Wine Research in WA State

Julie Tarara of the WA State Wine Commission Photos courtesy of Julie Tarara and Melissa Hansen Julie Tarara grew up in New England never imagining she would have a job related to wine.  Her interest was in specialty crops, and she went to France as an undergraduate student to explore these crops.  She also had her first exposure to wine by sipping on some French Muscadet.  Julie eventually received a PhD degree in Agronomy from Kansas State University.  Fresh out of graduate school, a USDA job brought her to Prosser, WA where she worked for 16 years with juice and wine grapes.  When she arrived in WA state, she did not know that Chardonnay was a white wine grape.   She learned quickly about wine as well as grapevines, and eventually became a viticulturalist for Ste Michelle Wine Estates and a vineyard consulting company.  In November 2025, she became the Research Program Manager for the WA State Wine Commission. In that capacity, Julie oversees

by Marji Morgan · source ↗