Veterans Day Student Spotlight: Benjamin Benitez

Happy Veterans Day to Fresno State enology senior Benjamin Benitez who proudly served our country for 10 years at U.S. Air Force bases at Travis (Bay Area), South Korea, and Whiteman (MO). 

With a high rank of staff sergeant training instructor, he also worked in areas related to plane, equipment and personnel transportation and security, military law enforcement deployment, air marshal, and ground combat instruction. 

The Farmersville/Visalia native also received special high-risk training in special weapons and tactics (SWAT), protective services, and anti-terrorism areas.

He was drawn to the military as a teenager while he was part of a local police department’s Explorers outreach program. He ultimately got a criminal justice associate’s degree from the Air Force and nearly completed a similar degree with Ashford University (San Diego).

The 31-year-old husband and father also received an associate’s viticulture and enology degree from Napa Valley College with an emphasis in winemaking before he enrolled at Fresno State in the fall of 2019.

Q: Why were drawn towards Fresno State and pursuing an enology degree?

Benitez: “I developed a passion for wine while living up near Napa Valley. I had a friend taking a course in it at UC Davis. Since we happened to live so close to Napa I saw that Napa Valley College had a degree in winemaking and winemaking technology. I went that route from 2017 to 2019 and have enjoyed it ever since. However, I had no experience before that.”

Benitez: “After that, there were several options for advanced winemaking degrees. Fresno State is the ‘Pride of the Valley’ and was the most feasible economically. Some of the Napa Valley College staff wanted me to transfer to UC Davis, but one of my professors pushed me this direction since I wanted a more hands-on foundation, so I physically learned all the steps about great wine-making from start to finish.” 

 

Q: Which faculty have had the biggest influence on you while at Fresno State?

Benitez: “I am drawn to Dr. (Miguel) Pedroza’s teaching style. He doesn’t have an either/or research or teaching focus, and does both really well. He comes from a great research background, yet is really committed to giving all his students fantastic, hands-on experience.”

 

Q: What units have you worked with on the campus farm, and how has it prepared you for your career path?

Benitez: “This is my first semester working at the winery. I’ve learned so much, everything from inoculating and cleaning tanks, to working with yeast, malolactic materials, pressing … any aspect of the process, and filtering which will be down the road.”

 

Q: Have you been involved with research on campus, and how will it benefit your career path?

Benitez: “For Dr. Pedroza’s class we’re doing industy-related research with Gusmer. We’re using French Columbard varietal grapes and testing a enzymes and a flora yeast that isn’t your typical yeast. It almost builds a layer on top of the wine and almost looks like a mold. It brings out more aromas than a typical wine would. We have four trials going with each aspect and seeing how each performs.”

 

Q: What was your background in agriculture before you started at Fresno State?

Benitez: “My parents worked on farms near Visalia. My dad later became a produce manager for a big grocery store. My mom was a farm worker for a long time and eventually got a job at the hospital.”

 

Q: Have you done any internships or part-time jobs, and how did they help you professionally?

Benitez: “I worked for a year in different wineries and tasting rooms in and near Sacramento like the Underground Tasting Room, Twisted Twig Winery and Rendezvous Winery. Once I separated from the military, I lived in Vacaville and started going to Napa, then moved to Sacramento when my wife was moved to Beale Air Force Base (near Yuba City).”

 

Q: Have you received any scholarships?  

Benitez: “I have a full tuition scholarship paid for by the Veterans Administration through Chapter 33 (Post-9/11 GI Bill) and Chapter 31, which is directed at vocational rehabilitation and training.”

 

Q: Why are you drawn towards winemaking? 

Benitez: “I have a passion for taking something from the earth like grapes and then making something special - it feels like you’re making history in a way. Taking something from the field to bottle is a unique journey, and not something everybody gets to see. Then you get to drink it and see the special process come to completion. Being able to work with hands and learn at the winery is my current focus, and the viticulture side is really interesting, too.”

 

Q: What's your potential next career step, and how do you plan to use your degree eventually?

Benitez: “I’m graduating in 2021, and maybe want to go back up north to the Central Coast. My wife works in a hospital here, so I may also want to get some experience at a bigger winery nearby like Gallo or at The Wine Group. I’ll go wherever the road takes me.”