It's About to Get Wild in Here...

Oregon State University’s Oregon Wine Research Institute dropped an exciting paper in their Vine to Wine newsletter this month. Dr. James Osborne, a Professor and Extension Enologist at OSU, wrote about the growing interest in non-Saccharomyces yeasts in wine fermentation, including mention of several types once grouped with spoilage yeasts that are now available commercially.

Learn more about the latest developments by accessing a PDF copy of Dr. Osborne’s paper here and subscribe to their newsletter on their website to stay in the loop.

Crushed red wine grapes from La Colina Vineyard in Dundee Hills (not part of the study).

Events of Interest

There’s plenty of action down in the Valley with harvest and ferments bubbling away! Don’t miss these hot ticket events coming up over the next six months:

The Willamette Valley Winery Association has an excellent calendar of events for harvest time. Check out their listings here.

The Oregon Wine Symposium is a highlight of the year. Taking place in mid-February, this connects growers, winemakers, and wine sales people to one of the industry's top annual gathering. Sign up to their newsletter to keep up to date with announcements.

Grape Day is the Oregon Wine Research Institute's annual event taking place at OSU's Corvallis campus. Check in soon for registration and a list of speakers or visit the page now for presentations from past years. The next Grape Day is April 2, 2024.

Pinot Noir grapevines at Anne Amie’s estate vineyard. In the summer, the Willamette Valley receives little rain, so dry farmed vineyards will typically show dead grass between and around the vines.

Harvest Podcast Recommendations

Working hard this harvest, or hoping to join in the fun? Check out these podcasts featuring research into winegrowing and water usage as well as a Portland-based podcast that includes an interview with our founder, John Paul, of Cameron Winery!

Vineyard Underground:

Episode of Interest: #023 Debunking the Low Yield = High Quality Myth with Dr. Patty Skinkis

Dr. Skinkis is a well known researcher in viticulture at Oregon State University. Listen as she discusses recent research on yields. Read her recent paper with the OSU's Oregon Wine Research Institute on cluster thinning here [pdf] for more on the topic or sign up for OWRI's newsletter here.

The Four Top:

Episode of Interest: 122: Gray Water for Green Vineyards

This episodes features Dr. Peter Gleick, founder of the Pacific Institute, and Miguel García, PhD., with the Napa County Resource Conservation District. They discuss water use, recycling, dry farming and more.

A highlight of the episode? By the numbers: 80% of CA freshwater goes to agriculture and 3% goes to wine production. On average, 3-6 gallons of water are used just in the winery per gallon of wine, though that can climb up to 10-15 gallons. The target quantity for Napa Green for vineyards only water use is 240 gallons of water per gallon of wine. Listen for even more insights.

Winesplained

Episode of Interest: 2: Guest John Paul from Cameron Winery

This podcast by Adam Rack and Joel Gunderson was developed for Coopers Hall. In the featured episode, listen to their interview with John Paul of Cameron Winery, a drc founder, discuss the history of sustainability in Oregon winegrowing.

John Paul, a drc founder as well as the owner and winemaker of Cameron Winery, on his truck.

Smoke Taint Revisited

What do Oregon State University, Washington State University, and University of California, Davis, all have in common? Well, admittedly probably a lot. But importantly to #BestCoast wine growers, the three unis are collaborating on research on smoke taint. The researchers are exploring harvesting decisions as well as newly discovered chemical markers for smoke taint in grapes. A must read article and must follow research project. Learn more about their work on FarmProgress' website here.

FarmProgress is a multi-brand farmer news and marketing group owned by Informa that covers national, regional, and state-level organizations and represents multiple ag shows.