Voice of the Vine

Voice of the Vine is a monthly e-newsletter covering viticulture and enology at Washington State University. Each issue brings you one to four articles featuring researchers, students, and alumni working in Washington’s world-class wine industry.

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Students find sun exposure affects wine taste with new Cabernets

TRI-CITIES, Wash— Sun exposure and soil temperature can affect the final flavor of wine. Students in WSU’s Viticulture & Enology program put this to the test by monitoring two Cabernet Sauvignon grape plots in the same vineyard with east and west facing slopes. The resulting wines will be bottled separately and will be available for […]

Three people stand on a dirt hill in front of a large green vineyard on a hill.

WSU researchers part of $7.6 million grant to study impact of smoke on grapes and wine

PROSSER, Wash. – Washington State University researchers are part of a team of west coast university collaborators that received a $7.6 million grant to study the impact of smoke exposure on grapes, a project that…

Portrait of Tom Collins

‘Raise a Glass, Fund a Scholarship’ program to raise funds for V&E students through December

Buy a case of wine to help WSU students and maybe check one (or more) names off your holiday gift list this year. Now through December, Chateau Ste. Michelle will donate $3 per wine case…

A young man in a black shirt holds grapes in front of the WSU Wine Science Center.

Research team working to update decades-old vineyard nutrition guidelines, improve grape tissue sampling

Vineyard soils require adequate nutrients for growing healthy grapes, but testing plants for nutrients is a cumbersome, outdated process that takes considerable time and effort. A four-year, $4.75 million Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) USDA-NIFA grant will fund a national team of researchers and extension educators to improve plant testing and fertilizer recommendations for grape […]

A young man in a blue shirt checks grapevine leaves with a woman in a hat and glasses between bright green vineyard rows.

Freshman year switch to plant science leads to Wine Spectator Student of the Year honor

Megan Meharg came to Washington State University with plans to become a veterinarian. In a freshman class that explored both animal and plant science, she realized she wanted to switch sides. “I had planned a…

A young brunette woman in a black vest poses in front of a rack of wine with a bottle of wine.

WSU students demonstrate how terrain affects wine taste with new Rieslings

PROSSER, Wash. – Small changes in vineyard location and geography can impact the flavor of wine. To test this, three Washington State University Viticulture & Enology students crafted two Riesling wines from grapes harvested on opposite sides of Lake Chelan. “We wanted to understand how climatic differences affected the growth of Riesling grapes and the […]

Green rows of grapevines fill the scene before a blue lake and blue mountains in the distance.

WSU students focused on grapes and wine awarded $41,000 in scholarships

Students from WSU’s Viticulture & Enology program, the Department of Horticulture, and the School of Food Science have been awarded $41,000 in scholarships for the 2021 – 22 school year. Annette Loring, Danielle Fox, Bailey Hallwachs, Heather Carbon, Bernadette Gagnier, and Alexa McDaniel all received scholarships from the Washington Wine Industry Foundation (WWIF), a nonprofit […]

A woman in a white shirt and jeans pulls a silver device from the ground as she stands near a line of green grapevines.

Wine scientists running studies to combat smoke exposure

As wildfire season scorches the Pacific Northwest, Washington State University researchers are working to find new ways to mitigate wine grape smoke exposure. Projects include installing air quality sensors at vineyards, laboratory experiments where grapes…

Grapevines are centered before a hill covered in wildfire from a distance.

WSU assistant professor to lead American Society for Enology & Viticulture

WSU assistant professor Dr. Tom Collins has been confirmed as president of the American Society for Enology and Viticulture (ASEV) for 2021 – 2022. ASEV is a professional society dedicated to the interests of viticulturists,…

A man in a grey shirt and wide brimmed hat prepares a smoking device draped in a black cloth.