By Whitney Baxter
When Drew Tuttle graduates in May, he’ll embark on an adventure of “following the vintage,” traversing between the northern and southern hemispheres during grape harvest seasons.
A senior in horticulture, Tuttle’s post-graduation journey will start at Abacela Winery in Roseburg, Oregon, where he will apply what he’s learned at Iowa State University and various internships. Come late fall, he’ll look for a position at a vineyard or winery in the southern hemisphere where it’s peak grape harvest time, hence “following the vintage” or grape harvest.
“Wine is an art, but science-based,” Tuttle said of what he enjoys about viticulture and enology.
Much of that science-based winemaking knowledge has been gained through working with the Midwest Grape and Wine Industry Institute, housed in the Food Sciences Building on campus. As the lead cellar hand, Tuttle has seen all the steps of commercial winemaking, “from vine to bottle.”
“It’s really cool to go to the store and see the Iowa State wines on the shelves and know I played a part in making those,” Tuttle said.
He has expanded his winemaking knowledge by working alongside Erin Norton, director of the Midwest Grape and Wine Industry Institute, asking her questions to better understand wine chemistry and how and why decisions are made throughout the winemaking process.
Norton said Tuttle has always taken initiative and can be relied upon to get things done. They’ve worked together to create the past three vintages, from grape to bottle.
“It’s been a partnership since day 1,” Norton said of her work with Tuttle. “I give a lot of credit to him for helping make Iowa State’s award-winning wines, which would not have been possible without his hard work. He’s as much a part of our staff as our full-time employees.”
In addition to working at Iowa State’s winery, Tuttle completed internships at a Penn State vineyard and at a distillery in Wisconsin, where he learned how to test local wines for faults and follow proper sanitization procedures. Combining those experiences with his education, he’s glad he chose Iowa State and the horticulture major.
“This is the place to be,” Tuttle said. “You get to find your own path and pave the way for what you want to do in your career.”
Norton is confident Tuttle will find success as a young professional “following the vintage,” a very similar path to the one she took as a young professional.
“I know he really wants to do this for a career,” Norton said. “The passion he has for it is very obvious.”