McMINNVILLE – Two acclaimed viticulture experts, Jack A. Gilbert and Richard Smart, will give upcoming lectures as part of the Linfield College Wine Lecture Series.
Gilbert, a microbial ecologist and group leader at Argonne National Laboratory, will present “Managing Expectations: The Microbiome in Agriculture” on Thursday, May 5, at 7:30 p.m. in 222 T.J. Day Hall at Linfield. His talk will examine new findings relevant to understanding microbiomes of agriculture, and highlight ongoing research to guide management practice decisions and improve crop productivity, disease resistance and economic viability of farming practices in the 21st Century.
Smart, one of the most experienced viticultural scientists in the world, will present “What I’ve Learned in 50 Years of Viticulture: And Some Messages for Oregon” on Tuesday, May 10, at 8 p.m. in Jonasson Hall in Melrose Hall at Linfield. Smart will share insight into his long career as a leading viticultural scientist as well as a focused message specifically on Oregon’s vineyard systems.
Gilbert, an associate professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at University of Chicago, received a Ph.D. in marine biology from the University of Nottingham, UK, and continued postdoctoral training at Queens University in Canada. He is a senior scientist at the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, and senior fellow of the Institute of Genomic and Systems Biology. He has authored more than 120 peer-reviewed publications and book chapters, is a section editor for PLoS ONE and senior editor for the ISME Journal of Environmental Microbiology. He is on the board of the Genomic Standards Consortium, is the PI for the Earth Microbiome Project, Home Microbiome Project, Gulf Microbial Modeling Project, Hospital Microbiome Project and the Chicago River Microbiome Project.
Smart received a Ph.D. from Cornell University and a D.Sc. Agriculture from the University of Stellenbosch. He has researched and consulted in vineyards in more than 40 countries. Much of his recent consulting has been in countries with developing wine sectors like Mexico, Serbia, Georgia, Thailand, Myanmar and China. Because of his extensive travel, he has received the nickname “The Flying Vine-Doctor.” In addition to his extensive experience with vineyards across the world, Smart is the author of “Sunlight Into Wine,” a book on vineyard canopy management. He is also the viticulture editor for the multi-award winning “Oxford Companion to Wine” by Jancis Robinson, and has more than 350 published works.
The Wine Lecture Series events are free and open to the public. For more information, call 503-883-2766.
