Grapevine downy mildew caused by the Oomycete Plasmopara viticola is one of the most important diseases affecting Vitis spp. The current strategy of control relies on chemical fungicides. An alternative to the use of fungicides is using downy mildew resistant varieties, which is cost-effective and environmentally friendly. Knowledge about the genetic basis of the resistance to P. viticola has progressed in the recent years, but little data are available about P. viticola genetics, in particular concerning the nature of its avirulence genes. Identifying pathogen effectors as putative avirulence genes is a necessary step in order to understand the biology of the interaction. It is also important in order, to select the most efficient combination of resistance genes in a strategy of pyramiding. On the basis of knowledge from other Oomycetes, P. viticola effectors can be identified by using a candidate gene strategy based on data mining of genomic resources. In this paper we describe the development of Expressed Sequence Tags (ESTs) from P. viticola by creating a cDNA library from in vitro germinated zoospores and the sequencing of 1543 clones. We present 563 putative nuclear P. viticola unigenes. Sequence analysis reveals 54 ESTs from putative secreted hydrolytic enzymes and effectors, showing the suitability of this material for the analysis of the P. viticola secretome and identification of effector genes. Next generation sequencing of cDNA from in vitro germinated zoospores should result in the identification of numerous candidate avirulence genes in the grapevine/downy mildew interaction. (C) 2012 The British Mycological Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.