Ruby Cabernet

When I started graduate school at UC-Davis in 1995, one of my first classes was a seminar series. Being the first session of the academic year, a round of introductions started the session. It was the usual “my name is . . ., my specialty is…, and I have been at UC-Davis for … years.” Then came the turn of an elderly man, who literally shuffled into his office everyday, and seemingly was reading or engaged in conversation with faculty and students alike until about mid-afternoon, and then shuffled home for the day. The man stood from his chair, and said, “My name is Harold Olmo, I am a grape breeder, and do you want to know when I came here as a student, or faculty?” In front of us was Dr. H.P. Olmo, one of the greatest grape breeders of modern times, and it is his first release, Ruby Cabernet, that is the topic of this issue. Much of which is presented here is a summation of Dr. Olmo’s notes on the variety. Ruby Cabernet is a red grape