All Things Come to an End

Today was my last week at Rochioli... I am exhausted.  My hands are torn to shreds and my shoulder is a little screwed up from falling out of the grape press awkwardly.  My body is drained but also ripped, kind of like Gerald Butler in the movie 300, don't laugh, I'm serious.  I can roll tractor tires with one arm, I can also throw a baseball exactly one mile, no joke, I can bench press a Pinto (Ford Pinto).  I had a lot of fun doing this, at times it wasn't fun when I was actually working because of the sheer effort put into making a great wine.  After work I always had a sense of accomplishment and wanting to go back the next day even though my body was saying why do you want to do this, you're nuts. Even though it was hard, I am thinking I will come back next year depending on my employment situation.  I want to do it again to really focus more on the next level of wine making.  I have the basics down, the machinery down, and for next year I really want to take my understanding to the next level.

My last day at the winery consisted of me washing barrels!  Its not very exciting but none the less part of making wine.  Wine making has to be extremely clean, everything you touch and use has to be spotless.  As one can imagine the least fun part of making wine is cleaning everything after you have used it!  Not fun!

 
After the uneventful day of washing barrels my last night at Bruce's was very eventful.  Bruce' wife got a new job at Wilson Winery (Wilson Winery) as, from what I understand, the event planner there.  She was doing an event for this coming weekend where their Zinfandels will be on display for their wine club members also including a dinner.  So we tasted through their Zins (I think it was 7 of them) with Bruce, his wife, myself, and two local chefs.  We took tasting notes and ranked them best on our own feeling on the wines.  After that we all started yelling out what would go good with the different wines.  Sort of a collaborative conversation about the wines and how we feel about them.  It was so cool!  To hear professionals in the trade just fire out what they are tasting in the wine and also what will go good with it.  Food and Wine!!!  The best pairing on earth!  After the tasting we say down for dinner.  A note on the Wilson Wines, yes they were good, very good, some better than others of course but the were for sure top notch for the price point.  I enjoyed the Mollys Vineyard Zin and the Sawyer Zin, the Sawyer being more representative of a "true zin" and Molly's being a little different, with a blend of 5% Petite Sirah.  In the end it was a great night shared with friends and it give me the insight into how wine and food pairings work!

So what is next you ask?
I'm in Minneapolis, Minnesota, why?  To spend time with my girlfriend, we haven't seen each other in 2 months!!!  Secondarily, I will be writing my business plan, drinking wine (I sent a case and a half here!!!), sharing that wine with the great people of Minnesota and also freezing my bum off!  I think it was a high of 40 degrees here today!  Sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas I will head to back to California refreshed, regrouped, refocused, reinvented, reinvigorated, re....etc... you get the point.  At that time I will look for a new job in the industry.  In March 2010, I will be enrolling in the CIA's Wine Immersion Program, assuming I can scrap together the money, in June I will be heading to France  for who knows how long with some great people, including future wine maker, vineyard rodent, M.G. Murawski.        

In closing, I read an article about this company, Tasting Room.  Its basically a way where instead of buying a full bottle of wine that you've never had, you can buy these tasting sample packages.  Pretty cool!  I haven't bought anything from them yet..... Tasting Room (Tasting Room).  If you order from here please let me know how it went.  I am unemployed again... so it will be awhile before I try out the website ha! 

In the words of Jay-Z.... I'm on to the next one, on to the next!

American Dream

I know this blog is supposed to be grounded in the business of wine however I wanted to spend some time thinking and writing about myself and where I am at personally.  Writing for me is a release and a way to express myself.  My hope is also that if someone reading this is in similar situation, that they know they are not alone.  While I am very fortunate about getting this harvest job and how everything has worked out, from turning down the financial job I was certain I was going to take, to being laid off, to deciding that I wanted to move to California and work a harvest to kick of this quest, it is a constant battle. 

There are times when I question exactly what I am doing.  I have made a conscious decision to go outside the norm and to pursue true passion relentlessly at the expense of comfort and safety.  I have made this decision, no one else, while I am supported by my family and friends (thank you so so so much, you mean the world to me!) I feel alone in this.  I am betting the house on myself and at times it does scare me.  Fear, the most paralyzing feeling that can ultimately lead to inaction.  I am constantly battling this fear, fear of no job, fear of no retirement savings, fear of not having a "career", in sum, fear of stepping out of what you are taught to do starting as a little dude in kindergarten.  I look at my friends who are married, settling down, putting down roots and I wonder what that must be like and sometimes I think that I want that.  I crave a place to call home, that is mine.  I wonder where I am going to get the money to put this together, to pay for education, to live, to live the way I want to live.  I am thinking that everyone that has every attempted to start a business has gone through this.  Bill Gates did not just all of a sudden become the richest man in the world.  I am sure there was tons and tons of blood, sweat, and tears.  I mean the guy dropped out of Harvard to start his own company!  Tom Rochioli didn't just all of sudden make some of the best Chardonnay and Pinot in the world, it took serious dedication and hard work.   Bruce (whose family I live with) raised two kids with his wife while operating his landscaping company in San Francisco while at the same time building Zinscape (Zinscape).  This is America.  America is full of people like this, they took a chance and pursued it with everything they had.  They bet the farm on themselves, some won and some lost.  This is America, America is NOT free handouts, entitlements, lazy, big government, bailouts on and on and on.  It takes constant reassurance in my own head that I am doing the right thing.  I have these little battles with myself on a daily basis.  Especially earlier this week, as it was very very difficult but you pick yourself off the floor, dust yourself off and charge forward because there is no other option not for me, not ever.

One thing I do know is that as much as I feel the way I do, I know that I am on the right path, I know this is right, it has to be.  I get up every day at 6am and not once have I felt like awww, dang time for work, I want to go back to bed!  I get the greatest satisfaction out of what I am doing now.  Creation, creating something with my own hands, knowing that what I am learning is invaluable, that it will help me in whatever I do next.  This is my journey.

Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness.  Concerning all acts of initiative and creation, there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definetely commits oneself, then providence moves too.  All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred.  A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings, and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would come his way.  Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.  Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.  Begin it now. - Goethe

Who said Pinot doesn't age?

This has been by far the hardest week of the harvest.  We have worked a few 8.5 hour days and one 9.5 hour day all while moving the entire time never to sit down, only to grab a quick snack and its on to the next thing.  All of the red grapes are in and are fermenting so our focus has been on mixing and adding yeasts, foods, punching down... making wine!  Friday was by far the hardest day, physically, as we had 3 tanks to pump out as the wine was ready for barreling.  Emptying a tank involves first pumping out all of the free run juice and then raking and shoveling the grapes into bins to be pressed.  My body was just screaming at me but I couldn't just stop like if I was working out, I had to keep going and go quickly!  Our hard work was rewarded all week!  We drank some very old Pinot, 1992 and 1993.  The wine was stunning.  A wine this old needs a little time to open up and develop.  When we first opened the bottle it did smell just a little off and after a few minutes it developed into a thing of beauty: balanced, bright, silky smooth, it really just blew my mind.  Hands down the two very best glasses of wine I have ever had.  Generally speaking people say that Pinots don't age and typically won't go much past 5 years or so vs a Cabernet Sauvignon which really needs to be aged (10 years) because its so harsh young, typically.

This leads me to a little saying I heard... Cabernet is the king of wine, Pinot Noir is the wine of kings!  I love it..haha.

The highlight of the week was an underground kitchen that I went to put on by Chef Mateo Granados (Mateo Granados).  We popped in for an appetizer and some wine.  So basically, the chef and his team bring the kitchen to you.  In this case it was at Preston Wines, you can bring your own wine or buy some from the winery, no pressure.  Its more about the dining then anything else.  We talked with the Chef for a bit then sat down for a quick bite.  The dishes offered that night are put up on a board, you get an idea of what you want and sit down at the table which is just a long table where you are sitting with everyone creating a great atmosphere conducive talking to the people around you while sharing wine and eating great food.  I had the rabbit belly salad which was awesome, I can't imagine what the main courses are like!  We couldn't spend too much time there as we didn't officially sign up for the event, the people I am living with know the chef and their son works for him so we were able to sneak in and eat a little food and drink some wine.  Check out this article for more on Mateo's (Tendejon de la Calle) mobile kitchen (Inside Scoop SF article).  While the outdoor mobile kitchen is winding down I look forward to attending one of his events again!

The setup - kitchen right, seating left

The menu, cant really read it... my bad

My salad, yum yum yum

Northern California is a paradise of fresh ingredients (everyone seems to have their own garden), the best cooking, wine (of course), great people, and a love for life! Whooooo!!!! 

Finally a day off!

Well, I am enjoying my first day off of work since Wednesday, September 20th.  The harvest is clearly in high gear!  I am extremely exhausted and on average have been going to bed around 9pm every night.  Not only is it like working out all day but it's also the mental exhaustion.  Making wine is very labor intensive and also brain intensive.  Now that we have had several loads of grapes come in there are now many jobs to do in a day besides sorting the grapes which is physically challenging and not mentally.  Some of the mental challenges or things I need to do and remember in a given day, starting with the morning, 7:30 sharp.

6:45am, time to start the day!

Punch down wines that have yeast added to them.
Harvest Pinot grapes.
Add grapes to primary fermentation tanks, add enzymes.
Clean grape conveyor, get ready to harvest white wines, clean white wine press, harvest white grapes, press white grapes direct to tank.
Measure, mix, and add yeasts to grapes that are ready for yeast.
Add food for yeast where needed.
Add wine to barrels add more food more needed.
Clean winery, wash, repeat!!!  

And because there are many different types of juice because of the single vineyards, you are constantly trying to remember what needs what.  Right now there are probably 6 or 7 different tanks that are filled and are at different stages in the process.  The winery smells like wine now!!  It smells soooo dang good and has me always thinking of drinking it!  I just want to jump in and swim around in the tanks!  haha.

Also, as many of you know, this week was my birthday.  Probably the best birthday on record. They day started off as a usual day.  Harvesting the grapes, etc, then around noon I saw a delivery truck from Costeaux French Bakery (Costeaux) and thought could that be for me, nah, it has to be for Ken (owns the catering company and his house is right next to winery).  So I continue to sort grapes, keep in mind I really didn't tell anyone at the winery that it was my birthday.  When lunch rolls around, which today was done my Ken's catering company, I walk into the office and everyone is saying happy birthday, I can't beleive it.  How do you all know?  Oh we have our ways they say.  Then on the counter I see a cake that reads Happy Birthday Bybs and I know instantly who it is from, it totally made my day!!!

Thank you so much! Love you :)!  

We enjoyed the cake for lunch and then after work, now that everyone knows its my birthday, the guys and I cracked a bottle of my favorite Rochioli wine, the East Block, and polished off the cake in the lab and went home extremely happy!!  The cake went real good with the wine!!!  REAL GOOD.  Tip, try this, chocolate cake with a nice Pinot.  Take a bite of the cake, swallow a little of it, then wash the rest down with the wine!!  It will blow your mind!  Yum Yum!

My birthday didn't stop there, last night I came back to San Ramon to celebrate my birthday with my family, we went out to eat at Izzys Steak Joint which was superb.  I then came home to a bottle of Rochioli's Rachel's Vineyard Chardonnay from that same special someone who surprised me with the cake.  Awesome!!!!  I bought some lotto tickets on my bday too, which I've wanted to do for quite some time but always forgot.  I didn't wine, I really thought I was going to.  It was a little disappointing ha!     

Time to enjoy the rest of my day of watching college football then its back to work tomorrow.