haraszthy has been called the "father of modern viticulture in california." he wrote "report on grapes and wines in california," a manual on vineyard management and wine making procedures in which he urged experimentation with different grape varieties in different soils and different parts of the state. he also urged the government to collect cuttings from europe and distribute them to growers in california. in 1861, the state legislature commissioned haraszthy to travel to europe and purchase a diversity of grapevines. he did so, and obtained 100,000 vines of 300 different varieties.