Kendall-Jackson Announces World Winemakers Head for California; Annual US Harvest Means Training for Global Industry.

Business/News Editors & Wine Writers

SANTA ROSA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 1, 2001

A trickle has turned into an enological flood, as more foreign trainees than ever travel to American wineries this fall to learn the way it's done on this side of the ocean.

"I'm ready to roll," said Gavin Taylor, a South African who might serve as a poster boy for the galloping globalization of wine. He arrived in Sonoma County in August, fresh from a wine harvest in New Zealand and a veteran of winemaking around the globe. "I want to drag a pump, get in there with a shovel and dig out the red grape skins. I want to do it all."

Like hundreds of other eager young professionals, Taylor will work this fall to help turn California's most prestigious crop into its most elegant agricultural product. In his case, Taylor will work in Napa Valley for Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates, at the winery in Oakville.

Most members of this international migration are in their 20s with new degrees or only a short time in the wine industry. They will work in California cellars until about Christmas, then carry their experience back to their home countries such as South Africa, Chile, Argentina, France, Austria and Hungary.

No company hosts more trainees than Kendall-Jackson and its associated wineries. This year the Kendall-Jackson winemakers will host 56 trainees, up from just 10 in 1996.

"There's a tremendous value -- we learn from them and they learn from us," said Randy Ullom, winemaster for Kendall-Jackson. "They bring a passion for wine. It's not just a vacation for them. They put everything they have into it, and more."

The program allows Kendall-Jackson, owner of wineries in Chile, Argentina and Italy, to build good will with the wine community around the world, Ullom added.

Beverly Bianchi coordinates the Minnesota-based Communicating for Agriculture Exchange Program (CAEP), the non-profit organization that links interns with wineries, horse breeders and other agricultural enterprises.

She said the networks that run throughout the wine world have helped wine become the leading component of the CAEP program, one that started 20 years ago with a focus on grains and livestock in the Midwest.

The exchange program provides a particular benefit to trainees from the Southern Hemisphere. Peta Byers, for example, can work two harvests this year, one in the spring in her native Australia and one this fall at La Crema Winery in the Russian River region.

Byers said her gypsy winemaking will speed her toward her goal of getting five vintages under her belt before seeking a job as an assistant winemaker.

"It's fantastic to talk to people from Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Argentina -- the contact and the new experiences in wine can't be equaled anywhere."

In the end, this annual exchange cross-pollinates the wine world, leaving it richer and more productive, winery professional believe.

"You never get to the point where you know it all and can just hang it up," South African Taylor said. "As long as you're listening and watching, there's always more to learn."

Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates produces a broad portfolio of premium wines focused on hillside and coastal growing regions in California, South America, Australia and Italy. Along with Kendall-Jackson, which features Collage(R), Vintner's Reserve(R), Grand Reserve, Great Estates(TM) and Stature(TM) wines, KJWE offers Camelot and Pepi with California appellations, Sonoma County's La Crema Winery, Yangarra Park from Australia, Villa Arceno from Tuscany, Italy and South American wineries Calina, from Chile and Tapiz from Argentina.

For more information visit the web at KJ.com.

Contact CAEP at [e-mail].