The winery was opened in 1998 and the laboratories were completed in November 2001. The winery is a purpose built teaching and research winery that is available to all wine and viticulture students. The buildings are striking with bold use of colour, form and well-conceived detail. Designed by award winning architect Paris Magdalinos they make a strong statement.
Each teaching laboratory has ample space for comfortable and effective learning, houses necessary instruments (e.g. student microscopes, sulphur dioxide aspirators, incubators, high performance liquid chromatography, spectrometers and an Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer) and safety equipment. The two laboratories are equipped with video monitors, digital displays and cameras (attached to microscopes) to demonstrate all facets of science. All teaching labs are networked to campus servers and to the world via Internet.
Our faculty is dedicated to student involvement in significant practical experiences. This combined with the clever design provide excellent opportunities for collaborative learning in the laboratory and field. The laboratories are all situated on a single floor of the winery and laboratory complex. Collaborative learning, through small groups of lab partners is strongly encouraged (or required) in all laboratory courses.
The Eastern Institute of Technology is a popular education destination for foreign students too. With wine becoming a worldwide phenomenon EIT Hawke´ Bay offers specialist training to students. Currently there are students from China, India, United States, Canada, Denmark, Holland, South Africa, Britain and Australia studying wine science and viticulture. Students are able to make life-long friends and experience New Zealand´s culture while studying in one of the worlds premier wine regions.
The Winery is unique as it was specifically designed for teaching. The staff are committed to providing a hands on´ winemaking experience that is gained in the teaching winery as well as Hawke´s Bay wineries. Students are able to make wine and enter it into wine shows such as the Hawke´s Bay A&P Society Mercedes Benz Wine Awards or EIT´s own wine show.
Trades and Technology Complex
Well-equipped modern workshops give students access to a comprehensive range of equipment for automotive, mechanical engineering, carpentry and electrical trade training.
Science Laboratories
This complex includes a new modern laboratory facility which includes specialist wine sensory laboratories, two well-equipped general laboratories, which each accommodate up to 60 students, for chemistry and biology classes.
These laboratories are separated by an instrument laboratory for spectrophotometers, analytical balancers, chromotographs and other industry-standard equipment.
Rural
Our rural section has a 45 hectare sheep and beef farm with sheep, cattle yards and a woolshed. Tractors, implements, and a well-equipped tool shed with fencing, handpiece and forestry equipment etc. provide students with the equipment to learn a wide range of agricultural skills.
There is a demonstration vineyard adjacent to the winery plus a greenhouse, workroom and fully-equipped implement shed.
Food & Wine Building
The new Food & Wine Building was opened in May 2004. Part of a long-term capital works programme, the building provides spacious accommodation for the Faculty of Science and Technology, with a 60 tiered-seat lecture theatre and extensive, well-equipped teaching facilities.
Within the Food & Wine Building is the Food and Wine Visitor Centre. The aim of the Centre is to provide a focal point for food and wine industry related activities and to enable EIT to achieve a closer integration with the food and wine industries.
Food & Wine Centre of Innovation
The new Food and Wine Building at EIT is the most recent addition to a wide range of resources available to food and wine industry processors in the Hawke´s Bay region.
These resources include:
- The Food & Wine Visitor Centre
- Laboratories
- Winery & Sensory Centre
- Horticultural facilities
- Hospitality kitchens and Scholars Restaurant
- Twist Library
- Education and training programmes
Microvinification Unit
The Microvinification Unit, formerly at HortResearch in Lawn Road , is now part of EIT´s grape and wine research and teaching facilities. It is a modern purpose-built facility dedicated to the small scale production of grape wine for scientific or commercial research.
Research Capabilities
- Small batch (5-600 litre) red and white wine production
- Standardised winemaking procedures that reflect current practices in the wine industry. This includes temperature-controlled rooms, inert gas cover, glass and stainless steel fermentation.
- On site laboratory facilities enable juice and wine analysis
- Capacity to produce around 100 research wines per year on a small scale
- Microvinification has been successfully used to evaluate the quality of grapes from viticultural research trials
- Wine production for residue analysis as part of the registration requirements for agrichemicals
- Wine production to test the efficacy of winemaking techniques without the need for large-scale grape-wine production
- Teaching and research infrastructure dedicated to grape wine production, which includes chemists, microbiologists, viticulturists and winemakers
Microvinification Unit Specifications
- The Microvinification Unit has a fully equipped small-scale winery that enhances the teaching and research facilities at EIT
- Full refrigeration unit and temperature controlled rooms
- Modern crushers, pressers, centrifuge, filters and bottling equipment
- Inert gas cover for liquid storage and transfer
- A well-equipped laboratory that includes a sensory lab and HPLC