Unpredictable rainfall, overly fertile soils, new varieties and a young industry -- these are but some of the challenges in producing quality wine in the eastern United States. Cornell has been awarded $1.3 million to address these problems in East Coast vineyards, wineries and tasting rooms as part of $3.8 million grant from the federal Specialty Crops Research Initiative (SCRI). "This grant gives us the opportunity to collaborate with more than 30 of our colleagues to tackle the issues most important to the eastern U.S. wine industry," says Anna Katharine Mansfield, assistant professor of enology and grant co-investigator. "We hope that our work will lead to enhanced sustainability and economic vitality for the industry and help us understand consumer attitudes about regional wine."