Carole Meredith facts for kids
Carole P. Meredith is a famous American scientist who studies grape genetics. She used to be a professor at the University of California, Davis in the department that teaches about growing grapes and making wine.
Discovering Grape Secrets
Before she retired in 2003, Dr. Meredith and her team did amazing work using DNA typing to learn about different types of grapes. This special technique helped them figure out which grape varieties were related and where they originally came from. It was like solving a big family mystery for grapes!
In 1996, Dr. Meredith and her team were the first to use DNA typing to find the "parents" of a grape. They discovered the parent grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon, which is a very popular wine grape. Later, they did the same for other famous grapes like Chardonnay, Syrah, and Zinfandel.
Their research also showed that three grape varieties – Zinfandel, Primitivo, and Crljenak Kaštelanski – are actually the same grape, just known by different names in different places! They also found that Charbono and Corbeau grapes are identical.
In 2009, Dr. Meredith was honored for her important work and was added to the Vintners Hall of Fame.
Growing Grapes and Making Wine
In 1986, Carole Meredith moved to Napa Valley, a famous wine region. She would travel from there to her job at UC Davis. Her husband, Steve Lagier, worked at the Robert Mondavi Winery making wine.
After she retired from teaching in January 2003, Dr. Meredith and her husband started their own vineyard. They grow grapes like Syrah, Zinfandel, Malbec, and Mondeuse on their 4-acre farm in the Mount Veeder AVA area of Napa Valley. They sell their wines under the name Lagier-Meredith. The first grapevines on their property were planted in 1994. Since 2022, another winemaker named Aaron Pott has been managing the Lagier Meredith Vineyard and making wines under his own label, Pott Wine.
See also
In Spanish: Carole Meredith para niños
