IB Woman
Issue No. 50 - December/ /
Growing into a vintage role
by Penelope Herbert
Battling the vagaries of Mother Nature isn’t for the faint hearted but for those who choose this career path the rewards can be great. Sarah Paschke and Courtney Schultz work on the land and wouldn’t have it any other way.
Although Sarah is a long time convert to the delights of country living - she works in the family vineyard - Courtney left 10 years of supermarket management to follow a dream to work with vines.
“I was driving past a vineyard and literally pulled in to ask for a job,” says Courtney. “After harvest they asked me if I wanted to stay and since vines have always interested me I said ‘yes’. That was two years ago and I am now looking forward to completing a certificate course in viticulture.”
As Operations Manager for Balhannah-based In-Field Ag, Sarah saw Courtney’s potential as someone who could be trained as a viticulture manager.
“Working in a vineyard is hard work and very hands-on. Working in my family vineyard of Carl’s Ridge and understanding the role, I could see Courtney had the right ‘try-anything’ attitude required for success,” Sarah says.
Sarah’s own role requires attention to detail and vision as she oversees In-Field’s operations team. She says it’s a constant round of scheduling vine spraying, slashing, pruning and post repairs. Of particular intensity is the lead up to the hectic 24-hour operation that is vintage.
Vintage is the most full-on time of year as most of the machine picking happens at night with other operations continuing during the day. It’s all hands on deck, with many part-timers contracted.
“Our responsibilities only end with the provision of grapes to the winemaker,” explains Sarah. “Our clients include hobbyists, boutique-style wineries and several large winemakers such as Shaw & Smith, Primo Estate Wines, J & AG Johnston and Sons, as well as In-Field Ag’s own vineyard of Junction Creek.”
Tom Ayers founded the firm as...
