A Few Words From the Rapids

I am caught trying to work a couple of jobs now.  On the winery end I have some great help, but I need to take the time to teach what I do to others.  When they learn enough, I can hand off the responsibility for that project, but I still keep my thought and guidance close.  Having a business with your name on it and your fingerprints all over it makes it important to maintain standards.  I realize that the most important thing that I can do is to set a good example by leading well and training well. 
I have a new vineyard manager that I am training.  Although he has vineyard experience, there is always a lot to learn.  Teaching is another job many times.  He is smart enough that I can spend a few hours with him throughout the week and he can get the jobs done that I need.  I love the review at the end of the day when he asks me questions about what was observed during the work day.  These questions help me to be a better manager and to know my vineyard better.  I like to improve my standards regularly and I need to have the humility to answer those questions.  The questions can lead to changes in procedure that will improve quality or efficiency, or both.  You cannot make those improvements without humility.
My other job is the leadership of Piedmont Epicurean Arts Center( PEAC).  As this is a rapidly growing collaborative educational project, I am a bit out of my comfort zone of the soil on my farm or the wine tanks in the cellar.  I am trying to balance my vision and passion for what PEAC can be with the day to day process of making it work.  I teach my vineyard classes once a month as well as build a system where others teach their classes as well.  What classes are needed, who can teach them, will people be able to make it out for the classes, what other needs are out there and how can I make this all work.  The greatest think about this effort is working with others.  the hardest thing about this effort is working with others.  I have to sell my self and my idea in order to get others to join in.  In creating good classes on a smaller level, the repeatable model is born.  The teacher of "Tasting Goat Cheese" can see how we teach the class on "Wines Fit for a BBQ" and can adjust accordingly.  I hope to learn more patience so this project can create its own momentum and find the vision as to when my efforts can make the best impact for all.  I feel I am doing ok with all of this, but I always want to make things better.

The Great Wine Scale Debacle

Have you ever gone into a store or picked up Wine Spectator and seen a wine being touted as having 92 points and think, that's a good number, I should try this wine? I'm sure we all have, it is a rather ubiquitous rating scheme now. However, the vast majority of people don't understand what this number really means.

The current 100 point scale used in wine was developed by Robert Parker and his publication The Wine Advocate back in the early 1980's. His thought was that the 20 point scale commonly in use at that time did not offer enough granularity to truly differentiate between wines. Perhaps the first thing people should notice about the scale is that it's not really based on 100 points, but it is really a 50 point scale. Here is how the scale breaks down and what the numbers are supposed to mean: