Dr. Walter Clore

As the Yakima Valley celebrates the 26^th anniversary of its AVA (American Viticultural Area) recognition, due homage must be paid to Dr. Walter Clore whose immeasurable contribution to the growing of grapes, not only in the Yakima Valley but throughout the state of Washington, is without precedent. The vision and passion he held in the 1930s for this industry's potential continues to unfold to this day.

Dr. Clore in the early years, courtesy of the Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center

Dr. Clore was born on July 1, 1911, in Tecumseh, Oklahoma, to a family of teetotalers. He told his many audiences that later in her life he did persuade his mother, a staunch Womens Christian Temperence Union member, to try wine. Reaction not documented.

A pioneering ancestor, Hans Michael Clore, a vinedresser from Gemmigen, Baden, in the present state of Baden-Württemburg, Germany, came to America in 1717 to the Culpeper and Madison counties of Virginia. There, with the assistance of two sons, he farmed and continued his chosen profession: growing wine grapes.

Fast forward 216 years and a young Walter Clore in Tulsa, Oklahoma, had just graduated from Oklahoma A&M College with a bachelors degree in horticulture. The economic future looked bleak and times were tough between The Great Depression and the Oklahoma Dust Bowl. To help with the family budget he took a groundskeeping/floor sweeping job at a Texaco refinery, but all along felt his destiny was not to be in that state's oilfields.

Clore applied for graduate scholarships to many agricultural colleges in order to pursue his love of flowers and fruits. Many replied but the only one offering anything was Washington State College (now University) in Pullman, Washington. They proposed a part-time horticultural fellowship paying just $500 a year. In 1934, in the company of his new bride Irene, the man who was destined to become the Father of Washington Wine headed north on a train with only their clothes, $5 in their pockets and the promise that maybe a full fellowship might be in his future. A year later he was granted a full fellowship that doubled his income enabling him to send money home.

Walter and Irene Clore on their wedding day May 20, 1934. Courtesy of daughter Nancy Clore Dexter

In 1937, he was appointed as an assistant horticulturist at what is now called the Irrigated Agricultural Research and Extension Station in Prosser, Washington, to research tree fruits, vegetables and grapes. It was here that Walter Clore would spend the next 40 years. In 1947, he would gain a PhD in Pomology, the branch of botany that studies the cultivation of fruit.

His early days in Prosser were spent meticulously planting and researching the vegetables and fruits able to be grown commercially in that part of the state. In 1967, he was named "Mr. Asparagus" by the Washington Asparagus Growers Association for his pioneering work in diversifying asparagus varieties as part of harvest management. However, labrusca mainly of the Concord variety, soon after arriving in Prosser. A chance meeting with W.B. Bridgman would radically change his life's direction – grapewise.

W.B. Bridgman, a lawyer who is best remembered today for his part in drafting the water rights law for the state, planted a vineyard in 1934 with both the Vitis labrusca, and with vines imported from Europe, Vitis vinifera. Clore was impressed with the latter and set out to prove that European-style wines could be produced in Washington. In 1940, with Vitis vinifera vines from Bridgman, he established the state's "mother block" at the research center in Prosser.

Over the next few years he traveled the region checking out the effects of weather, temperatures, irrigation, pruning styles, fertilizers, terrain and such on the fruit orchards and asparagus fields. In addition, he was making specific notes relating to growing vinifera grapes. These findings led to the eventual placement of several test sites around the state supplied with cuttings from the "mother block."

"His early days with the growers was spent checking the soils, climate, frost issues, winds, etc. He loved walking their lands and helping in planning their vineyards. He willingly would share his knowledge and research with them, looking into the future development of our State of Washington in relationship to wine growing. Dad was very personable and made great friendships with these growers," says his daughter, Nancy Clore Dexter.

Penny Rawson/November 2009

Click here for part 2 of the Walter Clore story: grapes into wine, awards and Clore's influence today.

Penny Rawson is a long-time Northwest food writer and owner of Penny Rawson Public & Media Relations.