Another Reason It's Called Liquid Sunushine

The total economic impact in Oregon related directly or indirectly to wine topped $2.7 billion last year, according to the report conducted by Berkeley, Calif.-based Full Glass Research.

A similar study, released in 2006, set the same figure at $1.4 billion.

"I'd expected to see growth, even fairly significant growth," Christian Miller, who conducted the study, told The Oregonian. "But I was surprised at how strong that growth really was. Given the economy we've been through, it's pretty remarkable."

The study's key findings traced the improvements Oregon's 418 commercial wineries have made in bolstering out-of-state sales and sales made directly to consumers through wine clubs, the Internet and on-premise tasting rooms.

A 2008 article in Oregon Business puts the total impact of the state's beer industry at $2.25 billion, making beer the perfect compliment to wine, from an economic standpoint.