Harvest is undoubtedly the most exciting time of the year in Napa Valley. Our Test Kitchen Manager, Dan Gora, sat down with Winemaker Isadora Frias to get her unique perspective on this special time of year. Read their chat below.
Dan: Why did you become a winemaker?
Isadora: By accident! I was in college for engineering; I hadn’t worked in wine before. My school went on strike. To take advantage of this extra time, I decided to participate in a harvest abroad, in the Barossa Valley, in southern Australia. A friend of mine worked a harvest, and she had a blast.
I absolutely loved it. It was my first experience in winemaking ever and I got “showered with wine”. I worked 6 days a week for 2 months with almost no days off. This was at a time in my life when I wanted to travel and practice my English, so it was a great opportunity for me to immerse myself in the field.
After that harvest, I went back to Brazil and finished engineering school. For the next 5 years, I traveled all over the world working harvests. I would work 2-3 harvests a year, in different wine regions, in both the northern and southern hemispheres. By that time, I fell in love with winemaking, so I decided to go back to school. I got my master’s at UC Davis in Viticulture & Enology. I’ve been in California ever since!
Dan: What is it about
This Article was originally published on One Hope Wine
