EDUCATION AND WINE

I’m really writing this article for a friend of mine, Wino Rick.  Wino Rick is a financial investor.  He runs a company in the San Francisco area and happens to live about 45 minutes from Napa Valley.  Wino Rick likes to make money.   He also happens to like California Cabs, BIG California Cabs.  I haven’t spoken to him in a while, but will forward the link to this article to him so that I can scrounge an invite to his deck overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge and sip on whatever stock he has accumulated.  Rick, when you’re ready for some time off, you can either check out one of these degree programs, or, just hire someone who just graduated from there.

From an academic perspective, accredited institutions in Washington, Texas, Virginia, California, and New York offer four-year degrees in winemaking and grape-growing.   THE SCHOOL to attend, according to industry intelligentsia, is UC-Davis (check out their website at http://wineserver.ucdavis.edu/).  While UC-Davis offers both a B.S. and M.S. in Viticulture and Enology, I am extremely disappointed that a PhD program in this area does not yet exist (do you hear me, University of Phoenix, there isn’t a PhD in Viticulture and Enology!).  I thought that the M.S. degree would be the perfect second career opportunity for our own Wino Bob, so I took the liberty to research the degree a bit.  I didn’t get past the prerequisite courses required in case your undergraduate degree was in basket-weaving.   Here’s the table below:

Bob, at least you don’t have to suffer through English Composition and Computer Literacy again.  However, I hope you took all of those dweeb chemistry classes, because if you didn’t, you’re going to again.  Can you imagine?  If there’s anyone in the world qualified for this degree, it’s WB.  He’s perfected the art of liver pickling and is immensely qualified to taste any fermented product in the world.  Bob, you should really go for the degree in Fermentation Science.  Once again, they don’t have a PhD which I think you’d be well-qualified for professionally.

Fresno State University has another lauded program.  Rather than boring you with the details of their academic program, I’ll point you to their website for the only licensed winery on a college campus in the U.S. of A.  (honest!).  Wino Bob, this should be your first choice!  It’s at http://www.fresnostatewinery.com/.  I can also give you a look at the page promoting the wine degrees.  Unlike that boring, technical looking document from Davis, this is the Fresno page:

You are in the official 2005-2006 General Catalog
for California State University, Fresno.

Department of Viticulture and Enology

College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology
Department of Viticulture and Enology
ROBERT L. WAMPLE, Chair
HELEN CHRISMAN, Administrative Support Coordinator
Viticulture and Enology Research Center
2360 E. Barstow Ave, M/S VR89
(559)278-2089
FAX: (559)278-4795

http://cast.csufresno.edu/ve/

B.S. in Enology
B.S. in Viticulture
M.S. in Viticulture and Enology
Certificate of Special Study in Enology

Faculty

In their fields of specialization, faculty members hold advanced degrees from leading universities in the United States. They bring a wealth of basic and practical information into the classroom. Faculty work with each student to plan and design an individualized program of study that meets the student's educational and career objectives. Faculty members are involved in research and public service through the Viticulture and Enology Research Center, one of four centers in the California Agricultural Technology Institute. The center offers excellent opportunities for students to gain experience by participating in applied research projects that address and help solve problems faced by California's grape and wine industries.

Robert L. Wample, Chair

Sayed A. Badr
Kenneth C. Fugelsang
Sanliang Gu
Roy J. Thornton

The Department

It is the goal of the Department of Viticulture and Enology to be a world class center of excellence that can effectively meet the needs of students and the broader community. The department offers courses in viticulture and enology. Each degree integrates viticulture and/or enology offerings with the basic sciences (e.g., biology, chemistry, mathematics, physics) and management skills to build a well-balanced foundation.

Academic Excellence

Universities in California are recognized both nationally and internationally as the educational leaders in enology and viticulture. California State University, Fresno is one of only two universities in the country to offer a full program of study in enology. California State University, Fresno was also the first to establish a commercial winery in the United States. The viticulture program at Fresno State has received a National Award for Excellence in Agricultural Technology Instruction from R.J. Reynolds Industries Inc.

The formation of the new department has been greeted with enthusiasm by the viticulture/wine industry. It is anticipated that graduates will be able to choose from many exciting, well-paying careers. To discuss career opportunities available in this field, call the department office and schedule an appointment to meet with a faculty adviser.

Mandatory Advising

It is the policy of the department that every student see his/her assigned adviser at least once during the academic year.

Viticulture and Enology Courses

Viticulture and Enology Degrees

Courses Menu

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These people know how to work hard and play hard.  I think I’d have a tough time going to Davis after checking out the players at Fresno.

Of course, you don’t have to go to college to get a Master of Wine (MW) designation.  The Institute of Masters of Wine has about 246 members, most of whom reside in the U.K. (and insisted that I correctly say “most of whom”).  Its seminars and examinations are extremely challenging and very few people can master them (particularly after drinking all the wines you need to know in order to pass the exam).  If you’re interested in this avenue, check out www.masters-of-wine.org).  I took the liberty of downloading the syllabus for the examination (http://www.masters-of-wine.org/Assets/Files/General%20Pages/2004-Examination-Syllabus.pdf).  I think if you’ve been a dutiful reader of Stuff for the past five years, you’re close to achieving a passing score.  However, there’s a qualifier, you must have been employed in the wine industry for the past five years or have made a spectacular contribution to the industry while outside the industry (I think that means writing for WinoStuff in your spare time).  I’m nominating our own WB to take the exam.  I think he told me that he recently passed a proctology exam.  This can’t be much harder than that.

Of course, if you just want to be a showoff and not work as hard, go for the Master Sommelier program (www.mastersommeliers.org).  While it looks easy, it’s not.  The further you go into the program, the more you have to show your saleman skills (and that’s wine, not robots, WJ!).  One of the required areas of knowledge in the Level III exams is “Knowledge of cigar production, with special reference to Havanas, will be required”.  Hell, I can’t take the time to do this, but if I run across a Master Sommelier, you can bet that I’m going to find out if he’s squirreled away a few Havanas.

Another organization that specializes in instructors of wine knowledge is The Society of Wine Educators (www.wine.gurus.com).  I checked out their website, and it appears that these guys and gals know how to party.  We just missed the call for proposals for this summer’s annual conference in Vancouver, but I’m sure we can submit a proposal for next year (we have money in the budget, don’t we WJ?).  Other trips featured on their site include eight days in Chile, a week in Italy at a four star hotel.  Ay, caramba!

Other degree programs that seemed interesting when I surfed the web for material include:

The Wine School of Philadelphia - http://www.winelust.com/wx3/winedegree.php  (tell them Wino Wally sent you)

Hawke’s Bay in New Zealand - http://www.eit.ac.nz/study_programmes/bachelor_of_viticulture__bachelor_of_wine_science_concurrent_degrees.aspx

University of Stellenbosch in South Africa - http://www.eit.ac.nz/study_programmes/bachelor_of_viticulture__bachelor_of_wine_science_concurrent_degrees.aspx

Cal Poly at San Luis Obispo - http://cagr.calpoly.edu/Events/latestNewsItems/WineandViticultureDegreeProgram.asp

Northern India Institute of Hospitality Management - http://www.niihm.org/home.htm

Latrobe University – Australia (and you thought we were going to send you to Arnold Palmer’s hometown) - http://www.latrobe.edu.au/agriculture/bofwine.htm

If you have the time and the money, I’d either have to go to Fresno or Australia.  If you have plenty of time and money, I might go to both.

Wino Wally
Baltimore, MD
April 4, 2005