More On WSU's Wine Science Center

More On WSU's Wine Science Center. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report.

Last week a few select folks had the chance to get a sneak peak at the new Wine Science Center at Washington State University's Richland location. The center is nearing completion and expects to have an official grand opening in the spring. Gary Ballew, the centers executive director argues that this really makes the Tri-Cities the heart of the wine industry in Washington.

BALLEW: Everybody's always fighting to be the heart of wine country and you can make some arguments about who might be the heart but certainly as the center of the wine industry, maybe the brain of the wine industry, that's what the Wine Science Center does to WSU Tri-Cities. So it's that culmination of effort that really brings that focus on to the Tri-Cities.

There has been some confusion between the Wine Science Center and the recently opened Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center in Prosser.

BALLEW: Research and classroom is its primary mission. It's not a tourism facility. This is modeled after the Wine Science Center at UC Davis. That building gets toured a lot by visiting folks from the California wine industry but also from other countries. This isn't the Clore Center which is a great project which is really there, in part, to enhance the wine tours visit to the region and their understanding of the wine industry. This is really about the focus of the industry.

You can expect the grand opening to be a big deal.

BALLEW: The tour was kind of a little sneak peek and the building looks fantastic and that was before some of the finishing touches went in.

That's today's Fruit Grower Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network of the West.