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VIT-100 Introduction to Wines and Vines

This course is designed to introduce students to the world of growing grapes, winemaking and wine appreciation. Orientation into the Viticulture and Wine Technology AAS program will occur in this class. Classroom topics include cultural history and geography, plant taxonomy and anatomy, wine producing regions, viticultural cycles, general winemaking operations and important factors influencing wine styles. There is a wine tasting portion of the class where students will learn to distinguish wines and how to read a wine label. This class will focus on the New York state wine industry.

Credits

3

Department

  • Environmental Conservation and Horticulture

Semesters Course Will Be Offered

  • Fall
  • Spring

Course Rotation Schedule

  • Fall: Online
  • Spring: Online
For more detailed course information view the Course Outline

VIT 100: Introduction to Wines and Vines

Department

Environmental Conservation and Horticulture

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce students to the world of growing grapes, winemaking and wine appreciation. Orientation into the Viticulture and Wine Technology AAS program will occur in this class. Classroom topics include cultural history and geography, plant taxonomy and anatomy, wine producing regions, viticultural cycles, general winemaking operations and important factors influencing wine styles. There is a wine tasting portion of the class where students will learn to distinguish wines and how to read a wine label. This class will focus on the New York state wine industry.

Credit Hours

3

Contact Hours

Lecture3
Lab0
Other0

Grading Scheme

Letter

Semester(s) Course Will Be Offered

Fall, Spring

Course Learning Outcomes

  1. Identify differences between species and varieties of grapevines as they relate to structure, resistance to common pests, and/or fruit characteristics
  2. Implement tasting strategies to characterize a wine using the senses of sight, smell and taste
  3. Record and report industry and field experiences through journal entries.
  4. Create a basic research paper specific to a chosen cool climate wine region.
  5. Match major sources of off flavors in wines with their origin and common symptoms.

Topic Outline

  1. 1. Introduction to Viticulture and Wine Technology AAS Program at FLCC
  2. a. Blackboard
  3. b. Library
  4.           i. FLCC
  5.           ii. Cornell
  6. 2. Diversity within Vitis
  7. a. Distribution of species
  8. b. Genotypical differences
  9. c. Cultivated vs. native grapevine characteristics   
  10. 3. Winery Tours
  11. a. Large Winery
  12. b. Small winery   
  13. 4. Intro to vine parts
  14. a. Vine structure   
  15. 5. Phenology vs. Seasonal Viticulture
  16. a. Basic phenology
  17. b. Seasonal practices in the vineyard   
  18. 6. What is Wine?
  19. a. Chemical makeup
  20. b. Fruit – Grape!   
  21. 7. Terroir
  22. a. What is terroir?
  23. b. Where is terroir?   
  24. 11. 
  25. 8. Viticulture overview
  26. a. Ancient viticulture
  27. b. Modern viticulture   
  28. 9. Weather vs climate
  29. a. Introduction to how weather affect viticulture
  30. b. Introduction to how climate affect viticulture   
  31. 10. Winemaking overview
  32. a. Ancient winemaking
  33. b. Modern winemaking   
  34. 11. New York Wine Course
  35. a. Proper tasting techniques
  36. b. Types of grapes and wines produced in New York
  37. c. How to read a wine label   
  38. 12. Alcoholism
  39. a. Definition
  40. b. Abuse and drunk driving   
  41. 13. TIPS Training
  42. a. Alcohol service