Hotel Online Special Report
---
Some 250 Enologist Interns Are Working at 
American Wineries During Harvest
California Wines Have Almost Endless Opportunities in Europe
 
SANTA ROSA, Calif - Oct. 9, 1998--Marcia Torres had never seen a winery sparkle like this one. You could eat off the well-polished equipment at Kendall-Jackson by the time she and other visiting enologists had cleaned it more times than they could count, marking time while waiting for California grapes to ripen. They had come to work the California crush during one of the oddest years ever, when El Nino scrambled normal weather patterns and pushed harvest back weeks or months.

Finally, however, the grapes are coming in. Torres, a Chilean, and 39 other enology interns have dropped their Ajax and set to work doing what they do best. They are part of a worldwide migration of professional winery talent to California each fall that has proven a great success for Kendall-Jackson and Artisans Estates, its allied group of small wineries.

Interns say they gain, too, by working in California during crush. "You see a different point of view here, and you also get to work two harvest seasons in one year," said Christian Merino, a recent enology graduate of Catholic University in Santiago, Chile. "It's better for your resume, better for your experience."

Kendall-Jackson and Artisans Estates will employ 40 interns this year, up from just 10 two season ago. They come from 10 nations, with Chile and France each contributing nine interns. Hungary, the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria, South Africa, Argentina, Bulgaria and New Zealand sent smaller numbers of interns. Most of them are in their 20s, and newly graduated from enology schools or veterans of just a few years in the wine industry.

For New Zealander Michael McVey, California is the capital of wine. The money, marketing and technology mean he can learn a lot during a short stay, he said. This year, recession in his native country matches up nicely with a labor shortage for U.S. wineries, benefiting both him and his employer, Cardinale Estate Winery in Oakville.

Carlos Cordova works most of the time for Vinas de la Calina, a Chilean winery and part of the Artisans Estates group. This harvest, he works for Kendall-Jackson in Geyserville. He said the higher levels of organization, efficiency and technology in the United States could benefit his work at home. Kendall-Jackson and Artisans Estates employ more interns each year than any other wine company, according to Craig Schmuck. He heads the program that places interns with wineries, the Minnesota-based Communicating for Agriculture Exchange Program.

"Kendall-Jackson does a great job of looking after the trainees, and not just treating them like employees," Schmuck said. "They want to be able to ask questions and learn the why's and how's of the operation.

"Then they take those lessons back to use at home. It's not just a paycheck to them." More than 250 interns are working in American wineries this harvest, five times the number of just four years ago, Schmuck said. CAEP placed more than 800 interns in all kinds of U.S. agriculture this year. Low unemployment in the U.S., and the fact that American enology students are just beginning their semester, make the intern exchange vital to the harvest work force, said Joyce Suzuki, Human Resources Administrator for Kendall-Jackson. The program also enriches California wineries with the experience and perspective overseas interns can bring to the job, she said.
 
 
 
 

California Wines Have Almost Endless Opportunities in Europe

SANTA ROSA, Calif - Oct. 9, 1998--A new sales manager has set her sights on turning Kendall-Jackson, maker of America's favorite Chardonnay, into a major player in the competitive European wine market.

Anna-Karin Liljeroth, a Swede with strong experience in the European beverage industry, looks on Europe as a land of both tremendous promise and keen challenge. Europeans embrace New World wines more than ever, yet South Africa, South America, Australia, New Zealand and a handful of California wineries have wider beachheads there already, she said.

"It's still unplowed territory for us," she said. "That's what I'm going to change. Everything we need is in the bottle. You just have to roll up your sleeves."

Though there is work to be done, recent sales data are encouraging. Nine of the top 10 wine-consuming nations are European. Exports of US wines soared 30 percent last year, and six of the top 10 markets for US exports are members of the European Union, Wine Institute figures show.

"Opportunities in Europe are endless, especially for red wines," said Ken O'Farrell, International Trade Director for Kendall-Jackson. The company's commitment to expanding beyond its domestic market coincides with trade liberalization and the debut of a common currency in the European Union, opening the way to more exports, he said.

Gallo, Mondavi, Fetzer, Beringer, Sebastiani and Wente are among California wineries that have gotten a head start in Europe. O'Farrell said Kendall-Jackson will do best to target higher-priced segments and more quality-conscious consumers than most of its California competitors.

From her office in Brussels, Liljeroth has scored a flurry of gains since going to work in the market during the summer. State-run stores in Sweden, the source of most retail wine in that nation, have agreed to stock their shelves with Kendall-Jackson. The brand will soon be served to first-class passengers on Lufthansa Airlines, and talks are under way with other airlines, Liljeroth said.

South American wines associated with Kendall-Jackson, including Mariposa and Tapiz in Argentina and Calina and Vina Calina in Chile, offer another opportunity to win European customers, she said. Majestic, a major chain of markets in Britain, recently agreed to stock Mariposa.

Liljeroth, who speaks English and French as well as her Swedish, worked until this year as export director for J. Lohr Winery, developing new markets in Canada, Europe, Australia and Asia. Earlier, she worked for Belvedere and Grove Street wineries, and for a European mineral water importer.
 

Kendall-Jackson produces America's top-rated and best-selling Chardonnay, and is quickly becoming known for its red wines. They include Vintner's Reserve and Grand Reserve versions of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and Pinot Noir. Proprietor Jess Jackson also produces wines in an Artisans Estates portfolio that features such brands as Cambria, Camelot, Edmeades, Pepi, Kristone, Cardinale, Stonestreet, La Crema and Hartford Court. Additional information is available on the Internet at Kj.com.
 

###
 
Contact:
Kendall-Jackson Winery
Michael Winters, 707/525-6217
 Jim Caudill, 707/525-6229
 --
 
Also See:
Fifteen Years of Kendall-Jackson Vintner's Reserve: Here's to the Good Ol' VR / May 1998 
Wine Cellar at The Rio Suite Hotel & Casino Now Exceeds 100,000 Bottles / Aug 1998 
Dolce International Develops Exclusive Wine Program / Sept 1998
San Francisco International Wine Competition Announces its 1998 Winners / July 1998 
The Ten Most Coveted, Difficult-to-Find Wines of 1998 / July 1998 

To search Hotel Online data base of News and Trends Go to Hotel.Online Search
Back to Hotel.Online Press Releases
Home | Welcome! | Hospitality News | Classifieds | Catalogs & Pricing | Viewpoint Forum | Ideas/Trends
Please contact Hotel.Online with your comments and suggestions.