North Carolina’s wine story begins long before Napa’s—when early settlers in the 1500s discovered wild Scuppernong grapes along the coast. By the mid-1800s, the state was one of America’s top wine producers. Prohibition wiped out nearly every vineyard, but in the past four decades, North Carolina has re-emerged as a leading East Coast wine region, home to more than 200 wineries and a rapidly expanding education network.
At the university level, Surry Community College in Dobson operates one of the most comprehensive programs in the South: the Viticulture & Enology Program, founded in 2005, which offers associate degrees and hands-on training at its on-campus winery and vineyards. The program partners closely with the North Carolina Wine & Grape Council to prepare students for vineyard management, cellar work, and winery operations.
The North Carolina State University Extension supplements this with workshops on grape production, pest control, and vineyard establishment, while hospitality professionals often pursue certification through regional WSET providers or National Wine School affiliates.
Together, these institutions have made North Carolina not just a producer of fine wines, but a serious center for wine education—where students can learn, make, and taste in the same fertile hills.
