Lead Cellar Technician
Blue Mountain Estate Cellars · Walla Walla, WA
Jan, 2023 · Present
Run day-to-day cellar work for a 38,000-case estate program: pump-overs, punch-downs, rack-and-returns, and barrel topping across 2,400 barrels.
Manage fermentation logs for up to 60 active lots at harvest; track Brix, temperature, and YAN and flag stuck-ferment risks to the winemaker within the same shift.
Built a barrel-rotation and topping schedule in the cellar database that cut ullage losses by 18% over one vintage.
Prepare blends to winemaker spec, run crossflow and pad filtration, and stage tanks for the mobile bottling line with zero QA holds in the last two bottling runs.
Train and supervise 6 seasonal harvest interns on sanitation (SO2, ozone, citric/caustic), confined-space awareness, and forklift rules.
Cellar Technician
Mill Creek Custom Crush · Walla Walla, WA
Aug, 2021 · Dec, 2022
Received and processed 900+ tons of fruit per harvest for 14 client brands: sorting, destemming, whole-cluster pressing, and must additions.
Kept client lot records accurate in InnoVint, including additions, transfers, and bond-to-bond movements for TTB reporting.
Ran basic lab panels (pH, TA, free/total SO2, malic chromatography) and turned results around to clients the same day.
Cleaned and sanitized presses, tanks, hoses, and fittings to HACCP-style checklists; passed every state and client audit.
Harvest Cellar Intern
Rattlesnake Hills Vineyards · Zillah, WA
Aug, 2020 · Nov, 2020
Supported crush pad, press, and cellar teams through a 12-week harvest on 12-hour shifts.
Monitored cap management and temperature on 30 red ferments; logged readings for winemaker review.
Assisted with barrel washing, steam sanitation, and inventory counts in the barrel room.