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Experiencing the Perfect Blend

Cougs are “everywhere” in the Washington wine industry

Washington is the nation’s second-largest wine producer.

Washington State University offers the state’s only four-year winemaking degree.

So it stands to reason that you’re likely to find a Coug anywhere you turn in this booming industry, whether in the vineyards, making the wines, staffing the tasting rooms or operating the businesses.

“Cougs are everywhere,” noted Jean Dodson Peterson, founding chair of the Department of Viticulture and Enology at WSU and associate professor of viticulture.

The very existence of Washington’s wine industry is credited to the research done by WSU horticulturist Walter Clore, who experimented with hundreds of grape varieties to see what would grow best in the state. That industry now includes more than 1,000 licensed wineries and more than 60,000 acres of wine grapes.

To keep up with the demand for wine professionals in Washington, WSU recently made its viticulture and enology program into a department. The move will result in a revamped and modernized curriculum, expanded hands-on learning opportunities for students and even-tighter bonds with the collegial Washington wine industry, Dodson Peterson said.

Aside from the students who go through the four-year wine science and wine business degree programs at WSU, hundreds of others earn certificates each year in viticulture, enology, wine business management and tasting room operations. WSU also has good relationships with several community college programs that feed into the four-year program.

“It’s been a wonderful transition,” she said. “There’s a sense of ownership in what we’re all doing together.”
Jean Dodson Peterson, founding chair of the Department of Viticulture and Enology at WSU and associate professor of viticulture

Kyle Welch, a 2011 graduate of the viticulture and enology program and co-owner and winemaker at Longship Cellars in Richland, said, “I got my internships pretty easily when I was in college just for being a Coug. A lot of people in the wine industry are Cougs so they like to hire Cougs. When I hire interns for harvest, I hire strictly from the program.”

As a winemaker, he said he’s proud to see WSU taking such a dominant role in the Washington wine industry.

WSU wine scientists are global leaders in their areas of expertise. Recently, Professor and Viticulture Extension Specialist Michelle Moyer was named president of the American Society for Enology and Viticulture.

The university works closely with the industry in Washington to make sure students are fully prepared when they graduate. In turn, the industry supports the university through internships, mentorship and feedback on curriculum. And Washington wineries are donating to new student-support funds to enrich the student experience and remove obstacles to staying in school.

The collegiality of Washington’s wine industry continues to inspire me. They’re together for each other, together behind WSU, invested for the students, and invested in faculty success. This is a special place.”
Jean Dodson Peterson, founding chair of the Department of Viticulture and Enology at WSU and associate professor of viticulture

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