06/26/08 Expanding Grape Programs

Expanding Grape Programs. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report. Have you been thinking about taking up the business of wine? WSU has recognized that there are growing numbers of people interested in learning about viticulture and enology. Mercy Olmstead, WSU Extension Viticulture Specialist says the program is expanding. OLMSTEAD: The viticulture and enology certificate program has been with WSU Extension for about 4 years, 5 years. The viticulture program was offered first and it was every weekend in Prosser and in 2004 the enology program came on board. Again a 3-year program meeting every weekend in Prosser. Both those program eventually went online and so far there has been a lot of interest. OLMSTEAD: The demand was so high from those two programs that it was decided to move to a yearly format, still continuing to be a 2-year program. Olmstead says the program really prepares you to get right to work. OLMSTEAD: This program is set up to provide the experience and the background knowledge that people could go out and work in the industry with the tools in hand to be productive. We make sure they can perform the techniques and the chemical analysis that they would normally perform on a routine basis in the industry. So they have the opportunity to mess up our vines and create many explosions here at the station before they go out and do it. Hmm sounds interesting. If that is something you have been thinking about you can get more information on their website at www.winegrapes.wsu.edu/certificates.html. That's today's Fruit Grower Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.