Ben Montpetit, yeast biologist and chair of the Department of Viticulture and Enology, is the new Richard M. Kunde Endowed Chair, named in honor of a pioneering Sonoma grape grower and UC Davis alum whose generous gift supports the future of grape and wine research.

With external research funding often unpredictable, endowed positions like this are vital. They give researchers the freedom to explore fresh ideas, support students of all levels and take on new challenges.

“An endowed chair gives you a reliable source of funding that you can plan around, and allows you to, let's say, in research, take on projects that are high risk, but that you also know will have an impact, if successful, that is tremendous,” said Montpetit.

Wild yeast, bold potential

That kind of support allows Montpetit to think big while starting small, exploring sustainability at the microbial level through projects like his research on wild yeast and spontaneous fermentation. This process lets grapes ferment naturally, without the use of commercial dry yeast. One area of his work focuses on identifying the specific yeasts responsible for this kind of fermentation. His team is discovering strains unique to California, including hybrids of European wine yeast and native oak yeast. These microbes could offer new fermentation options for winemakers and represent the kind of novel, early-stage science made possible by the Kunde endowment.

“The Kunde fund is helping us do this type of work, that long term, could be very valuable to the industry in terms of identifying new strains of yeast that have unique traits that allow them to perform better in a California production environment, or just be unique to California,” he said. “I can guarantee you, these yeasts we're working on, you don't find anywhere else in the world.”