Center honors visionary, promotes state's agriculture

By DAN WHEAT

Capital Press

PROSSER, Wash. -- Just as the Space Needle and Pike Place Market are considered must-see tourist destinations in Seattle, the dream of the Washington wine industry is to make the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center a major attraction in Eastern Washington.

Named for the man recognized by the state Legislature as the father of the Washington wine industry, the $6.1 million center has been planned for more than 10 years and will open in 2012 or 2013.

The center will educate visitors about Washington's wine industry, crops and foods and will help connoisseurs discover the state's emerging prominence in the wine world, said Deb Heintz, second vice president of the center.

"The Washington Wine Commission needs a brand-neutral location to bring writers and distributors. Every spring, the commission hosts and educates international wine buyers. The commission has said the center can be that place," Heintz said.

A 2,400-square-foot outdoor event facility, close to the larger main center building, is to be built this fall and will open next spring, Heintz said.

Organizers hope to receive a $2 million federal grant for the $4 million main building between October and March and then start construction, which is expected to take a year.

The project has experienced starts and stops, she said.

Fundraising and support became easier when the vision of the center was clarified and the cost reduced from $12 million to $6.1 million after an industry survey two years ago, she said.

The center's board of directors reworked its business plan after the survey, which increased industry enthusiasm for the center, Heintz said. The industry expects the center to increase wine sales, according to the plan.

A parking lot and roads have been built on the 24-acre site, which is owned by the Port of Benton. The site is off Interstate 82 in Prosser, near where Clore worked at the Washington State University Irrigated Agriculture Research Extension Center. A majority of the state's wineries are in the surrounding Lower Yakima Valley.

Clore was hired as the fourth faculty member at the research center in 1937. He worked in small fruits and vegetables but quickly focused on grapes.

He tested more than 250 American, European and hybrid varieties. He partnered with WSU microbiologist Charles Nagel to determine which varieties would grow best where and under what conditions. His research, vision and passion convinced Washington farmers that they could grow vinifera grapes and produce fine wine.

Clore retired in 1976, published his studies and died Feb. 3, 2003, at age 91. His daughter, Nancy Dexter, of Yakima, is on the center's board.

The center will have a tasting room where any Washington winery may share its wines.

Programming hasn't been determined, but among the ideas is to have various crops promoted each month, for example asparagus in April and May and cherries in June, Heintz said.

Wines will be the main focus, but crops and food will complement the wines to promote agricultural business and tourism, she said.

"The Clore Center will be where visitors will see the bigger picture of the state's AVAs (American Viticultural Areas) and plan their trips," Heintz said. "It definitely will be a tool to make us better known."