Cal Poly University logo home | contact
Roping Cowboy   Student and Techer Conducting Lab Experiment   Tying Grapes in Vineyard   Horse Grazing College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences
Campus Photo
Student Academic Fee Help Ag Grow Contact Us
 
Cal Poly Student Places in Top 5 at National Equestrian Championships
 
Cal Poly Tractor Design Team Takes First
 
Cal Poly Latinos in Agriculture Host High School, Elementary Students For College Outreach & Science Lessons
 
Cal Poly College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences Announces Staff Awards
Cal Poly Flower Judging Team Again Best in Nation
Recreation, Parks, & Tourism Professor Receives Lifetime Achievement Recognition
 

home departments & majors majors wine and viticulture
Wine & Viticulture

Students picking grapes from a vineyard
The Wine and Viticulture major is based on fundamental and applied sciences, modern agribusiness principles, and appropriate social sciences and encompasses grape cultivation, enology, and wine business, creating both an interesting and diverse undergraduate opportunity. The proposed curriculum fosters an alliance among production agriculture, food science, and agricultural business interests and provides a "vine to glass" academic opportunity.  Graduates will gain extensive hands-on experience in all aspects of the wine industry, encompassing viticulture, the complexities of fermentation, and wine business.

After acceptance into the Wine and Viticulture major, students will choose one or more concentration(s). 

  • The enology concentration emphasizes the chemical and physical characteristics of wine fermentation. The microbiological and biochemical aspects contributing to wine sensory quality will be emphasized; as well as, packaging, plant sanitation requirements, and federal and state regulations.

  • The viticulture concentration provides unique cross-training for our students, combining an understanding of vineyards, winemaking, and marketing, thus, preparing them for upper-echelon management.

  • The agribusiness concentration focuses on specific issues unique to this industry. The wine industry requires substantial long-term capital commitments and is controlled by many levels of government. The agribusiness concentration educates Wine and Viticulture students in operational and strategic management, while providing knowledge of retail marketing laws and various regulatory constraints.

Student working in a vineyard

Cal Poly's College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences currently offers a diverse faculty and nearly 9,000 acres of farmland, including a 100-acre state-of-the-art commercial vineyard.  This vineyard provides an excellent opportunity for our students to practice Cal Poly's trademark "Learn by Doing" method of education.  Graduates of the Wine and Viticulture major will be uniquely qualified to enter into the wine industry, whether they focus on a particular aspect of the industry or choose to be generalists.

Click here for Curriculum Information.

Can't view the PDF document? Get Adobe Reader


GET IN TOUCH...

Click here for WVIT Faculty Contact Information

John Peterson, PhD
Director, Wine and Viticulture Program
College of Agriculture, Food and
   Environmental Sciences
Building 11 Room 230
805-756-2161  Fax: 805-756-5040
email: wvit@calpoly.edu

Buy Award-winning Cal Poly Wine

Cal Poly Wine

Harvest Time
Harvest Time


New Growth
New Growth


Starting a Vineyard Starting a Vineyard

Click here to view the Wine and Viticulture Winter Newsletter.
Newsletter

back to top

Home | Prospective Students | Current Students | Faculty & Staff | Advising | Departments & Majors | Programs & Projects  | News & Events | About the College | Student Academic Fee | Help Ag Grow | Contact Us | Cal Poly Find It | Cal Poly Home |

Website maintained by Cafes Computing Support
Copyright 2009, Cal Poly CAFES
Need to contact us? Send email to cafes@calpoly.edu

Last Updated: 1/6/2009
College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences
California Polytechnic State University
San Luis Obispo, CA 93407
805-756-2161