Lab Members

Principal Investigator

Dr. Alec Levin is a viticulturist at the Southern Oregon Research and Extension Center (SOREC) and associate professor in the Department of Horticulture at Oregon State University. He also is a core faculty member of the Oregon Wine Research Institute (OWRI), and serves as the chair of the Grape Genetics, Physiology and Management working group in the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS).

Dr. Levin completed his Ph.D. in Horticulture and Agronomy at UC-Davis investigating physiological differences in drought responses among several red wine grape cultivars. Since 2016, he has been leading the Southern Oregon viticulture research and extension program at SOREC, located in the heart of the Rogue Valley near Medford, OR. Dr. Levin conducts applied viticultural research focused on the fields of grapevine water relations and ecophysiology, and vineyard irrigation management.

Dr. Levin’s applied research program focuses on understanding the physiology of grapevines (with foci on plant water relations, carbohydrate metabolism, and fruit ripening biochemistry), and applying that knowledge to improve vineyard management practices while enhancing the economic and sustainable production of wine grapes in Southern Oregon. Current research objectives include: 1) determine impact of wildfire smoke to grapevines and develop cultural practices for mitigation; 2) determine optimal irrigation initiation timing using fruit and wine quality thresholds; 3) develop cultural practices to mitigate negative impacts of Grapevine Red Blotch Disease; 4) develop improved wine grape crop coefficients to improve vineyard irrigation scheduling; 5) develop low-cost, automated water stress sensor for grapevines; 6) research and demonstration vineyard development at SOREC.