BENTON HARBOR — In the sun-warmed fields of a Benton Harbor vineyard, Lake Michigan College students harvest grapes in preparation to cultivate a spectrum of wines in rich shades of red and white. While this may not seem like the average classroom,  it’s where those enrolled in the Wine and Viticulture Technology program are learning to become the next generation of viticulturists in southwest Michigan. 

The grapes gathered at the Southwest Michigan Research and Extension Center, a partnership with Michigan State University, are an important step in building students’ knowledge from the ground up, said program director Michael Moyer.

“It’s important to learn about viticulture because you cannot make good wine with bad grapes,” Moyer said. “You have to have good raw materials to make good products. That’s just a reality. We have a heavy emphasis on proper vineyard management.”

The community college sits at the threshold of southwest Michigan’s wine trail, where local industry like Lemon Creek Winery, Moersch Hospitality and St. Julian Winery, create their own wines from Michigan soil. Businesses like these not only show students that what they can do when they graduate from the two-year program at LMC, they have also helped to be partners to the college.

“They’re serving on our advisory committee. Some are employing our graduates,” Moyer said. “Our students are helping them in their tasting room and are helping them with production.”

This semester is the fourth year of the viticulture program. Since the program’s start, about 45 to 50 students have graduated and Moyer said a number of them have landed careers working with local industry.

Moyer keeps tabs on his graduates and said some have gone on to work with Domaine Berrien Cellars, Moersch Hospitality Group, Michigan Wine Collaborative and the South Bend Armory Project.     

“It’s pretty cool to see after a few years what happens, and I am hoping in 10 to 15 years, I will be telling even more stories about some of our graduates,” Moyer said.

While Moyer said the program has seen some modest growth since it began, he is hoping to see even more enroll when the college finishes construction on a brand new building for the Wine and Viticulture Technology program. The new building is under construction.

In the last year, the college has announced other developments to the program, including the creation of the Lake Michigan Vintners Tasting Room which opened late last summer Baroda. Here is where the public can sample the fruits of students labor and where they get the chance to learn the business aspect of the industry.

Candice Elders, the college’s director of marketing and communications, said it is a unique opportunity for students to interact
with customers.

“It seems like they enjoy watching real people taste the wine that they made,” Elders said. “What a great experience … you pick the grapes and make it and blend it and taste it and then you see it being consumed.”

At the tasting room, located at 8972 First St. in Baroda, people can find bottles of Pinot Noir, Seyval Blanc, dry Riesling and signature Red Hawk Red, named for the college’s mascot.

Prior to his work with LMC, Moyer helped to develop the Enology & Viticulture program at Walla Walla Community College in Washington. He has also spent nearly 20 years in the business and worked with Figgins Family Wine Estates in Walla Walla, as well as Doubleback, Figgins, and Toil Oregon. He also worked with famed California brands, Etude and Peter Michael Winery.

Looking to the future, Moyer said he looks forward to cultivating knowledge that can help to grow the local industry through the college’s program.

“Our goal is to train the next generation of vineyard managers and wine makers,” Moyer said. “A lot of the local industry here is self-taught. Our goal is to have the students contribute to the growth of the local industry, continue development.”