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Fall/Winter 2003
General Winery News 2003 Harvest Report Uncorked! Awards and Reviews |
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| October 28, 2003 — From left to right: Joel Robledo, Supervisor, Freestone & Quail Hill, (Sonoma County); German Corro, Vineyard Manager; Miguel Rojas, Supervisor, St. Helena Ranch; Hermann Hernandez, Supervisor, Backus Vineyard (Oakville) & Las Rocas Vyd. (Stag’s Leap District). |
A New Era Begins: Bulmaro Montes
By Kathie Fowler
In June of this year Bulmaro Montes, JPV’s vineyard manager, retired. Bulmaro had been with the winery since its inception, helping put in the first vineyards at the Spring Valley Ranch in 1973 and bringing in many of the vineyard workers who are still here today. With Bulmaro's retirement, viticulturists Philippe Pessereau and Greg Cannon were promoted to Director of Vineyard Operations in Napa and Sonoma Counties, respectively. Sarah Black, who had been a viticultural assistant, was promoted to Viticulturist. These three talented employees did a magnificent job managing the 2003 crush, and they will be featured in the next issue of the Spring Valley Times. In this issue, we highlight the vineyard supervisors who have taken over the day-to-day responsibilities of vineyard management since Bulmaro's retirement. They comprise a remarkable group of men whose loyalty and hard work have contributed incalculably to Joseph Phelps Vineyards' success. They were a fun and enthusiastic group to interview and are clearly reveling in their new job responsibilities, some of which have been communicated to them by Veronica Navarro, the new Vineyard/HR Administrative Assistant who came to work in July of this year. German Corro explains the new system that has everyone so excited: "Veronica has taught us invoice coding, how to fill out time sheets and worker’s comp and accident reports. Before, only one person handled all this." "The workers have more responsibility," Veronica reports, "and everyone’s individual talents are surfacing. They are clearly enjoying the learning curve and have a lot to offer."  Veronica reveals that there were difficulties in the beginning teaching administrative details to people not fluent in English. "There was a language barrier," Veronica explains. "If supervisors in three different vineyards were all leaf pulling on a given day, each time sheet for that day would say something different. One might say hoja, which means leaf. Another could say desahijar, meaning leaf removal. A third description might be barilla, which means removal of stunted shoots. It was very difficult to interpret the time sheets."Veronica, with A.S. degrees in Behavioral Science, Human Services and Computer Science, created a system to standardize the daily job descriptions. "The accounting department assigns a number to a vineyard and a job, and I taught the supervisors how to apply this information to the time sheets. At first they were confused, but when they finally understood the system, they loved it." "It empowered everyone," German agrees. "They had never been given this much responsibility and it energized the whole crew."  German Corro, Vineyard ManagerResponsibilities: Oversees all vineyard operations and supervisers. Came to U.S. 1967 Years with JPV: 29 Place of birth: Oaxaca, Mexico. Biographical sketch: There is clearly no lack of talent and drive in German’s family, which consists of five brothers and four sisters. Three are still in Mexico, but of the 6 who are here, Hugo Corro, JPV’s Maintenance Manager, came to work in 1989 after having completed junior college in Mexico. Horacio Corro, who also worked at JPV for a while, graduated from U.C. Davis with a degree in Biology. German has two sons, Paulo Corro, a college graduate with a business degree who is a realtor in Napa; and Hermann Corro who is attending Sonoma State University studying to be a teacher. German is clearly proud of his childrens’ accomplishments as he explains that "the advantage of having lived in this country for so many years is it enabled me to provide an education for my brothers and sisters and children." He has been married to his wife Sylvia for 24 years and lives in Napa. Biggest challenge: "Every day is a new challenge. I never know what’s coming next. But I have the best support I could ever want from my supervisors. They all help make my job easier by being experienced workers and easy to talk to. I can tell them what I want and they communicate it to the workers." Vision for the future: "To learn what I need to improve all aspects of JPV’s farming practices. To be the best that I can be."  Miguel Rojas, Supervisor, St. Helena RanchResponsibilities: Manages a crew of 11 who tend 115 acres of assorted varietals including Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc, Scheurebe and Viognier, along with a 4-acre olive grove. Came to U.S. 1980 Years with JPV: 22 Place of birth: Oaxaca, Mexico. Biographical sketch: Miguel grew up one of 10 siblings. His mother passed away in 1996 and his father still lives in Oaxaca. Three brothers are still in Mexico, but the rest are in California working in vineyards and restaurants. Miguel met his wife Maria when he was 18 and had returned to Mexico for a visit. "I didn’t think I would ever marry," he muses. "I wasn’t ready." But nine years later, at the age of 27, they were wed. They live in St. Helena and have three children, Lucia (12), Julio (7) and Jackelin (1–1/2). Biggest challenge: All the different soil types and microclimates have different requirements. Also, because the vineyards are at the winery location itself, it is very important that they always look clean and uniform. Vision for the future: "Improve vineyard practices. The biodynamic principles Philippe Pessereau is introducing will help, most recently the application of compost onto the soil after harvest and before the rainy season to leach nutrients into the soil."  Joel Robledo, Supervisor, Freestone & Quail Hill Vineyards, Sonoma CountyResponsibilities: Manages 80 acres of Pinot Noir and 19 acres of Chardonnay with a crew of 13. Came to U.S. 1980 Years with JPV: One. (Previously worked for Beringer’s for 13 years in Knight’s Valley.) Place of birth: Michoacan, Mexico. Biographical sketch: Joel has 10 brothers, all of whom work in California vineyards. His parents and two sisters are still in Mexico. Joel was introduced to his wife Hilda at a dance when they were 15. They married at 21 and live in Windsor with their son, Joel Jr., who is 16. Biggest challenge: "There are many challenges at Freestone," Joel reports. "We have been plagued by a gopher epidemic which has de-stroyed many vines. The climate is cool and foggy which can weaken the vines, and this year many were pruned way back to strengthen them for next year. Birds have been a problem, and netting was installed this year to protect the fruit." Vision for the future: "Strengthen the vines so that they will flourish, increasing their quality and yield."  Hermann Hernandez Supervisor, Backus Vyd. (Oakville) & Las Rocas Vyd. (Stag’s Leap District)Responsibilities: Manages a crew of 6–8 who, between Oakville and Stag’s Leap, work 56 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon and 5 acres of Merlot. Came to U.S. 1986 Year started with with JPV: 1991 Place of birth: Oaxaca, Mexico. Biographical sketch: Hermann (known as Taqua) comes from a family of 8 brothers, all of whom are in California and Oregon working in either vineyards, construction, or the restaurant business. In 1980 he moved his parents from Mexico to the Napa Valley where both are now employed. Taqua met his wife Reyna in school when they were 7 years old! They married in 1987 and currently live in St. Helena with their son Hermann (10) and daughter Lupita (11). Notable achievement: Taqua won last year’s Pruning Championship in Yountville, a county-wide competition that judges the entrant on both speed and quality. Biggest challenge: The steepness of the slope at Backus (much of the vineyard is at a 250 angle), and the size of the rocks. Vision for the future: "I am very proud of the importance of the Backus and Las Rocas Vineyards. In the future everything will be more stable at Backus as we get better control over the rocks. Sometimes the vines’ roots struggle for nutrients, and as we break up the rocks and compost the soil, the vines gain strength. In future years this will increase production and improve quality."  Constantino Corro, Supervisor Machine MaintenanceResponsibilities: Maintains all vineyard equipment and oversees a crew of 6 tractor drivers. Holds a commercial truck driving license. Came to U.S. 1972 Year started with JPV: 1974 Place of birth: Oaxaca, Mexico. Biographical sketch: With the exception of one sister, "Tino’s" family, consisting of his parents, 6 brothers and 5 sisters, all still live in Mexico. He and his wife Josefina have four children, Victor Hugo (24), a winery worker in Napa; Constantino, Jr. (21) who works for United Parcel Service; Luis Alberto (17), a St. Helena High School student; and Stephanie (2-1/2). Biggest challenge: "I have more responsibility now because I’m in charge of the equipment and the drivers. If anything, I’m more careful and alert than I’ve ever been. Each day I have to check all the equipment and make sure it’s running perfectly for the following day. Notable achievement: Tino’s remarkable ability to repair and maintain heavy machinery (tractors and caterpillars) is almost completely self-taught. "In the early years, Bulmaro taught me about tractors and gave me the opportunity to learn everything else on my own," he explains. |
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