Occupation
Viticulturist and winemaker
Viticulturists manage the vineyard and winemakers turn the fruit into wine, and in smaller operations the same person does both. The vineyard side is outdoor crop work shaped by canopy management, disease pressure, and picking decisions; the cellar side is fermentation science, blending, and sensory judgement. Vintage is an intense period with long days and little flexibility.
Also known as: Winemaker · Oenologist · Vineyard manager · Cellar master · Vigneron
Occupation content
Part of Agriculture, animals and environment
What the work involves
- Monitor vine growth, canopy, water status, and disease pressure through the growing season.
- Sample fruit for sugar, acid, and phenolic ripeness and set the picking decision.
- Run crushing, pressing, and fermentation and track temperature and fermentation progress.
- Take cellar measurements, taste developing wines, and decide on additions, racking, and blending.
- Manage barrel, tank, and bottling programmes and keep the cellar sanitised.
- Maintain vineyard spray, harvest, and cellar production records required for compliance and traceability.
How people commonly enter
- A bachelor's degree in oenology, viticulture, or food science for the winemaking side.
- A college certificate or diploma in viticulture or wine production.
- Cellar-hand and vineyard-hand work across successive vintages, learning on the job and moving up.
- Postgraduate study in oenology for technical and senior winemaking roles.
Typical training: Varies by employer or jurisdiction
Licensing: Certification common, not usually required
Typical work context
Outdoors · Lab or workshop · Varied work · Physically active · High responsibility · Shift work
Related interests
Realistic (hands-on) · Investigative (analytical) · Artistic (creative)
Related aptitude preparation
These are preparation links only. They do not measure eligibility for this occupation and no score here qualifies or disqualifies anyone.
Skills to practise
- Data interpretation
- Attention and concentration
- Planning and scheduling exercises
- Problem solving
- Numerical reasoning
Practice suites
Related learning
Family-level learning links for Agriculture, animals and environment.
Official sources
Labour-market facts such as pay and employment projections are not reproduced here. Open an official source below for figures, with its own geography and reference period.
- US BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Farmers, Ranchers, and Other Agricultural Managers · United States
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- Canada Job Bank — Career planning and occupation search (Winemaker) · Canada
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- EU ESCO — Occupations and skills classification · European Union
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Labour-market context (not part of exploration match)
This is broad family-level context for Agriculture, animals and environment in Canada, not a figure for Viticulturist and winemaker. It does not affect matching scores and is not an eligibility determination.
This is a broad Agriculture, animals and environment family. Explore the official profile for the chosen occupation; entry education and training can differ within the family.
Canada Job Bank Career Planning · Canada · Current official profile; consult source for its release period
Agriculture, animals and environment: education pathways
Some roles in Agriculture, animals and environment may be regulated. Confirm whether the specific role requires registration, certification, or a jurisdiction-specific licence.
Canada Job Bank Career Planning · Canada · Current official profile; consult source for its release period
Agriculture, animals and environment: licensing
Find jobs
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- Search Canada Job Bank · Canada
- Search USAJOBS · United States federal
- Search EURES · European Union / EEA
- Search Indeed · International (choose location on Indeed)