Oenology (BrE) or enology (AmE) is the science and study of all aspects of wine and winemaking except vine growing and grape harvesting, which are a subfield called viticulture. “Viticulture & oenology”is a common designation for training programmes and research centres that include both the “outdoors” and “indoors” aspects of wine production.
An increasing number of universities now offer B.S. and M.S. degrees in oenology. Most oenologists who hold doctorates hold them in related fields such as plant physiology or microbiology. Oenologists often serve as winemakers or find employment with commercial laboratories or with groups such as the Australian Wine Research Institute.
Related nonacademic titles include the prestigious Master of Wine qualification and the more commercially oriented sommelier qualification.
An expert in the field of oenology is known as an oenologist. The word oenology is derived from the Greekoinos, “wine” and logos, “word” or “speech.”
