From Vine to Glass
Follow your passion for wine into a career across the global wine industry — from vineyards and laboratories to marketing, business and beyond. Start in the heart of California’s Central Coast wine region and take your career anywhere.
What You Will Study
Students explore every aspect of the wine industry, from sustainably growing grapes and making wine to conducting research and marketing the final product.
What You Will Take Away
You’ll graduate with hands-on experience from one of the nation’s most respected undergraduate wine programs and the industry connections needed to succeed in the global wine industry.
Microbiology to Marketing
Explore concentrations aligned with your career goals, interests and passions through hands-on learning and professional experiences.
Enology
Students learn how to monitor and assess wines and winemaking through sensory, chemistry and microbiology analyses. Graduates can manage a winery and provide successful solutions to winemaking challenges.
Viticulture
Students experience site evaluations and vineyard development, disease and pest management, sustainability and state-of-the-art cultural practices. Graduates typically become vineyard managers, pest control advisors or vineyard owners.
Wine Business
Students learn financial management, vineyard and winery operations, planning, marketing, packaging, consumer behavior and government compliance. Graduates are prepared for careers in vineyard or winery operations.
Coursework Highlights
Through hands-on coursework and applied learning experiences, students develop the technical knowledge and practical skills needed to lead in modern agriculture.
Classes and Labs
You’ll be introduced to the science of winemaking: growing grapes, harvesting, fermentation, maintenance of wine integrity and everything in between.
You’ll get a taste of everything that goes into growing wine grapes. From vine anatomy and trellising to soils, irrigation, pruning, harvesting, pests and rootstocks.
You’ll learn about wine marketing strategy, branding, consumer behavior as well as federal and state regulations impacting these strategies and decisions.
Students travel to the United Wine Grape Symposium, host an annual Winemaker Showcase and go on a California Wine Tour. Welcome to WVIT 4400.
You’ll gain hands-on experience evaluating wines using the sensory techniques for difference and rating tests and learn about wine and food pairings.
Experience Wine and Viticulture
Learning extends beyond the classroom through professional, social and international experiences that help students grow personally and professionally.
Find Your People
Connect with classmates, build friendships and get involved through the Vines to Wines Club.
This student club prepares leaders in wine business, enology and viticulture who are equipped to address the diverse needs of the wine industry.
Industry Experience and Connections
From harvest fields to tasting rooms and winemaking to enologist, internship and career opportunities abound on the Central Coast and throughout the world.
We prepare students with hands-on experience, real-world internships and industry connections that help them become leaders in the field.
Hands-On Winemaking
The JUSTIN and J. LOHR Center for Wine and Viticulture includes a 5,000-case bonded 15,600-square-foot Winery and the 12,000-square-foot E. & J. Gallo Winery & Family Building,
Our 14-acre Trestle Vineyard is comprised of the H. Paul Fountain Teaching Vineyard and a commercial vineyard. Replanted in 2015, these spaces allow for hands-on opportunities in site evaluation and development, pest management and cultural practices.
Explore Wine and Viticulture
There is always more to learn about the major, courses you’ll take, what you’ll learn, concentrations and more.