CWI Sommelier Pictorial Original published in 2022-10-08
Not everyone's job search journey is smooth. Some people have clear goals as soon as they enter society, but some people have to go around and get on the right track.
Kristy Melton After graduating from university, I was like many people who were confused about my career all day long.
2022 At the beginning of the new year, the ancient famous village located in Napa Valley, California - Freemark Abbey Winery (Freemark Abbey Winery) welcomed the first female chief winemaker in history. Kristy has finally taken another step on the road of "discovering what you love".
From a diligent researcher who "moves bricks" during the day and works part-time at night, it has been recognized by many authoritative institutions at thirty. In the past decade, Kristy has devoted himself to the winemaking career to focus and work hard , and also 's immortal enthusiasm and tireless thinking .
"Korang cruel"
01
Kristy looks quiet on the outside, but in fact he is a native Texas girl. Although she has a passionate personality, she always has a sense of ruthlessness in her bones.
Kristy, who grew up in a farm in the southern United States, has loved gardening and farming since she was a child. The animals are not only her caregivers, but also her childhood playmates. Therefore, when applying for college, she did not hesitate to fill in zoology .
Unfortunately, not long after entering university, Kristy took a leave of absence from school for a year due to illness. After returning to school, in order to make up for the lost time, she completed the major course in biology in on the basis of zoology. However, she did not expect that the decision she made at the beginning would actually successfully pave the way for her career transformation in . After successfully obtaining a degree from Angelo State University, Kristy won the offer from the National Institutes of Health and began to work as a researcher in the immune system there.
However, the life of ordinary people is somewhat difficult and tortuous. Due to the high living expenses of Washington , Kristy had to quietly start a part-time job. After get off work, he had to mix bartenders or go to a winery to help. has turned into an absolute "996 worker".
But since he came into contact with many wines during his part-time job, Kristy's love for wine has become uncontrollable, and he feels that his researcher's work is boring and he cannot see the future.
During a wine tasting trip to Napa Valley , Kristy was deeply moved by the beauty of the science of winemaking. immediately decided to change to winemaking .
"Halfway into a monk"
02
The second year after Napa Valley returned, due to excellent biology courses during his undergraduate studies, Krsity was successfully admitted to the master's degree in the ace major of "vina cultivation and brewing" in UC Davis (UC Davis 3). During her internship, Kristy showed her excellent winemaking skills with a passion and concentration: during her internship, she gained experiences at Iron Horse Vineyards in California and Seresin Estate in New Zealand. With a few years after graduation, she was promoted from an assistant winemaker at Clos Du Val in Napa Valley to the position of chief winemaker , and served as a winemaking consultant for several wineries.
2022, , located in the St. Helena region of Napa Valley (St.Helena), the first female chief winemaker.
At this time, Kristy had been rated as , the authoritative wine organization "Wine Enthusiast", "The World's Top 40 Winemakers Under 40" , and worked for several years under the major American wine group , which belongs to Liberty Mark Monastery Winery.
At a young age, Kristy didn't seem to be proud of it, but instead regarded himself as the gatekeeper of the winery.
"The last chief winemaker, Ted Edwards, worked here for forty years. I was not born when he started brewing." As the eighth generation chief winemaker at Liberty Mark Abbey, Kristy felt that responsibility and responsibility were equally important.
unchanged and progressed
03
, founded in 1883, has a history of more than 100 years. For , California , which is produced in the New World, it can be called the word "old".
Free Mark Monastery Winery is also one of the few wine brands that have maintained a classic style since its establishment.
Today, most people's impression of this winery begins with the watershed 1976 Paris Blind Tasting . Among the 12 participating wines representing California level, only two red and white wines from Liberty Mark Monastery Winery were selected as .
Continuing the usual style of the winery is the responsibility of the chief winery of all generations , even Ted, who has now retired to be the honorary winery of the Liberty Mark Monastery Winery, is no exception.
"Freemark Abbey always gives people a timeless impression," but Kristy also believes that "the world pays too much attention to the ancient history of Freemark Abbey, and therefore often ignores the progress in all aspects."
Freemark Monastery Winery is one of the first wineries in Napa Valley to open a tasting room and brew a single variety of grapes. Its vineyards located in Napa have been grown organically and in terms of sustainable use of solar panels , sheep weeding and other methods to save energy and reduce emissions.
Not only that, relying on the brand cluster effect brought by the Jackson family wine industry, Kristy was able to conduct wine bottle weight reduction experiments with other brands in the group to maximize brand value to help the sustainable development of the winemaking industry.
Currently, 75% of the winery brewing team are women, and 50% of the wine cellar team are women. The team's Diversity brings more ideas and ideas practice, and Kristy is also ready for it.
In order to allow employees to work more efficiently and easily, Kristy has been trying to improve hardware equipment and supporting software. For example, she recently connected the temperature of the winery water tank with mobile devices, so that employees can remotely control the temperature at any time in the future.
Kristy said: "The epidemic forces everyone to change, and the wine industry is also facing the current situation of insufficient manpower. But by using technological means, our team can grasp the problems in each process more in a timely manner, and have more time to think and improve."
"The universe will not stagnate, and our winemaking career will not stagnate." For Kristy, there may not be any irrefutable eternal law in the world. Only by forcing ourselves to make continuous progress can the Free Monastery Winery be renewed in the torrent of time and go further.
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