Its no secret that labor within the agriculture industry is becoming scarce. The wine business is all about farming and the labor problem is not going away. For this program we talk to five wine professionals who are impacted directly by this concern. We start off with Vineyard Manager Jesus Gonzalez of Number One Vineyard Management in Napa Valley. Next we spoke with Pam Starr, Winemaker and Co-Owner of Crocker & Starr Winery in Napa Valley. Winemaker Elias Fernandez of Shafer Vineyards continues and is followed by Winemaker for Sonoma’s Buena Vista Winery, Brian Maloney. For the final interview we talked with Cellarmaster Ian McClellan of Anaba Winery in Sonoma.

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After surviving the wildfires of 2017 winemakers in Sonoma and Napa are looking at an excellent vintage. Now its time to see the return of the tourist trade to wine country. The wine industry is counting on you listeners. Our wine journey is that of constant discovery.  On the last trip of the year in November we visited with Tom Birdsall of Black Kite Cellars in Sonoma.  Black Kite is created at a brand new custom crush facility which is where we caught up with Tom. The fires were thankfully long gone and now it was the beginning of the rainy season.  In wine country, it’s always something…

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Learn more by visiting www.blackkitecellars.com

With the purchase of Sonoma’s Buena Vista Winery several years ago, Jean-Charles Boisset has brought back a major jewel in the county’s winery crown. Brian Maloney is the Winemaker for Buena Vista and has been witness to the comeback of this property. While the Sonoma fires came dangerously close to the winery, Buena Vista survived and continues to grow. Now the industry looks for tourism to return to some of the most beautiful vineyards in the world. We met with Brian in November in the cozy confines of the historic Buena Vista Champaign cellar.

Learn more by visiting www.buenavistawinery.com

Henrik Poulsen is originally from Denmark but has been making wines in Napa Valley for many years. These days, Henrik is the Director of Winemaking for Acumen Wines also in Napa Valley Not only is he an excellent winemaker, but Henrik has an exceptional pallet. His blind tastings are a real wine education. We met up with him at the stunning new Acumen tasting room in downtown Napa just a few weeks ago.

Learn more by visiting www.acumenwines.com

Some of the very best known Napa Valley wines have been created by Shafer Vineyards.  Labels such as One Point Five, Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay and Hillside Select are household names to wine lovers. But maybe the best label to describe Shafer Winemaker Elias Fernandez is Relentless. After 33 vintages he continues his passion to make some really fantastic wines. We met up with Elias a few weeks ago at the winery to talk about his career, the fires and best of all, his new wines.

Learn more by visiting www.shafervineyards.com