José Vouillamoz

Grape geneticist, author and lecturer

- 

How does a Swiss biology student become the world-leading authority on grape genetics?

I grew up being told that the best wine in the world was the one made in the village. When I went to university to study biology I was exposed to wines from other countries, especially Italy, France and Spain – I felt like I would never understand all that fascinating diversity and complexity. After finishing my Master’s in biology, I started a PhD in plant genetics. But I was becoming more passionate about wine and, at the end of my PhD, decided to combine my knowledge of DNA profiling with that passion. In 2001, I got a grant from the Swiss government for postdoctoral research in California on DNA profiling of Swiss grapes. And my life changed.

This was at UC Davis?

Yes, with Professor Carole Meredith, who was fantastic. She retired in 2003, right after my postdoc, and moved to Mt Veeder to make wine. At the time Jancis [Robinson MW] was preparing a revision of the The Oxford Companion to