A spill at a California vineyard has sent 97,000 gallons of wine flowing into sewers and a local river

Employees at a vineyard in the heart of California's wine country discovered with dismay on Wednesday that one of their giant tanks had opened — and Cabernet Sauvignon was gushing out. Just over 97,000 gallons of the wine — enough to fill eight tanker trucks — spilled after the door of a blending tank popped open at the Rodney Strong Winery. Some of that alcohol has entered the local water system, Chris O'Gorman, a spokesman for Rodney Strong Winery, confirmed to Business Insider. It flowed "out of the building, with a portion entering a creek at the winery," he said. That waterway, Reiman Creek, feeds into the Russian River — a popular recreation destination and wildlife habitat. O'Gorman said the cause of the leak was "apparent mechanical failure." The exact quantity of wine that entered the Russian River is unknown — city officials are still assessing the impact. The Sonoma County sheriff's office is even using a helicopter to track the spill. Early estimates suggest, however, that between 46,000 and 96,000 gallons of wine reached the river...MORE