Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis

Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis This page reaches out to alumni and friends of the department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis

Meet our Viticulturist, Guillermo Garcia Zamora! One of the career paths V&E students can take is becoming a Viticulturi...
08/26/2026

Meet our Viticulturist, Guillermo Garcia Zamora! One of the career paths V&E students can take is becoming a Viticulturist. Read what Guillermo has to say about being a Viticulturist.

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Image Description 1: Our Viticulturist, Guillermo, looking at the camera
Image Description 2: UC Davis RMI Vineyard
Image Description 3: Two Images of Guillermo, one harvesting grapes and one looking at vines
Image Description 4: Two images of Guillermo
Image Description 5: UC Davis RMI Vineyard

Catch a glimpse of our 2025-2026 UC Davis Department of Viticulture and Enology Impact Report! | | | | | Image...
08/24/2026

Catch a glimpse of our 2025-2026 UC Davis Department of Viticulture and Enology Impact Report!
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Image Description #1: Picture of the UC Davis winery
Image Description #2: Text with an image of someone emptying grape skins out of a fermentor, people harvesting grapes from the vineyard, and winery interns posing for a photo
Image Description #3: Text with photos of the 2026 graduating class celebrating and a student pushing grapes onto the conveyor belt which leads to the destemmer/crusher

In just two months, more than 550 bottles of this year’s Hilgard631 wines have found homes!We’re grateful for the incred...
08/10/2026

In just two months, more than 550 bottles of this year’s Hilgard631 wines have found homes!

We’re grateful for the incredible response to the second annual release of Hilgard631 wines, which gives the public a unique opportunity to experience wines connected directly to the teaching mission of the UC Davis Department of Viticulture and Enology.

From blending and bottling to label design and production, V&E students gain hands-on experience while working alongside faculty, staff, and industry professionals.

And the impact goes beyond the bottle: proceeds from Hilgard631 support scholarships for V&E students, helping invest in the next generation of grape and wine industry leaders.

Thank you to everyone who has purchased wine, shared our story, and helped make this year’s release such a success!

Learn more about the wines at https://hilgard631.org. Visitors must be 21+ to enter the site.

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Image description: A student applies labels to bottles of student-made wine during the bottling and labeling process.

Image description: Wine bottles move through bottling equipment in the UC Davis Teaching and Research Winery.

Image description: Two UC Davis students hold bottles of wine they helped produce as part of their hands-on winemaking experience.

Image description: A UC Davis student wearing safety glasses carefully applies a label to a bottle of student-made wine.

Image description: Bottles of UC Davis Sauvignon Blanc move along the winery’s bottling and labeling line.

Image description: A collection of wine corks printed with the UC Davis Viticulture and Enology name and “Est. 1880.”

Hello from UC Davis Viticulture & Enology! Our team will be taking a short summer pause to reflect on our social media ...
07/07/2026

Hello from UC Davis Viticulture & Enology! Our team will be taking a short summer pause to reflect on our social media strategy and prepare for the year ahead.

From now through early August, we will not be posting new content or actively monitoring comments and direct messages. We look forward to reconnecting with you in August and sharing more stories from the V&E community. Have a wonderful summer break, Aggies!

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Image Description: Picture of Vineyard with "Summer Break" written on photo

Larry Bettiga, Long-time Viticulture Farm Advisor for Monterey, Santa Cruz, and San Benito Counties retired at the end o...
07/06/2026

Larry Bettiga, Long-time Viticulture Farm Advisor for Monterey, Santa Cruz, and San Benito Counties retired at the end of June 2026. Thank you, Larry, for your help and guidance throughout your career as a UCCE Viticulture Farm Advisor and County Director! UCANR wrote a nice tribute in the blog post linked below.

https://ucanr.edu/blog/food-blog/article/bettiga-retires

Image Description 1: Larry B presenting at an On the Road program in Santa Cruz County
Image Description 2: A visit to Monterey County with Larry B in Nov 2014
Image Description 3: Larry B and Viticulture Farm Advisor colleagues, April 2019
Image Description 4: Viticulture Program Team Dinner, Nov 2023
Image Description 5: Larry B with UCD V&E Professors David Block and Andrew Waterhouse at ASEV 2026 in Boise, Idaho.

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The Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis was well represented at the ASEV National Conference in Boise, ID,...
07/03/2026

The Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis was well represented at the ASEV National Conference in Boise, ID, on June 17-18, 2026, with students and faculty receiving awards and scholarships.
Congratulations to Distinguished Professor, David E. Block! He was the recipient of the 2026 American Society for Enology and Viticulture (ASEV) Merit Award. His presentation at the conference, titled, "From Chemical Engineering to Agriculture: Lessons from an unexpected career advancing the California wine industry" had several important messages, including, "Ask Why? " with respect to planning research and "Just say Yes" to service.
Congratulations to Delaney Dyer from the Montpetit Lab, as she was awarded the Best Enology Flash Talk.
Congratulations also go to Brandt Bastow from the Oberholster and Wang Labs. He was awarded the Best Enology Poster Award.
ASEV scholarship winners were also announced, with Delaney receiving an ASEV traditional scholarship and George Zhuang (Viticulture Farm Advisor, Fresno, and PhD student at UC Riverside) receiving the ASEV Presidents’ Award for Scholarship in Enology & Viticulture. Other presenters from UC Davis V&E included Sydney Goodman, Arran Rumbaugh, Gauthier Lagarde, and Riley Hibbard.

Image Description 1: UCD V&E Distinguished Professor, David Block, giving the Merit Award Presentation.
Image Description 2: Ben Montpetit, UCD V&E Department Chair and Professor, presenting the 2026 American Society for Enology and Viticulture (ASEV) Merit Award to David Block.
Image Description 3: Delaney giving her enology flash talk
Image Description 4: Brandt giving his enology flash talk
Image Description 5: Sydney in front of her poster
Image Description 6: George Zhuang, UCCE Viticulture Advisor, Fresno, receiving the ASEV Presidents’ Award for Scholarship in Enology & Viticulture (currently also a Ph.D. student at UCR).
Image Description 7: A group photo of UC Davis students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends.

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06/18/2026

That’s a wrap on spring quarter! Our favorite moments were the Winkler Dinner and Bottling of VEN127L wines. Have a good summer, Aggies!

Image Description: A Spring Quarter 2026 Recap in photos!

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Congratulations to our UC Davis Viticulture & Enology (V&E) graduates on crossing the finish line! We celebrated our gra...
06/17/2026

Congratulations to our UC Davis Viticulture & Enology (V&E) graduates on crossing the finish line! We celebrated our graduating students with heartfelt speeches, proud moments, and plenty of joy.
A special shoutout to Distinguished Professor, Hildegarde Heymann, for delivering an inspiring message, encouraging students to go ahead and deviate from the path you thought you were going to take. Those unplanned adventures may lead you to a very fulfilling career that you never imagined.
This year’s graduates selected Distinguished Professor, David Block, as the recipient of the Faculty Teaching Award in recognition of his outstanding commitment to V&E students. V&E Chair .montpetit and academic advisor Liz P. rounded out the ceremony with heartfelt remarks, reminding graduates that they will always be part of the V&E family.

Image Description 1: Family and Friends waiting for the V & E Graduation Celebration to begin
Image Description 2: UC Davis Viticulture & Enology Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 with ribbon and magnet
Image Description 3: Student Advisor, Liz Price, making sure all is ready
Image Description 4: Department Chair and Professor, Ben Montpetit speaking to graduating students and their guests, faculty, and staff
Image Description 5: Distinguished Professor, Hildegarde Heymann delivering a speech to graduating students and guests
Image Description 6: DEVO President and V&E MS Graduate, Dan Kline, announcing the winner of the DEVO 2026 faculty teaching award
Image Description 7: Distinguished Professor, David E Block, accepting the DEVO 2026 faculty teaching award
Image Description 8: Group Photo of V & E BS and MS graduates with faculty and staff
Image Description 9: Group Photo of V & E BS and MS graduates with faculty, staff, and bubbles!
Image Description 10: Group of graduating students in the Olive Grove

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Hilgard631 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that allows the UC Davis Department of Viticulture & Enology (V&E) to share student-...
06/11/2026

Hilgard631 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that allows the UC Davis Department of Viticulture & Enology (V&E) to share student-made wines with the public. Every bottle sold supports student scholarships and helps advance V&E’s mission of education, innovation, and community.

We are excited to announce the new line of Hilgard631 wines made possible by the V&E students, staff, and faculty. Through the Spring 2026 VEN 127L course, students gain hands-on experience in blending, bottling, and label design while working alongside industry professionals.

Hilgard631 reflects UC Davis V&E’s commitment to preparing the next generation of wine industry leaders through research, collaboration, and experiential learning.

Read today's UC Davis news story about the relaunch and the students behind the wines: https://www.ucdavis.edu/food/news/uc-davis-uncorks-second-annual-wine-sale

Learn more about this year's relaunch by visiting: hilgard631.org. Visitors must be 21+ to enter the site.

Image description: Three bottles of Hilgard631 wines.
Image description: Student applying labels to wine bottles.
Image description: Two students holding bottles they helped produce.
Image description: Wine bottles moving through bottling line.
Image description: UC Davis Viticulture & Enology branded wine corks.
Image description: UC Davis winemaker holding a finished bottle of wine.

Congratulations to Amber D., one of our many students graduating this week! 🎉🎓🤗Learn more about Amber and what she's up ...
06/10/2026

Congratulations to Amber D., one of our many students graduating this week! 🎉🎓🤗

Learn more about Amber and what she's up to next:

Favorite V&E memory:
My favorite memory was going on the Intro to Winemaking study abroad trip, which was my first major introduction to the wine industry. During the trip, I met some of my closest friends, explored fascinating French wine regions, and gained invaluable knowledge and experiences that deepened my passion for wine.

Post-graduation plans:
I will be working as a winemaking intern for The Wine Group in Madera, California

Favorite UC Davis class:
VEN 127L with Professor David Block was my favorite class because it brought together everything I had learned in previous courses to create a finished product, which made the experience especially rewarding and gratifying.

Image Description 1: A student posing behind an egghead with their graduation sash.
Image Description 2: A person wearing a yellow rain coat and another picture of them posing with green wine grapes.

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595 Hilgard Lane
Davis, CA
95616

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