Napa Valley College in Napa, California, has begun work on a 7,000-square-foot wine education center.
The Napa Valley Register reports that the Wine Spectator Wine Education Center will be dedicated to the college's viticulture and winery technology programs. Construction of phase one is expected to be completed by summer 2025.
The education center will be on the south side of the main campus in south Napa alongside the college's viticulture and winery technology buildings.
Two "flexible sensory classrooms" will have movable walls to accommodate varying class sizes. The building also will have a laboratory classroom with 28 lab stations to offer students hands-on experience with wine lab practices.
The first phase of the project has been funded by a $10 million donation from the Wine Spectator publication and the estate of college supporter Evelyn Allen.
The new facility will more than double the classroom and training space for students in wine-related fields and provide hands-on experience in the wine industry.
The second phase of the project will be NVC's Wine and Hospitality Training Center, the college says.
The training center will be flexible space that will provide training in all aspects of wine marketing, sales and hospitality, including winery food programs, direct to consumer sales, wine club membership, tasting room management, tourism and wine culinary training.
It will include a demonstration kitchen to provide hands-on training for students, a tasting bar and movable sit-down seating to emulate a variety of hospitality and tasting room scenarios, and an event space to host industry trainings, educational events, guest lecturers and wine industry professionals.
The college has kicked off a capital campaign to raise $4 million to build the training center.
