Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis

06/02/2026

Congratulations to Assistant Professor of Sensory Science Ha Nguyen on receiving an NIH/NIDCD Early Career Research (ECR R21) grant to support her project, “Mechanisms of Bitterness Reduction by Sweeteners.”

Dr. Nguyen’s research combines human sensory and molecular biology studies to better understand how sweeteners suppress bitterness across foods, beverages, and pharmaceuticals. The findings could help improve flavor balance, support the development of more palatable products, and reduce reliance on sugars and non-sugar sweeteners.

This research also has exciting implications for wine sensory science, particularly in understanding bitterness perception and optimizing flavor in no- and low-alcohol wines.

Read more in the latest UC Davis Viticulture & Enology newsletter: https://news.bftv.ucdavis.edu/viticulture-and-enology/awards-honors-2

Image Description: Ha smiling at the camera with a tree in the background.

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06/01/2026

Congratulations to Zorka L., one of our many students graduating this month! 🎉🎓🤗

Learn more about Zorka and what she's up to next:

Favorite V&E memory:
My favorite UC Davis V&E memory would have to be all of the immersion trips I went on with DEVO. Particularly this winter in Paso Robles where I got to spend time and get to know my fellow DEVOtees better :)

Post-graduation plans:
Working harvest at Chandon de Briailles in Savigny-les-Beaune through the Chevalier du Tastevin Fellowship!

Favorite UC Davis class:
VEN 124 with Professor Heymann!

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Image Description 1: Zorka posing with a wine glass in the mountains.
Image Description 2: Zorka next to a large grapevine and sitting on a chair.

05/28/2026

Congratulations to Sydney G., one of our many students graduating this quarter! 🎉🎓🤗

Learn more about Sydney and what she's up to next:

Favorite V&E memory:
I had the best summer ever working my first harvest at the Teaching and Research Winery here on campus this past vintage! I learned skills and techniques that I can carry with me for the rest of my time in the industry, and I was lucky enough to form lifelong friendships with my fellow interns.

Post-graduation plans:
I'll be working as a cellar intern at Joseph Phelps Vineyards in St. Helena this fall before heading to Te Mata Estate in Hawke's Bay in January!

Favorite UC Davis class:
VEN 125 and VEN 125L with Dr. Heymann and Dr. Nguyen

Image Description 1: Sydney posing in the courtyard in front of the UC Davis Teaching Winery.
Image Description 2: Sydney operating a machine and at Joseph Phelps Vineyard

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05/27/2026

CONSUMER ALERT: The Solano County Ag Commissioner is urgently asking residents to take immediate action after invasive glassy-winged sharpshooters were detected on plant shipments delivered to local Costco stores. These insects pose a serious and immediate threat to vineyards, agriculture and backyard plants throughout Solano County and surrounding regions. For more information, please review the press release:

https://www.solanocounty.gov/news/consumer-alert-invasive-glassy-winged-sharpshooter-found-plants-shipped-solano-stores

05/27/2026

A nursery in Fresno sent out grapevines and citrus plants to Costcos across Northern California infested with Glassy Winged SharpShooters (GWSS). Several different County Ag Commissioners are working with Costco to identify the buyers and recover the infested plants. GWSS is an invasive pest that spreads Pierce’s disease, which can be devastating to grapevines and other crops.

If you or someone you know purchased a grapevine, citrus tree, or other fruit tree from a Northern California Costco, please go to the following county websites to learn more about what steps to take to isolate the vines/plants.

The Napa County Ag Commissioners office has information on their webpage: https://www.napacounty.gov/m/newsflash/home/detail/846. It includes the local contacts for their Ag commissioner's office, and instructions on how to deal with the infested vines/plants. Other county offices including Sacramento County (https://www.saccounty.gov/us/en/articles/2026-articles/glassy-winged-sharpshooter-infested-grapevines-shipped-to-costco.html .tab=0), Yolo County (https://www.yolocounty.gov/Home/Components/News/News/14223/5137), Solano County (https://www.solanocounty.gov/news/consumer-alert-invasive-glassy-winged-sharpshooter-found-plants-shipped-solano-stores), Sonoma County (https://sonomacounty.gov/invasive-insect-discovered-in-grapevine-plants-shipped-to-sonoma-county-costco-stores), Marin County (https://www.marincounty.gov/news-releases/invasive-insect-discovered-grape-plants-shipped-marin), are listed. These also give out the specific information for contacting local government response personnel.

The Napa County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office is issuing an urgent public alert regarding grapevine plants sold at Costco Wholesale in Napa that may be infested with the glassy-winged sharp

05/27/2026

A 2008 study from the University of California found that between 1994 and 2000, Glassy-winged sharpshooters carrying Pierce's disease caused nearly $30 million in losses and destroyed over 1,000 acres of grapevines in Northern California. https://abc7news.com/19176471/

05/26/2026

Wonderful work by the UC Davis Women+ in Wine organization. Thank you to everyone who attended this year’s symposium! We are grateful to all of the speakers, attendees, sponsors, and organizers who helped make the event such an inspiring and meaningful experience. It was wonderful to come together to celebrate the incredible women shaping the wine industry today. Cheers 🍷!

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Image Description: Three people smiling at the camera inside the Sensory Theater.
Image Description: The chair of the department welcoming guests with the president of WIW.
Image Description: Guests observing a panel of industry experts and moderators.
Image Description: A moderator asking a question to the industry experts.

05/22/2026

This May, the Davis Enology and Viticulture Organization (DEVO) held the 25th annual Winkler Dinner and Auction under the olive trees at the Robert Mondavi Institute. It was a beautiful evening made possible by the incredible support of donors, supporters, guests, and student volunteers. Thank you to everyone who attended and helped make the event such a memorable and successful experience!

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Image Description: People enjoying the Winkler Dinner in the Good Life Garden.
Image Description: Three people smiling at the camera during the silent auction.
Image Description: DEVO members welcoming guests.
Image Description: Students walking with appetizer trays.
Image Description: Two students posing with wine in the Good Life Garden.
Image Description: Decorated tables in the Good Life Garden.
Image Description: Three people posing at the silent auction.
Image Description: Department chair thanking students and attendees.

05/21/2026

Fifty years on, the spirit of the Judgment of Paris is very much alive at UC Davis.

At the Judgment of Davis, global experts and consumers came together to celebrate the world of wine. Through multiple rounds of tastings, twenty-five wines were selected from a pool of 270 to be showcased at the final tasting held on May 18.

These twenty-five wines —representing ~10% of submitted wine, 13 Chardonnay and 12 Cabernet Sauvignon — were tasted and judged blindly by 16 invited judges and more than 50 audience members.

We congratulate all 25 producers involved, including the UC Davis alumni behind the wines recognized in this outstanding group.

White wines:
Domaine Dujac — Diana Snowden Seysses
Groth — Ted Henry
Saintsbury - Richard A. Ward
Smith-Madrone - Stu Smith

Red wines:
Kenzo Estate — David Abreu
Cakebread — Bruce Cakebread & Niki Williams
Viña Cobos — Paul Hobbs
Grgich — Violet Grgich
Neotempo — Tony Biagi & Kia Behnia

A special thank you to the 16 judges for lending their time, expertise, and palates to the event.

Cheers to the wines, the people behind them, and the community that make moments like this possible.

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Photo Credit: .studioco

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Image Description: Ben talking on the microphone while judges listen attentively behind him.
Image Description: Judges sitting in front of the audience with a projector in the background welcoming people to the event.
Image Description: Xiao-Li Meng speaking to the audience members and judges in the Robert Mondavi Institute (RMI) Sensory Theater.
Image Description: Four rows of audience member cheering and clapping in the RMI Sensory Theater.

05/20/2026

Congratulations to Sebastian V., one of our many students graduating next month! 🎉🎓🤗

Learn more about Sebastian and what he's up to next:

Favorite V&E memory:
My favorite memory was doing the internship over the summer and being able to learn from Guillermo and the V&E team. Also VEN 190X when Arturo, Julio and I cooked 30 lbs. of meat.

Post-graduation plans:
Working as an Assistant Vineyard Manager in Woodland, CA.

Favorite UC Davis class:
My favorite class was VEN 101 series because it taught me so much about how the grapevine is able to distinguish itself with the leaves, how to prune and how to understand canopy management.

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Image Description 1: Sebastian smiling with grapes in the foreground with text from the caption.
Image Description 2: One image with Sebastian posing with friends, the second image, under the first is Sebastian harvesting grapes.