Organized by EHL Hospitality Business School and the Harvard Data Science Initiative, the second iteration of the Vine to Mind conference took place on EHL’s iconic Lausanne campus in June 2025. Discussions centered on the role that data science plays in the wine industry. Drawing participants from over 20 countries, the conference featured presentations rooted in academics, data science and in-the-vineyards insights. The conference put forward a clear and informed message: the evolution of the wine industry now depends as much on advances in data science as on traditional expertise in viticulture, winemaking, and business.
Bridging the Wine Data Literacy Gap
“We hate uncertainty”
Every story has a protagonist and this one belonged to preeminent data scientist Dr. Xiao-Li Meng of Harvard University who started by answering the main question: “We’re here today to bridge the data literacy gap among wine producers.” The myriad variables from grape to glass (weather, tasting environment, etc.) mean that one misstep can ruin the wine. As a statistics professor Dr. Meng offered: “computer science has its own language, so you need to know the basics. We need to educate the broad wine enterprise.” Attempting to allay AI-related anxiety, “the way to prevent an AI takeover is to become smarter,” Dr. Meng said before passing the microphone to Cathy Huyghes, CEO of Enolytics, a wine analytics firm.
“I didn’t go into wine to work on spreadsheets all day”
Seemingly incompatible, data analytics and artificial intelligence are coming for the wine world. Wine people aren’t data people, right? Yet, some in the staunchly traditional industry, where being close to the land has always been a source of pride, are embracing tech. Wine producers could use data pertaining to past weather patterns to prepare their harvest, she cited as an example. Every winery has data but usually it remains siloed or, in extreme cases, written down on paper and stored haphazardly. There are other impediments (unwillingness to share data, challenges in integrating AI into existing systems, antiquated inventory/payment systems, data anxiety, resource constraints, etc.) and “cracking the nut of data literacy is our next challenge,” Huyghes said. The conversation then shifted to the importance of probability in wine making.
“Don’t just throw data at a problem”
“Getting ready for my presentation”, Hamil Hamutcu recounted, “I realized data and AI can have huge benefits for the wine industry.” As a co-founder of Elements, a data skills assessment platform, Hamutcu realizes that “data is everywhere” and that “some level of understanding of probability (e.g., Will it rain in the coming days or weeks?) will help wineries make better decisions.” He warned, however, that “there is too much data, most of which is irrelevant or worse. This is feeding AI and generating bad conclusions and erroneous or even dangerous decisions.” Wine has been around since 7000 B.C and computers since the 1950s, not to mention the advent of generative AI in 2022, so it is not surprising that tech uptake it slow.
Data Analytics in the Vineyards
“Use hindsight to inform foresight”
Faced with a sudden heatwave in September 2022, Napa winemakers needed to move fast. Temperatures were soaring to above 100°F (38°C) but Kia Behnia had seen it coming. He didn’t have a crystal ball but rather 25 years of weather data, so he started irrigating his parcel. In the end, he lost a mere 3% of his grapes and the quality of the 2022 vintage was on par with that of the previous year. For him, AI is like another now-ubiquitous technology: “The winemaker remains in charge but, like GPS, our technology can guide the winemaker to make better decisions.” His firm, simply called Scout, specializes in providing timely data about its 2 million vines under management. It provides KPIs, inventory data, maps, photos, virus testing, metrics and other data to help grape growers. “It’s basically a Farmer’s Almanac for the 21st century,” Behnia summarized.
According to Behnia, a self-described ‘technologist cum vintner’, data can help in two main areas. First, it can aid in yield forecasting, where a miscalculation by 20-30% can be “crippling” for a winery. “Data science can investigate the multiple possibilities then its projections can help people make business decisions,” Behnia said. Data can inform decision-making by providing professionals with better forecasting/estimates on weather, berry weight, cluster counts and other variables. “However, pixels are not as good as the naked eye,” he cautioned. The second is plant health. Predicting diseases, such as red blotch virus, can help winemakers avoid having to rip out vines.
“They don’t want to dilute their artistry with AI”
It is one thing to use technology to aid in mundane tasks such as office work, forecasting the weather or even pruning vines…but blending? This was the main assertion put forth by Dr. Jing Cao, Professor of Statistics at Southern Methodist University. Blending is the work of a vintner, an artist of sorts. He or she must decide how to mix and match different wines to get the perfect blend and perpetuate the vineyard’s reputation for quality.
“Wine is a conservative industry”
For Jamie Ritchie, Senior Vice President and Worldwide Chairman of Sotheby’s Wine, there are many reasons why wine people are reluctant to turn to data to improve work flows. First off, he says, “If data is in silos then how do you get access to it?”. For him, “wine is a conservative industry that is resistant to change.” He pointed to other issues contributing to the slow uptake of tech solutions such as a lack of human resources. In the ensuing presentation, a practical solution to these issues was proposed.
“Post-modern wine making”
In the session entitled “AI Technologies for the Wine Industry”, three professionals spoke to the opportunities and challenges of AI in the wine industry. Dr. Miguel Parades drew on his experience managing the wine operations of Albertson’s, one of North America’s largest grocery store chains, and as an AI Fund Fellow to outline the history of AI and point out a simple truth that could be helpful for small wineries. “You don’t need to have a data center in your wine cellar. You can pay for data-related services,” Paredes said. This ‘intelligence as a service’ could be a practical solution for winemakers seeking to benefit from AI without making onerous investments.
“Build a bridge to all sides”
Albert Strever, Senior lecturer of Viticulture and Oenology at Stellenbosch University, brought a South African perspective to the discussions. The goal he espoused was to “gain wisdom from the data” and connect research, industry and teaching. He noted, however, that data integration and democratization were challenges and that it was essential to “affirm the role of the human in all scenarios.”
“Fine wine meets the algorithm”
Such was the title of Pauline Vicard’s presentation, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Areni Global, a think tank focused on fine wines, who introduced a consumer perspective to the debate. She touched on the importance of typicity (the extent to which a wine reflects its grape varietal and terroir), underscoring the importance of a wine being “local, faithful and authentic.” She went on to mention Tastry, an app that matches the flavor profile of a wine with consumer preferences. Developing an app that could suggest whether a new wine will find a market is an idea she left for conference participants to ponder.
Over the course of the three-day event, participants in the Vine to Mind conference enjoyed exciting presentations about where data and AI are intersecting and a peek into the future of technology in the wine industry. Interesting discussions took place during the evening wine tastings and the countless courses of the gala dinner at EHL. After a short night’s sleep, conference-goers were whisked off to visit several terraced vineyards in the Valais canton. This fruitful collaboration between EHL and Harvard Data Science Initiative was the perfect showcase for both academic excellence and the unique vines of western Switzerland. In 2026, the Vine to Mind conference shifts to a different wine region: Napa Valley in California.
