Forum: A Winemaker’s Perspective on Genetic Diversity

Dry grapevines

Event Date

Location
UC Davis International Center

A Winemaker’s Perspective on Genetic Diversity

From cultural and economic changes to a rapidly changing climate, today’s winemakers face constant, ever-changing obstacles. This joint lecture will illustrate how the genetic diversity available in plant repositories can ensure that winemakers continue to adapt, and even thrive, in a world of adversity. The event is in two parts. A tour of the UC Davis Wolfskill Experimental Orchard—home to the world’s most genetically diverse grape collection—is open to a limited number of participants in the afternoon before the lecture.

Schedule:

Tour: Wolfskill Experimental Orchard

The Wolfskill Experimental Orchard is one of the largest plant germplasm collections in the world. It is home to many fruit and nut crops including nearly 60 taxa of grapes from 55 different countries and represents the most genetically diverse grape collection in the world. The collection maintains varieties grown for wine, to be sold as table grapes, and wild species critical for the future success of viticulture globally. This diversity of grapevines helps ensure that uncommon varieties do not go extinct. This outdoor tour will offer an immersive look at the collection of grapes and other crops. Limited to 20 participants. Transportation will be provided.

2:00-4:00 p.m. Meet at the Robert Mondavi Institute Sensory Building
Price: $15.00

Tour guide:

John Preece has been the Supervisory Research Leader of the USDA-ARS National Clonal Germplasm Repository in Davis, Calif. since 2010. Prior to this, Preece was a horticulture professor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, where he taught general horticulture, plant propagation, and plant growth and development. 

Tour Registration

Lecture: A Winemaker's Perspective on Genetic Diversity

From cultural and economic changes to a rapidly changing climate, today’s winemakers face constant, ever-changing obstacles. This joint lecture will illustrate how genetic diversity can ensure that winemakers continue to adapt, and even thrive, in a world of adversity.

5:30-6:00 p.m. Check in
6:00-7:00 p.m. Lecture
7:00-7:30 p.m. Reception (w/light refreshments)
Price: $10.00 general / $5 students w/ID (use code
HMTLRVAZCO)

Speakers:

Elisabeth Forrestel is a National Science Postdoctoral Fellow in Biology in the Department of Viticulture and Enology, and will start as an Assistant Professor in the fall of 2019. Her current focus is on the responses of wild and cultivated grapevines to drought, heat stress and climate change, and how they are minimized by adjustments to irrigation practices. She is co-founder of Botany of a Feast, a series of lectures and outreach events bringing together botanists and chefs to communicate the importance of preserving and protecting plant biodiversity for the future of agriculture.

Steve Matthiasson is the owner of Matthiasson Wines. He has been named Winemaker of the Year by both Food and Wine Magazine and the San Francisco Chronicle, and been nominated six times for the James Beard Award. Steve is a co-author of the California Code of Sustainable Winegrowing. He is a sought-after viticultural consultant, and has worked with Araujo, Dalla Valle, Spottswoode, David Arthur, Chappellet, and Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars.

Lecture Registration

About the Series:

This event is part of the Forum: Talks on Food & Wine Sciences series, which presents an array of research and scientific advancements in the disciplines of wine, brewing and food sciences, and highlights the importance of UC Davis research to the food and beverage industry.

Venue:

UC Davis International Center
463 California Ave.
Davis, CA 95616

Parking:

Parking is available in Visitor Parking Lots 15, 16 and 22
Visitor Parking: $9