Projects create cutting-edge knowledge to solve industry issues.
June 24, 2026 (Seattle, WA) — More than $650,000 in wine and vineyard research grants were awarded by the Washington State Wine Commission (WSWC) for the upcoming year. The research projects target challenges that directly impact Washington wine grape growers and winemakers.
The WSWC Board of Directors approved 11 projects totaling approximately $655,000 for the upcoming fiscal year (July 2026-June 2027). The annual research grants provide a stable funding base for continuity in multi-year research projects.
A major focus of the research is to improve sustainable vineyard management strategies for irrigation, pests and diseases, and soil health. Sustainable research topics include modeling the life cycle of grape mealybug insects; sustainably managing a devastating fruit disease called sour rot; understanding virus diseases that compromise vineyard longevity; and soil health measures that are appropriate to wine grape vineyards in the inland Northwest.
A new viticulture topic to be studied addresses how to optimize late season irrigation to prepare vines for winter and to develop best-practice recommendations for Washington wine grape growers. Better understanding is needed of the impact, if any, of late-season irrigation on the acclimation of grapevines to eastern Washington’s cold winters.
Winemakers can expect to gain new knowledge on managing tannins in the winery. The entire industry will benefit from advances in knowledge about wildfire smoke exposure in vineyards and the resulting wines. A collaborative outreach project with the California Association of Winegrape Growers Foundation will support the industry-facing resources that are maintained online by the West Coast Smoke Exposure Task Force.
The WSWC Board annually allocates funding for the statewide grape and wine research program that is administered by Washington State University (WSU), and its own research grant program. Support for the statewide research grant program comes from the public, private, and the industry sources of WSWC, Auction of Washington Wines, WSU’s Agricultural Research Center, and state wine liter taxes (1/4 cent per liter of all wine sold). The WSWC administers its own competitive grant program for research beyond state borders that complements studies by WSU scientists.
Learn more about the Washington wine industry’s research program on the Washington State Wine Commission website. For additional information, contact Julie Tarara, Research Program Manager at jtarara@washingtonwine.org.
Washington State Grape and Wine Research Program
FY 27 Projects
| Principal Investigator | Project Title | New/Cont. (Duration) |
| Collins, Tom | Assessment of Risk to Grape and Wine Quality from Smoke Exposure | C (2 of 3 yrs) |
| Harbertson, Jim | Research Winemaking | C (2 of 5 yrs) |
| Harbertson, Jim | Managing Tannins in the Winery | C (2 of 3 yrs) |
| Keller, Markus | Grapevine Cold Hardiness Evaluation as a Service for Grape Growers | C (3 of 5 yrs) |
| Keller, Markus | Irrigation Approaches to Prepare Vines for Winter | C (3 of 4 yrs) |
| Keller, Markus | Support for Vineyard Maintenance for Wine Grape Research | C (7 of 5 yrs) |
| Moyer, Michelle | Defining Sour Rot Timing and Management Options for Washington Winegrape Growers | N (1 of 3 yrs) |
| Rayapati, Naidu | Building Evidence-based Knowledge for Managing Leafroll Disease in Vineyards | C (3 of 3 yrs) |
| Rippner, Devin | Establishing a Vineyard to Study Effects of Traditional and Novel Viticultural Practices on Soil Health Metrics | C (5 of 5 yrs) |
| Walsh, Doug | Validating Online Phenology Model for Grape Mealybug and Revisiting Delayed Dormant Control of Mealybugs | N (1 of 3 yrs) |
| Washington State Wine Commission Grant Program – FY27 Projects | ||
| Collins, Natalie | West Coast Smoke Exposure Task Force Outreach and Communications | N (1 of 3 yrs) |
About the Washington State Wine Commission:
The Washington State Wine Commission (WSWC) represents every licensed winery and wine grape grower in Washington State. Guided by an appointed board, WSWC provides a marketing platform to raise positive awareness about the Washington wine industry and generate greater demand for its wines. Funded almost entirely by the industry through assessments based on grape and wine sales, WSWC is a state government agency, established by the legislature in 1987. To learn more, visit www.washingtonwine.org.
