Alder Ridge Vineyard, Alderdale, WA
Phil Church Vineyard, Sunnyside, WA
Pay Scale: $17.00 / hr
Open until filled
Company Description
Winemakers LLC is seeking a motivated candidate with an interest in viticulture to work with us this summer. We own both vineyard and winemaking operations in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. This internship will be based at our two vineyards in Washington state in the Prosser area.
Our largest vineyard in Washington, Alder Ridge is located in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA along the Columbia River with an impressive view towards the gorge and Mt Hood. Phil Church Vineyard is in the Yakima Valley AVA between the towns of Grandview and Sunnyside. We farm around 1500 acres and 24 cultivars of premium wine grapes between these two sites. We also grow cherries at our Sunnyside farm. We sell our grapes to both large and small producers throughout the Northwest that include well known and respected wineries in Walla Walla, Idaho, the Puget Sound, the Tri Cities area, and the Willamette Valley.
Job Description
As an intern, you’ll have the opportunity to work with and gain experience in both large and small production vineyard blocks and a wide variety of grape cultivars. Our duties will include the identification of insect pests, biotic and abiotic diseases, nutrient deficiencies, fungal infections, and whatever else nature throws at us that can affect plant health. We will also perform tasks related to yield estimation such as cluster counts and weights. This position is a normal 40-hour Monday-Friday work week.
Most of our time will be spent at Alder Ridge Vineyard with a day or two per week at Phil Church Vineyard. We require our interns to start in mid-May and work until Mid-August. We are flexible with class schedules and are willing to work around them. There is the potential to stay on through harvest if we need extra help and scheduling permits. This normally runs until the end of October. We intend this to be an opportunity for our interns to learn and gain experience in their field of study. Although prior experience is helpful, above all, we’re looking for someone who is enthusiastic and willing to learn.
Job Requirements and Goals
- Be enrolled in or be a recent graduate of a viticulture and/or enology program or a similar area of study (agriculture, plant science, etc.).
- Possess an interest in the farming side of the wine industry.
- Be able to or learn how to safely ride an ATV over rough terrain.
- Learn how to and work safely with and around farm equipment, pesticides, and inclement weather.
- Learn our expectations for shoot thinning, leafing, weed management, spraying, etc. and monitor our vineyard crew as they complete these tasks.
- Learn how to identify insects, diseases, animals, and weeds that have an economic impact in a vineyard and determine if/when treatment is necessary.
- Be willing to learn and use this knowledge to succeed in the vineyard.
- Be able to work outdoors for extended periods of time in all types of weather (95% of this position is outdoor work).
- Be able to lift 40 pounds if necessary.
- Be comfortable with and able to work alone and complete tasks with little or no supervision and communicate regularly.
- Have reliable transportation (the vineyard is in the middle of nowhere).
- Possess a reliable cell phone for communication due to the large acreage of our vineyards.
- Basic Spanish knowledge is helpful but not required.
- Must be able to secure housing for the duration of the internship as we are unable to assist.
- We are currently unable to sponsor work visas.
To apply, please send resume and cover letter to Frank Shughrou; frank@winemakersllc.com
