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DAVIS — For 145 years, UC Davis has helped forge the future of the wine industry from the heart of its Yolo County campus.
But now, for the first time, the university is finally allowed to bottle up and sell the wines made by students in its Department of Viticulture and Enology.
It took a law change to get there and the creation of the nonprofit Hilgard631 for the state institution to legally sell wine.
“That’s 12 years in a nutshell. I’m glad we are here, able to celebrate this,” said Professor David Block.
Wednesday night, the department hosted an event celebrating the first-ever release and sale of the student creations.
“They can share it with their friends and families, which is something they couldn’t do before. So this is very exciting,” said UC Davis head winemaker Leticia Chacon Rodriguez.
Dozens of supporters showed up to taste-test the wines Wednesday, lining up after to purchase a bottle.
“It’s a good sauvignon. I like it. This is from a student?” asked one woman in surprise, tasting a delicious white wine.
The magic happens from start to finish at UC Davis. Most of the grapes are grown at the vineyard on campus, and they are then fermented in the winery classroom as the students’ visions come to life.
Each pour represents a sense of accomplishment for those in the program.
“There’s a lot of pride and just excitement to share it,” said student winemaker Naomi Morales. “If you’re interested in the way that art and science collide, consider winemaking.”
Inside the teaching and research winery, their creations are made over the course of 10 weeks.
Before this year, the wines made on campus had no sustainable future.
“Unfortunately, before, the wine got just poured down the drain,” said Ben Montpetit, chair of the Department of Viticulture and Enology.
Now, the department is also able to teach students the business of winemaking too as they learn to design their own labels and sell their wines.
It’s helping raise a glass the the future for an industry seeing declining sales.
“There’s classes where they are given the freedom to do what they want and they really push the envelope. New varieties, new ways of making wine, new packaging,” said Ben Montpetit.
Hilgard631 handles public sales, now allowing the transfer of up to 20,000 gallons of department-made wines. The department bottled roughly 500 gallons of wine to sell for this release.
All proceeds from the wine sales will support student scholarships. Bottles can be purchased in person only at the on-campus research winery at 631 Hilgard Rd. in Davis.
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