College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Engaging Students
Search for Chronic Disease Risk Factors in
Horses Leads to Clues about Prevention
Bringing New Life to an Eroding Stream
Value-added Soybeans to Save Money and Environment
Expanding the Learning Experience
Crossing Traditional Boundaries of Science
To Find Health Solutions
Hobby-size Planes May Be Future of
Early Warning System
Improving Local Economies Through Agritourism
Incentive Payments May Reduce Phosphorus Pollution
Protecting Milk’s Flavor and Nutritional Value
Finding a Healthful and Environmentally Friendly Use For Peanut Skins
Supporting Virginia’s Expanding Wine Industry
Virginia Tech Reaches Top 10 in Agricultural Research
Entrepreneurship Education Puts Business Owners in the Express Lane
E-learning Option for Place-bound Professionals
Financial Planning – From the Farm to the Household
New Graduate Program to Train Faculty in Agricultural Education Fields
Farmers’ Markets from Diverse Communities Benefit from Sharing
Families, Food, and Fun
Developing Disease-free Mosquitoes
Mites Make Right in Honduras – or Not?
Help for the Hippos of Zambia
Supporting Virginia’s Expanding Wine Industry
In recent years, interest in winery building has increased dramatically on the East Coast – in some cases replacing more traditional farming operations. Virginia currently has more than 130 wineries, a number that continues to grow. Virginia Tech Professor Bruce Zoecklein has been at the forefront of this trend, helping both start-up and established wineries to flourish.
At this year’s Wineries Unlimited conference held in Valley Forge, Pa., Zoecklein, who is also a Virginia Cooperative Extension specialist and state enologist, presented a seminar titled “Winery Planning and Design.” He has presented this full-day, research-based seminar at a dozen different locations over the past several years, providing a solid foundation for investors and beginning vintners exploring design considerations for their own winery ventures.
Zoecklein’s program covers subjects ranging from the basics of grape receiving, fermentation, storage and bottling, to more esoteric winery design considerations, including business goals and the economics of establishing a winery.
“Once I identify all the parts and discuss how they integrate, we go through several case studies to illustrate various winery layouts and critique them as a group,” says Zoecklein. The extensive workshop also covers winery equipment needs, wine caves, tasting-room designs, green wineries and sustainable grape growing practices, winery refrigeration, water requirements, wastewater treatment and sanitation, and much more.
The information obtained at the seminar has had a positive effect on Jim Dolphin of Virginia’s Delaplane Cellars. After leaving behind a career as CFO of two NYSE-traded companies, Dolphin began construction on a winery that will produce 800 cases in its first year, and is expected to eventually grow to about 3,500 cases annually. After attending one of Zoecklein’s seminars, Dolphin felt he was
equipped with the tools and the support he needed to begin a successful business in the winery industry. “In one place, I
was exposed to things I might not have thought of. I learned a lot,” says Dolphin.
Zoecklein’s research supports his outreach goal of educating growers and producers on methods they can use to boost quality and reduce inefficiency. His research includes work to reduce the incidence of grape fungal degradation, characterize grape and wine aroma and flavor precursors, determine the effects of viticultural and enological factors on aroma and flavor compounds, and evaluate new grape cultivars and clones for Virginia.
For details on the enology program at Virginia Tech, go to
www.vtwines.info.