WOODINVILLE, Wash. — The Auction of Washington Wines, one of the top five charitable wine auctions in the U.S., has named viticulture professor Markus Keller of Washington State University as the winner of the Award of Distinction for 2024.
This year marks the 37th annual Auction of Washington Wines, and the presentation to Keller will be part of the third annual TOAST! Honoree Celebration on Thursday, Aug. 8 at Sparkman Cellars in Woodinville.
The festive Winemaker Picnic & Barrel Auction — with the auction component sponsored by Seattle wine merchant Paul Zitarelli and his Full Pull Wines — is Friday, Aug. 9 on the campus of Château Ste. Michelle in Woodinville, followed by the auction’s signature Gala on Saturday, Aug. 10. The Gala Online Auction begins Tuesday, Aug. 6 and runs through Aug. 10. Money raised helps support Seattle Children’s, the Washington State University viticulture and enology program and grant partner Vital Wines in the Walla Walla Valley.
The Auction of Washington Wines began its TOAST! program in 2022, and the 2023 recipients are listed here.
For the second consecutive year, the nine TOAST! recipients will be revealed this week via GreatNorthwestWine.com.
Monday — TOAST! Vine to Wine Award: Eduardo Enriquez, Corliss Estates
Monday — TOAST! Healthy Land, Healthy Communities Award: Kiona Vineyards and Winery
Monday — TOAST! Award of Distinction: Markus Keller, Washington State University
Tuesday — TOAST! Emerging Leader: Jordan Small, Woodward Canyon Winery
Tuesday — TOAST! Emerging Leader: Matías Kúsulas, Gård Vintners/Desert Wind Winery/Massalto/Valo
Tuesday — TOAST! Emerging Leader: Stacy Buchanan, Blood of Gods
Wednesday — TOAST! Wine Industry Champion: Chris Stone, Washington State Wine Commission
Wednesday — Auction of Washington Wines Star Award: Richard Duval, WinePix
Wednesday — TOAST! Lifetime Achievement Award: Rick Small and Darcey Fugman-Small, Woodward Canyon Winery
Previously announced honorees for the 2024 Auction of Washington Wines include Leslie Sbrocco (Honorary Chair), Christophe Baron of Bionic Wines (Honorary Vintner) and Robert Rivera of Goose Ridge Estate Vineyard (Honorary Grower). Co-chairs are Laura and Ian MacNeil with John and Deanna Oppenheimer.
“We are delighted to recognize these outstanding individuals for their substantial contributions to the Washington wine industry,” says Jamie Peha, executive director of the Auction of Washington Wines since 2019. “Their dedication, innovation and passion have been instrumental in shaping the success and reputation of the region as a whole.”
Sponsors of the TOAST Honoree Celebration include Republic National Distributing Co., Saxco, Woodinville Wine Country, Washington State Wine Commission, Château Ste. Michelle and Trysk Print Solutions.
The Award of Distinction pays tribute to a winery, grower representative or industry professional whose achievements have advanced the caliber of the Washington wine industry. Those efforts include development of American Viticultural Areas, investment, research or education.
Keller’s work on behalf of the industry helped lead to his title as the Château Ste. Michelle Distinguished Professor of Viticulture at WSU’s Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center in Prosser.
He received his master’s degree in plant science and doctorate in natural science from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich. Research and teaching have taken him to vineyards, cellars, laboratories and classrooms across North and South America, Europe and Australia.
His work focuses on how environmental factors and management practices influence crop physiology and sustainable production of wine and juice grapes. At the IAREC lab along Bunn Road, Keller’s staff and students investigate scion-rootstock interactions, grape development and water relations during fruit ripening, irrigation and crop load management, yield formation as well as cold hardiness.
Keller’s family grew wine grapes and other crops on their farm near Zürich, and his fascination led him in 1995 to Cornell University in New York and then Charles Sturt University in Australia for five years before WSU recruited him to the Columbia Valley in September 2001.
“For a long time, I wanted nothing to do with grapes,” Keller told Wines & Vines in a 2013 interview with journalist Laurie Daniel, adding that his internship at the University of California-Davis wasn’t for viticulture but rather to study cereal crops and learn English.
His prolific research has produced and contributed to more than 110 scientific and practical articles. He authored The Science of Grapevines, Third Edition and continues to serve as science editor for the American Journal of Enology and Viticulture. Keller received his first appointment to that position in 2015; he chairs the American Society for Enology and Viticulture’s publications committee and sits on the organization’s board of directors.
The ASEV’s 75th annual conference is scheduled for next week — June 17-20 in downtown Portland.
Leave a Reply