What's New

     Last Wednesday was my second day of work here at WIN. It went great, I basically did the same kind of work I've been doing with researching articles relevant to our members. It sounds like monotonous and repetitive work, but I'm actual learning a ton. For example, did you know that you don't have to keep your wine in oak barrels for the woody flavor? It's actually much more efficient to use stainless steel tanks that can be reused over the years and buying Oak Spirals instead. Oak spirals come in a variety of 'flavors' based on the type of wood.
     Yesterday I was only in the office for a short period of time (had to go prom dress shopping, no luck yet). I did some research on bird control kites. If you've driven through the vineyards on a sunny day, I'm sure you've spotted the glimmer of tinsel and reflective ribbons tied to the vines. These are meant to deter birds from landing and devouring grapes. A new and more effective method of keeping scavengers at bay is a Bird Kite. A Bird Kite is a large kite that appears at a glance to be a looming hawk or eagle. The kite scares smaller birds away from the vineyards.
     Today, I drove out Dry Creek Valley to the Saini Family Vineyards to take pictures of their Bird Kite and talk to them about its effectiveness. I know the Sainis well so it was nice to see them again. They told me that the kite was pretty effective and they noticed a lot less birds hanging around the vineyards, especially last fall when the starlings were swarming.