Fresno State Winery introduces four new selections

It's time to start filling orders.

The Fresno State Winery is pleased to feature four new selections for Wine Club members.

A 2017 Pinot Noir, a 2016 Merlot, a 2017 Albarino and a 2017 Sauvignon Blanc.

Some of this year's offerings were produced from grapes out of our area.

"We're really excited about what's going on because this year we're bottling 30 different wines from up and down the state. We're really emphasizing, of course, the San Joaquin valley but we're getting fruit from Napa and Sonoma," says Kevin Smith, business and marketing lecturer for the Fresno State Winery.

Over 20 years have passed since Fresno State opened the first commercial winery on a college campus. Fresno State wines have become so popular they've been shipped out to 15 different states.

The tradition was not lost on junior John Skrip, whose family owns Clover Hill Winery in the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania.

"I've always wanted to go back to the family winery and expand it and continue the legacy," Skrip says.

In the meantime, Skrip will do his best to help produce wines consumers can't get enough of. He is proud of the winery's featured selections and other offerings. He says wine tastings create new club members as well as repeat customers.

"They realize that Fresno State makes some excellent wine and it does compare with a lot of others in the industry even though we're a university."

Kevin Smith says this tasting bar was made by the Ag Mechanics department.

Future winemakers learning their craft here are introduced to a variety of wine-making styles.

"And also varietals with the Alicante Boucshet, Albarino, Toriga. These are wine varietals that a lot of consumers don't even know about and our wine club gets exclusive access to," says Smith.

Wine Club members get three shipments a year. A limited edition Sherry is new.

Fresno State wines are also available at the campus farm market, Save Mart and many other stores.