My first vintage has gone by in the blink of an eye. Next week is my last week of work and it is surreal to think about having to leave this place. It has been good to visit with some of my old friends here in Australia, and to show Kevin more of the spots I loved exploring while I was studying. In 3 short months, I have also made some new friends and learned so much about how wineries turn grapes into wine.

It was my intention to document the vintage better, but honestly, I have been way too occupied or exhausted from working and the day-to-day domestic chores that pile up when you’re working all the time. The rural location in Clare has brought our internet speed to a crawl reminiscent of dial-up. Compounding my lack of blogging has been my inability to take good photos. (Camera phones and wet winery environments do not mix.)

Kevin also enjoyed his first foray in the wine industry at his vintage. The work was pretty physical and it took a couple weeks for our bodies to adjust. Waking everyday before dawn was an adjustment for me. I definitely have more upper body strength, but am still very clumsy. Neither of us has lost weight, but the pants do feel roomier than when we started. Maybe it’s muscle, we tell ourselves.

It took our heads a bit of time to get used to the winery operations. The amount of time, effort, steps and details necessary to finish a job was quite daunting at first. There were times where I felt like the worst cellarhand ever, but everybody makes mistakes and we all learn from it and move on. I’ve been learning the ins and outs of cleaning tanks and presses, crushing, transferring, racking, fining, barrel filling/emptying, and  lees stirring.

My commute

My daily commute was a short 3km bicycle ride on the Riesling Trail, whizzing past vineyards and pasture. On the way to work, I was greeted by rabbits and kangaroos in the wee hours of the dawn. On the ride home, I’d encounter rosellas, grazing lamb and unfortunately the ever-present pesky fly. (How do these Australian flies keep up with a person on a bicycle?!) Throughout the ride, I’d come across some stunning views.

View from the Riesling Trail

The 2012 vintage in Clare is sure to go down in the books as a great vintage for Rieslings as well as reds. There were a couple days of rain, but nothing that made an impact. The fruit all looked great and the resulting wines look pretty exceptional. There were no huge heat waves during harvest, which was also good for those of us working at outdoor wineries. Kevin and I were able to do a good amount of tasting around Clare and all the wineries are very pleased with how this vintage has gone.

It seemed like the seasons changed from summer to winter in a blur. We’ve got our return flights for the states at the end of May, and tickets to France after! (More on that soon!) We’ve gotten to know some pretty amazing people who I hope to see again, it’s strange to think we have to leave so soon, just as this place was starting to feel like home. But at an outdoor winery, perhaps it is best that we’re not having to work during the approaching cold winter storms.

I can’t believe how fast this semester has gone. In no time, everyone will be going their separate ways, some returning to their homelands, some going off to work in other wine regions. I will be flying home shortly before Thanksgiving, getting married, moving Kevin out of his home, roadtripping across the country to his hometown Tucson for the holidays. From there, we’re squeezing in a honeymoon in Belize and then both of us are heading back to Australia to work in the Clare Valley.

It all adds up to a lot of running around so I might not be checking in for a bit. Perhaps I can tide you over with some photos I took from various field trips I attended during this term. Hope you find them interesting!

Waxed dipped grafted rootlings at Yalumba Nursery

Filling and Capping at Portavin

Glass beer bottles being made at O-I glass factory

Biodynamic preparations at Paxton Wines in McLaren Vale

I managed to get 2 offers within a month of applying to about 40 wineries throughout the Margaret River and the Clare Valley. One offer I received through a totally unsolicited emailed application followed by two phone interviews. For the second offer, I sent an unsolicited email, but I also was classmates with the son of one of the winemakers. Would I have gotten an interview with them had I not been friends with the son? I’m not sure, but I think it underlines the importance of networking in this industry.

Below are some tips to help you maximize your chances of finding a vintage position. It is a combination of advice from more experienced classmates, teachers, and things I have encountered in my own dealings. I hope this post is useful, and of course your mileage may vary from what I have written here.

Develop your skills
If you have no experience in a cellar, it would be advantageous to have some other skills. A forklift license is particularly attractive. Unfortunately, forklift licenses are not transferable internationally, but any previous forklift experience would be good. Obtaining an Australian forklift license costs $200 to $300 and can be done through a number of certifying agencies. My forklift license was certainly a key factor in getting an interview.

Sort out your visa restrictions
Wineries are generally loathe to do paperwork for vintage casuals, particularly for an unproven employee. Americans may apply for a Work and Holiday visa. This visa will allow you to work for any employer for up to 6 months. That will be plenty of time to do a vintage. If you are not eligible for the Work and Holiday, there are other programs you can apply through to help with your visa, such as Bibber. These visa services are usually quite expensive and may have their own restrictions. I, luckily, am eligible for the Work and Holiday. My friend is too old to be eligible. Fortunately, since he had been working at the winery’s cellardoor, they were willing to do the paperwork to have him on board for vintage.

Decide where you want to apply
There are many factors that will influence your chances of finding a vintage and the kind of vintage experience you will get. Super premium wineries will have a more competitive applicant pool. Larger wineries and contract facilities obviously need more staff than tiny garagistes. Geography also plays a big role. Wineries in more remote areas are more open to hire less experienced staff, since there are fewer candidates willing to live in these less exciting areas. This was one of the reasons I decided to focus my efforts on Margaret River and the Clare Valley. They are just far enough away from Adelaide and Perth respectively. Research the wineries to make sure they actually make their own wine rather than use a contract facility. It would be good if you don’t waste your time applying to those. Some wineries specialize in certain styles of wine, and some regions’ seasons can be early, late, short or long. These factors all affect whether your start and end dates and consequently the type of experience you will get. Hunter Valley, for instance, has an early and very condensed harvest. You will work very hard and be too busy to be able to ask questions and learn much from the winemakers. A winery that makes both sparkling wines and fully bodied reds will likely have a more spread out vintage. Contract wineries will offer all kinds of wine styles and give you exposure to all levels of quality and fruit sources. The largest wineries may put you on just one piece of equipment and you might work that one part of the cellar the entire vintage. This is not so great if you are looking to get experience in as many areas as possible.

Develop a good resume, cover letter and referees
This advice is important for any kind of job search. Smaller wineries are taking a risk by hiring an inexperienced person to join their team and are keen to make sure the person is as good a fit as possible. Tailor your cover letters so that they show your strengths and enthusiasm for their wines. If you can have your resume reviewed by someone with winery experience. They can easily point out ways to improve your application. Be sure to line up good referees in case you are asked for them. I used three professors for mine, and they were contacted.

Apply early!
If you don’t have good contacts, apply early. For a southern hemisphere harvest like Australia, this would be August. While there are many wineries that are not looking for applicants at that time, there are many that are willing to hire during this slow time of year. Wineries typically have returning staff from previous vintages so there are fewer spots available for new workers. In that sense, it is always advantageous to apply earlier before all the spots are taken. If the winery is not looking yet, you can follow up later, no worries.

Be prepared!
A winery can call you at any time and ask you questions. I received a call from a winery about a week after sending an application and luckily I remembered my research on the winery so that I was able to show them my interest in the winery and make a good impression. I suppose you could let it go to voicemail, and call them back when you are more prepared, but phone tag is not a fun game and not the first impression you want to make.

Be nice!
Working vintage will involve long hours, long weeks of hard work. It is very important that you be easy to get along with. Basic manners can go a long way. Always be courteous and write thank you notes not just to your interviewers, but also your referees. If you turn down an offer, let them know in a timely fashion, and be courteous. Who knows, you may run into those winemakers again in the future.

Ask some questions about the winery, but also about the position
What kind of equipment will you be working with? Will they help you find housing? What kinds of hours are expected? Is the winery operating 24 hours a day during vintage? How long is the vintage season? Should you come early for any special training? Will you be in the lab or the cellar floor? How many tonnes are processed? How long is vintage usually? Are there opportunities for you to explore various areas of the cellar? How big is the staff? Will there be opportunity to stay on after vintage?

Other things to think about
Working in a cellar is physical work, and can be dangerous. Make sure you practice good common sense around all equipment and chemicals. If you are unable to do the work from an injury resulting from your own carelessness, you may have little recourse and may even be held responsible. Be mindful when lifting, working on catwalks, etc.
If you are out of shape, work to get in better shape. Muscle strains can happen, but these can be minimized if you take care of yourself and stay fit.
It’s a common concern among new female winemakers that they will be ‘stuck in the lab’, while the boys are readily accepted on the cellar floor. Be sure to emphasize the type of cellar experience you would like to gain at the outset of your interviews. I’m not saying all wineries do this, but women should be aware that this may happen and assert themselves to get the experience they are looking for. While there are many notable female winemakers doing great things, women still may encounter situations where assumptions are made regarding their abilities or interests based on their gender.

This semester is my final semester, and I am taking four classes. They are Viticultural Methods and Procedures, Advances in Oenology, Wine Packaging and Quality Management, and International Food and Wine Marketing. I am enjoying all of my classes immensely. Some classmates of mine did not elect to pursue the Masters, and opted for the Diploma degree. Others have taken a break to do vintages. Regardless, it is so weird not to see some of those friendly faces. I’ll keep in touch as best as I can, but life usually gets in the way. Fortunately, the wine industry is small enough, I’m sure we will all cross paths again. On the plus side, there is a sizable influx of new postgraduate students to get to know. The new class has a number of people from China, Mexico, Israel, the States, Canada and of course Australia.

My classes this semester don’t have as many tasting practicals as the previous semesters. But that’s alright, I still get to taste plenty. Some professors encourage us to sit in on some of the classes we’d taken last year and taste again, so long as there is space in the class and enough wine to go around. Some other friends have also formed a weekly tasting group, which I take part in.

It’s not just classes, tastings and wedding planning that have been keeping me from blogging lately. I have also been busy looking for vintage work in Australia for the 2012 vintage. A previous student told me to get my applications out early, since it would be my first vintage. Early as in August. I’ll write a separate post of my job search process, since it’s quite a big topic.

So it’s been busy, but in a good way. Kevin’s been a big help with the wedding planning chores. In other news, spring has come early this year. There are some reports saying the season is 3 weeks earlier than usual, provided there is not a damaging frost in the meantime. Below is a photo I took a week ago in the Barossa of bud-bursting old vine Shiraz.

For the Stabilization and Clarification course, we visited Rosemount Estate in McLaren Flat (in April) and Yalumba’s winery in the Barossa (in May). Filters and centrifuges aren’t particularly photogenic, so here are some of the more interesting photos I took.

Marc pile at Rosemount Estate

Vinomatics (rotary fermentors) with a press below on tracks

Yalumba bottling line

Last week, the Cellar and Winery Waste Management course had an overnight field trip to the Barossa. Essentially the trip involved looking at a lot of wastewater treatment lagoons. Not exactly pretty to look at or smell, but here are a couple photos anyway.

Jacob's Creek aeration lagoon

Wolf Blass aeration lagoon

That’s it from me for now, I have 2 papers and 4 exams left, and then I’m going home for a few weeks in July! I’m so excited!

This year ANZAC Day fell on Easter Monday, so from Good Friday to Easter Tuesday (people celebrate Easter Tuesday?), all major shopping was closed. Fortunately, for whatever reason, wineries were open on Easter Sunday. A few friends and I heard that a two of our favorite boutique wineries in McLaren Vale were releasing new wines this weekend, so we went to check them out. The weather was fantastic! It was a clear sunny day and the area was beautiful with the patchwork of vineyards changing colors.

Our first stop was Alpha Box and Dice. It’s a rather small operation, processing about 50 tonnes of fruit each year. Each bottling is labeled with a different letter of the alphabet. The labels are colorful and eyecatching, but are almost too casual in appearance for wines of such high quality. The wines can be found in bottle shops all over Adelaide, and the Tarot Grenache at $15 is definitely a bargain for what you get in the glass. We enjoyed immensely many of the wines they were pouring that day. Behind the tasting bar were two gentlemen who were very happy to talk us through the wines. It was only a few minutes later that we learned one of them was Justin, the winemaker.

As I expected from previous enjoyment, the 2008 “T” Tarot Grenache was a solid wine, with firm tannins, good acid and a continuous flavor profile. Another interesting wine was the 2008 “D” Dead Winemakers Society Dolcetto. The fruit was very ripe, but the flavor was so concentrated and the acid was so well balanced. We were very surprised to learn the alcohol was 15.6%! 2008 was a very hot vintage, but this wine shows that with the right fruit and care in the cellar, a great wine can still be created. The “B” Blood of Jupiter Sangiovese Cabernet blend was also a lovely wine. It boasted a fruity, food-friendly structure, but an extra tannic boost from the Cabernet.

After we tasted the wines, Justin offered to show us the adjacent small winery and give us a tour and barrel tasting. He showed us his press, and the big plastic tubs and picking bins he uses to ferment his wines. It’s incredible to think that all those clean wines we were tasting came from what looks like a converted storage shed lined with insulation. He told us he inoculates with yeast, but does not inoculate his wines for malolactic fermentation. He also lets his red wines sit on light lees during the entire maturation period. We tasted the 2010 Cabernet yet to be released, and we were surprised to learn that the wine had had 8 weeks of skin contact. The tannins were very present but far from harsh, and the fruit flavor very pure and balanced by the structure. Justin also told us that about 50% of their sales are through the cellar door. Only about 25% is exported to North America. The rest is sold in restaurants and local bottle shops. As a result, the strength of the Aussie dollar is not a big issue for him, and he is able to make a living processing such a small amount of wine and sharing it with consumers in the cellar door. He obviously is passionate about the wines he makes and his love of what he does is contagious. Talking to Justin was a bit of a revelation and I am so happy he took the time to share what he does with us winemaking students. He’s breaking so many of the rules and conventions of winemaking that we were being taught in school, but his wines were all fantastic and full of personality. I suppose you have to learn the rules to break them artistically. Alpha Box and Dice are open only Friday through Sunday. Chances are that if you go, Justin will be around, very happy to share his wines with you.

Our next stop was Samuels Gorge. Most wineries in the area had either finished or were finishing the vintage work, Samuels Gorge was pressing some of their last Grenache ferments that afternoon, as well as throwing a big party with a band to celebrate. Their wines sell out each year, so I was looking forward to trying some of their new releases. (Read about a previous visit here.) Many of the new releases were going through bottle shock, even the Grenache which is a favorite amongst my classmates. I feel it unfair to evaluate the wines here, but they do show a lot of promise. One of our classmates was working at the winery that day and was happy to give us a barrel tasting. He wanted to show us how some of the barrel variation has caused the same wines to evolve differently.

A previous year’s Masters student had just finished working vintage at Kangarilla Road and offered his vintage house for us to spend the night. After the sun wound down at Samuels Gorge, we headed over to the Kangarilla Road vintage abode. We made a good old fashioned campfire and roasted marshmallows and sipped wine under the stars. I don’t know how it happened, but it seemed to be an uncanny coincidence that the majority of the group was from New Zealand. Sitting around the campfire, they shared a lot of things about New Zealand, and even sang some Maori songs they’d learned in grade school. It was a gorgeous evening, full of moments that put me in awe of this entire experience I’ve been having here in Australia. The next morning, my breath was taken away when I looked outside to see the vineyards outside of the house. (It was too dark to take it in when we arrived the night before.) The winery was no more than 500 meters behind the house. When everyone else was awake, we went to the bakery in McLaren Vale for meat pies for breakfast. The meat pies hit the spot, and were a great way to end our time in McLaren Vale. I didn’t realize it then, but I had just spent the morning of ANZAC Day with a group of Kiwis eating meat pies for breakfast! I’m not sure how people celebrate ANZAC Day, but if wine tasting and meat pies are good enough for these Kiwis, I’m all in.

I’m very excited about my classes so far. In my viticulture class, we are learning ampelography. Ampelography is the science of describing and identifying grape varietals. In a few weeks, we’ll be examined on our ability to identify 30 different varietals from their bunches and leaves. The exam will be tough, they say no one has ever gotten a 100% score, and we will not be able to taste the berries due to preservative levels used on them. The preservatives are used so that the samples we have seen will be in the same stage of development as on the exam. All the fruit are from the campus vineyards and represent the 30 most important varietals to Australia’s wine production.

We were shown the varietals we will have to learn last week, and I got my camera out in case my notes were not enough. I am quite nervous about this exam, as descriptions are always so subjective and bunches and leaves can vary quite a bit on the same vine. Here are some of the photos I took. How do you think you would do on this exam?

This semester will be a busy one, but I am excited. Not only is harvest upon us, but I am taking a full load of courses. My 4 classes are as follows:

• Winemaking at Vintage, where we are in groups of 4 to make a red wine and process a white juice (for the next term’s students).
• Stabilization and Clarification, which is arguably the busiest, but most important class of the program
• Cellar and Winery Waste Management, which focuses on vintage planning and cellar management
• Viticultural Science, where we learn everything from vineyard design to canopy management and pest control

In anticipation of harvest, oenology students were required to return to school two weeks before the official start of the term. Luckily, it has been a cool summer, so many of the grapes have a ways to go before they are ready, leaving us plenty of time to plan our winemaking.

For some extra funds on the side, I signed up to be part of 2 descriptive analysis panels. In the descriptive panels, I’ll taste experimental Shiraz berries, and California Merlot wines. Scientists use these types of panels to see how viticultural or winemaking practices influence the taste of grapes and wine. In the panel, we will come up with descriptors, and also quantitatively evaluate the samples for those attributes. Additionally, I may continue to help out in my professor’s lab on one my class-free days.

My winemaking group has been assigned to make a Tempranillo-based wine, and harvest and process juice from Pinot Gris. Our Tempranillo, which we will hand-harvest ourselves is getting ripe (22 Brix), but needs a few more weeks to hang for more flavor development. Disease pressure is pretty high, as it has been the wettest summer in decades, and it will rain again this week, but we are hoping for the best.

Tempranillo’s leaves are massive, and the grapes are very large as well. All post-graduates have to do an extra project, so I may help process a Moscato style wine from Black Frontignan, too.

All in all, it’s an exciting time, and hopefully I’ll have some time this semester to pop in for an update!

In terms of wine adventures in New Zealand, we spent a day tasting in the Central Otago. In the Central Otago, we were mainly interested in trying the pinot noir, since it is Kevin’s favorite. My mental tasting notes aren’t the greatest, but hey, I was on holiday!

While driving to Queenstown to spend the night before wine tasting, we drove past so many tempting wineries. A winery that wasn’t on the list, but soon was added was Chard Farm. It is hard to miss as you drive along Gibbston Highway (SH6) because the vineyard is situated across the Kawarau river gorge, with sheer cliffs to the rushing blue water. Needless to say, it was the first winery we visited the next day. The winding unpaved road gave us breathtaking views, and we had high hopes for the wines. There were several selections of whites, including a Riesling, Pinot Gris, and Gewurtztraminer. The staff was very welcoming and informative. Unfortunately, the whites weren’t all balanced, but we were mostly interested in trying the pinot noir. The wines were all well made, but pinot was a touch thin for my taste. Perhaps my expectations were just lifted too high from the beauty of the scenery.

The second winery we visited was Gibbston Valley, which turned out to be a huge complex that attracted busload after busload of tourists. There were masses of people and the wine tastings did not appear to be free, so we decided not to battle the crowds and continue on our journey.

The next winery was Peregrine Wines. The cellar door was inside very stylish modern building which stood next to a very old, perhaps historic building which apparently was sometimes used for events. The tasting room had large glass windows that looked onto wine maturing in oak. A member of the staff was obviously a cellarhand and was able to tell us quite a bit about the wines on offer. The 2010 Sauvignon Blanc was a more serious, less overly fruity take on Sauvignon Blanc. It was a it too serious for me, there was some phenolic character that was very pronounced, which indicated too heavy a hand with skin contact. But I very much respect the winemaker’s attempt to break the mold on New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. We very much enjoyed the Riesling which was made in a dry style, and showcased loads of fruit flavors. The 2008 Pinot Noir had good fruit concentration, but was still very much a pinot in weight and style. We were also able to have a sneak peek of the 2009 Pinot Noir which was more bold, fruit driven, and a bit over the top for pinot for my taste. Apparently, even numbered years tend to be more reserved years, while odd numbered years tend to be more upfront and powerful. The Karearea Pinot Noir was equally delicious, but obviously was built for aging. We opted to buy the 2008, because it was quite a good value — $39 NZD!

We had time for one last winery before they all close, so we decided to go to the most renowned Otago pinot winery Felton Road, which was located in the Bannockburn subregion. The cellardoor was staffed by a charming French woman from Champagne. She apparently came to Felton Road for the last vintage, and was asked to stay on. The vineyards are biodynamic, and the wines did not disappoint. We were able to taste a Riesling, which was off-dry, but delightful in its fruit flavors and ease of drinking. All of the pinots were definitely the most serious and complex wines we had tasted that day. The single vineyard bottlings were distinct wines with their own personalities. While my student budget wouldn’t allow me to buy these wines, I will definitely remember these wines to enjoy on special occasions in the future.

The fun did not stop there though! While we were hiking in Fiordlands National Park, Kevin popped the question. We toasted our engagement over a bottle of Peregrine 2008 Pinot Noir. Two days later, while we were passing through, we returned to Peregrine so that we could take more of the wines home with us. Of course a good amount of it was also consumed back in Adelaide, too!

While in Adelaide, I took Kevin to the Penfolds Magill Estate just outside of the city. You can literally take a bus to the winery, which we did, so that both of us could enjoy ourselves. One of my classmates was working in the cellar door and was able to take us on a tour of the historic winery, where about 2% of Penfolds’ wines are made, including some of the Grange fruit sourced from McLaren Vale. The tour also showcased an complete collection of Penfolds Grange, which is great to see, but I’d rather drink wine than look at it! So, back to the tasting room, we tasted several whites and reds, including the high end and very scrumptious RWT Shiraz. I did not take notes because I was still on holiday, but all of the wines we tasted were sound, tasty and some of it was appropriately priced.

Overall, this holiday couldn’t have been more jam packed. I can’t believe what we’ve done in only three weeks. It was a great time and Kevin and I are so excited about our future together. It was difficult to say goodbye again, but we know that we will have many more great wines and adventures like this.

The rain we’ve been having this spring may bring mold issues soon, and I’ll post more pictures as I find good examples when I am next in the vineyard, which will likely be the first week of 2011. Tomorrow, I’m off to New Zealand via Melbourne, but I’ll have lots of updates when I get back from the holidays!