Course overview
This course provides a firsthand opportunity for students to experience, observe and acquire an understanding of the major processes involved in commercial winemaking. The course is an immersive and practically orientated work experience at a commercial winery and/or vineyard during harvest. Through industry placement students are exposed to high standards of current industry practice and professionalism. Further, the course will enable students to gain a working understanding of a winery, its management systems and structures. Students may pursue either a viticultural, winemaking or lab focussed pathway depending upon area of interest. A specified level of proficiency in the following operations is expected: vineyard assessments, maturity sampling, grape receival and weighbridge; crushing; draining and pressing; fermentation and post-fermentation operations and quality control procedures. Furthermore, an understanding of the contribution of each of the specified unit operations to the overall winemaking process is required. Students can undertake this course in either semester.
Course learning outcomes
- A first hand understanding of the following unit processes and operations; grape receival andweighbridge operations; grape and juice processing; fermentation and post fermentationoperations, cellar management and quality control procedures.
- A hands on experience of the contributions of each of the specified unit operations to theoverall winemaking process and an awareness of occupational health and safety procedureswill be gained which will add to the understanding of these developed in previous oenologycourses