09/25/06
(Monday) - The Crush on Crush
 Crush/Harvest is that magical time of year when grapes are ripe and winemakers are watching the brix levels patiently waiting so they can command the orders to pick. When the grapes have been picked and transported to their respective winery it is crush time.
What’s cool about crush time is winemakers typically need and welcome extra help. Volunteering for crush can be a great experience for anyone looking to roll up their sleeves and get more involved in the winemaking process.
The one thing to keep in mind as you carefully put on your volunteer hat is that crush is not like the stereotypical perception of hot women bouncing around in a half barrel of fresh grapes wearing minimal amounts of clothing on a sweaty hot summer afternoon. It is also not an all day drink fest while you manage to squish up some grapes with your feet, however this is a nice fantasy.
I believe this misconception paired with the enticement of free wine is what lured us into our first eight hour day of crush volunteering. When we arrived on a cold, rainy morning at 8:00 am there were no bouncy girls crushing grapes with their feet in barrels while juice splashed all over. It was a variety of men and women trying to get their morning started with some coffee and doughnuts (provided) wondering when we were going to take off our shoes and start stomping.
 Then the conveyor belts start and the grapes start coming. They keep coming, and coming, and coming, and coming, and coming, and, well you get the point. You stand on the production line and pick out jacks that don’t get taken out by the de-stemmer, you sift though leaves, vines, or bugs and it all keeps going and going. The grapes are going by and you are just staring down trying not to miss anything because you don’t want to be the person responsible for screwing up the wine.
Finally, it is lunch time. Eat some catered food, maybe enjoy a cold brew depending on the winery and get back to work. Typically after lunch you switch up positions to kill the monotony and you go at it all again. At the end of the eight hour day I felt worked over, tired, and oddly fulfilled, however not left with a strong desire to do this over and over again. Personally, I would rather just go buy that winery’s wine and drink it for eight hours, which would be much more fun.
The experience itself was fun though; to be involved on that level. Our reward at the end of the day was a single bottle of wine. I wrote on my bottle’s label which grapes I crushed so maybe in a few years when that wine is released I can go buy it and tell everyone that I helped make it. We also were invited to sit back and relax with all the other volunteers and drink some wine so ultimately I received two bottles of wine…I just left with one.
Crush is a serious and important time and if you are willing to work it can also be fun and rewarding to get involved. If you are interesting in finding out more about volunteer opportunities at wineries you could join the Washington Wine Commission’s Wine Ambassadors program or you can contact the wineries directly that you are interested in helping out. Click Here for a list of all the Washington Wineries along with links to their website. -JC
09/18/06
(Monday) - Giving an Arm and a Leg for Wine
I enjoy going out on weekend’s to sample wines at the various local wineries, volunteer when I can, and generally try to be involved in the wine community. Recently I have been considering my financial ability to participate in all the events that peak my interest. There are so many opportunities to attend winemaker dinners, auctions, private parties and pairings, galas and much much more. It would be great to go to all of these events, enjoy the fantastic wines, meet the winemakers and some new people, but I’m not sure I am ready to take out a second mortgage on my home in order to attend them all. Why is it that all of these great wine events carry such a high price tag? Do I need to step into another income bracket before I am aloud to be a part of the wine industry? With the average winemaker dinner going for $75 to $150 per person and other events such as auctions and galas going for $250 to $1000 a person how can I join in as consistently as I would like? There definitely needs to be opportunities for the average wine junkie to get involved and be a part of wine events.
Here are some tips on how to pick a winner if you are on a budget. First, look at all the events going on. Typically there are four types of wine events: Winemaker Dinners, Wine Release Parties, Charity Events, and Major Tasting Events. You should evaluate which of these you are interested in. For instance, Wine Release Parties are typically free and can be quite fun so definitely put those on your calendar. Then determine your budget to plan the paid events you will attend throughout the year. Great major tasting events in Washington are Taste Washington and the Washington Wine Highway. These events provide a big return on your dollar allowing you to taste tons of great wines, mingle with the winemakers and fellow wine drinkers, and also enjoy some great food. Next, consider which Winemaker Dinners you might be interested in. These can vary from a single winery, to multiple wineries, to wines from a specific region and so on. I would pick the dinner based on which wines you love or are most intrigued by. Also, you will want to check out the planned menu to make sure you are also interested in the food they will be pairing with the wines that night. The final event you may choose to shell out some doe for would be charity events. There are lots of auctions and fund-raisers in the wine community but they typically include quite a high price tag, most of which does go to charity. So pick your charity and try one of these events if you want to party with a purpose.
In the end, make sure you create some way of tracking how much value you'll get from each event. This way when it's all said and done you will be able to evaluate if it was worth it and if you would do it again. Some criteria could include how much it costs, what you get (ie., food, wine, entertainment, etc.), who you will meet, what connections you will make, what you will learn, and what you will take home. All these criteria will help you widdle down your selections to figure which event will be best for you.
Also, keep your eyes open for all events so you are aware of everything going on no matter what the price. This way you will be able to sift through what you do and don't want to be a part of. You can check out wine events at WineCOW.com, Washington Wine Commision, Local Wine Events, and Go Taste Wine. Another thing you can do it create your own wine events. Host a wine dinner at your house with each person invited bringing a wine of whatever theme you choose and something to pair it with. You could also get together at a local restaurant or wine bar with a group of friends to taste wine or try some wine flights. A couple great places for wine flights in Seattle are Purple Café and Smash Wine Bar and Bistro. -JC
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