The Duckhorn Portfolio
St. Helena, CA
The Duckhorn Portfolio family includes Duckhorn Vineyards, Paraduxx, Goldeneye, Migration, Decoy, Canvasback, Calera and Kosta Browne, each with its own dedicated winemaker. With more than 800 acres of renowned estate vineyards, along with grapes from the finest growers, each winery has a canvas of lots from which to blend its wines. Focused on optimal grape selection, innovative winemaking techniques and a premium barrel-aging program, The Duckhorn Portfolio is founded on a pioneering spirit and unwavering commitment to quality. The only American wine portfolio in this century with two Wine Spectator “Wine of the Year” winners in its portfolio, The Duckhorn Portfolio wines are available throughout the United States, on five continents, and in over 50 countries.
SUMMARY: To be part of a unified wine production team. To perform all cellar duties as assigned by the Assistant Winemaker and to assist with cellar organization, cleanliness and communication in all phases of the wine production process.
General Cellar (60%)
• Maintain a clean and safe work environment, including a clean break area. Follow all safety rules and report any unsafe conditions immediately. Always use appropriate personal protective equipment.
• Sanitize all equipment for contact with wine, including tanks, barrels, pumps, and hoses. Possess a working knowledge of sanitation chemicals and their appropriate usage.
• Maintain quality of wine in tank by gassing tank headspace, inspecting tank tops and fittings, and performing wine movements, including careful settling and racking off lees.
• Maintain quality of wine in barrel by cleaning and applying ozone to empty barrels, carefully racking wine out of barrel, filling barrels, topping, and scanning full barrels. Maintain cellar organization by correctly labelling full barrels and updating barrel room whiteboards.
• Follow appropriate SOPs and winemaking instructions. Immediately report any errors or winemaking concerns, such as tank temperature alarms or odd smelling barrels.
• Understand winery equipment, including different pump types and appropriate usage. Possess the ability to make basic repair, primarily re-banding hoses. Report any equipment concerns immediately.
• Possess intermediate English communication skills, both written and verbal. Read, understand, and complete written work orders and shipping paperwork.
• Demonstrate dependability, independence, and initiative.
• Develop cellar skills by assisting with crossflow filtration, learning to make winemaking additions, and assisting with blend-making.
Harvest (30%)
• Operate forklifts with bin dumper attachments. Manage the sorting table, shaker table, de-stemmer, must-pump, and sump for red fruit processing.
• Load and unload empty and full macro bins, on and off trucks safely. Wash, sanitize, and stack empty macro bins.
• Move juice, wine, and grapes, including digging must from drained tanks.
• Unload, seal, and correctly label new barrels. Prepare new barrels for filling according to appropriate SOP. Stack barrels in pyramid stacks for filling.
• Manage sumps and pumps for multiple presses operating simultaneously.
• Red fermentation management, including pumpovers, punchdowns, and brix and temperature monitoring.
• Sanitize and prepare tanks for receiving fruit. Sanitize presses before and after pressing.
Bottling (10%)
• Set-up and operation of mobile bottling line and related equipment, including sanitizing all equipment.
• Daily bottling line tasks, including dumping empty glass onto bottling line, Quality Control inspection of filled and labeled wine bottles, packing finished bottles into cases, gluing and labeling packed cases, stacking finished cases into correct pallet configuration, and wrapping finished pallets.
• Operate the forklift to maintain the bottling line, including loading pallets of empty glass for dumping, removing pallets of finished cases, and loading and unloading trucks with empty glass and finished goods.
QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:
• 3 years minimum cellar experience required, including 3 years of forklift experience.
• Positive attitude and ability to work in harmony with others. Must be a team player, be open to suggestions, and able to collaborate with others, with a commitment to accuracy and attention to detail.
• Must have effective communication and interpersonal skills. Intermediate reading, writing, and math skills. Spanish communication skills a plus.
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:
• Regularly required to talk and hear through other distracting noises.
• Stand, walk, bend, kneel and crouch. Climb stairs and ladders. Operate scissor lift.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.
• Ability to lift upwards of 50 lbs. Ability to lift items above the head.
• Manual dexterity required to adjust small cellar fittings.
WORK ENVIRONMENT:
• This position operates in an outdoor/indoor environment. May be required to work outdoors in temperatures between 30F and 105F, in bright sun, and in rain.
• Must be flexible with work schedule to allow weekends and evenings as needed during harvest season. Occasional evenings outside of harvest.
• Work in busy environment that may include heavy equipment and forklift activity, multiple conversations, and music.
The Duckhorn Portfolio offers a highly competitive and comprehensive compensation and benefits package. Please respond with a resume and letter of introduction.
Job Posted:
Wednesday, March 17th