Enologist - Ripon

JOB SUMMARY The Enologist will report to the Senior Winemaker and will be responsible for working day to day with the Winemaking team to build knowledge of the winemaking process, maintaining quality of wines, and processing flow at a bulk wine facility. Key areas of responsibility include support and facilitation between various production teams (including lab, winemaking, and cellar), ensuring priorities and protocols are achieved, cost effectiveness, accuracy, and safety to all performance standards. ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS Must have a complete understanding of the enological process from grapes through blending. Assist Winemaking to ensure wines meet target sensory and analytical quality requirements. Direct lab analysis based on wine needs. Must have strong analytical background to run analysis in lab techs absence, or when requested. Participates in short and long-term planning of finishing/blending wines shipped from other TWG facilities. Set priorities according to customer demand. The customer demands can frequently change so flexibility is key. Assist Winemaking to work up process orders and approve prior to giving to compliance tracker for data entry. Complete blending/fining trials, or other experiments as directed. Be able to taste wine at various levels of the winemaking process. Participates in tasting of export wine inventory. Will require traveling to other TWG facilities. Taste inventory samples weekly upon completion of lab running the analysis. Verifies and maintains overall wine quality through different winemaking practices. Have a basic understanding of cellar processing equipment. Makes up tasting sheets and participates in customer tastings as directed by the Winemaker. Participates in creating blends for the export program. Writes process orders for distribution to operations for completion. Coordinate wines for shipment as requested by customers. Verify the wines are in the spec per the customer’s request. Work with Winemaking on signing off blend and shipping approvals prior to wine shipping. Work with operations team on forecasting and ordering of wine additives. Participates in development of new or restructuring of existing blends. In the absence of the Winemakers, may be required to fill in and cover the Winemaker duties. Required to stay current with changes in winemaking procedures and techniques. Will attend training when asked for continual education. Actively participate in all Safety policies and procedures for the site. This includes safety audits, incident investigations, implementation of Company-wide safety policies and relevant safety training. Must lead by example. Must embrace and demonstrate The Wine Group's Vision, Mission, and Values of Long-Term Sustainable Value Creation, while being Relentlessly Entrepreneurial, with Empowered People who are Responsible and Trustworthy and keep them in mind when making all decisions. This job description reflects management’s assignment of general functions; it does not restrict the tasks that may be assigned. QUALIFICATIONS Must be 21 or older at time of hire. BS/BA in Enology/Viticulture, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Food Science, Microbiology, or equivalent education/work experience. Minimum 2 years of winery related experience. Passionate about wine quality while understanding cost associated with processing to help make smart business decisions. Well-developed organoleptic skills. Good understanding of lab and wine processing equipment. Must be able to demonstrate ability to lead. Ability to set priorities and work independently within set guidelines. Good time management skills. Self-starter. Must be able to openly communicate with other departments. Strong written and oral communication skills. Strong attention to detail and the ability to determine the root cause of the problem. A strong sense of urgency and work ethic displayed in a positive way. Computer skills including the use of: Outlook, Word, and Excel. Ability to be a team pla…