporter can be reached at 583-2432.