Looking for a wine job? You could start by attending Thursday class at Philly's Wine School

So many people these days are making decisions about their lives and careers, whether out of necessity or simply out of unhappiness or fear about what the future holds. This morning at the Harrisburg-Patriot News we talked about covering a midday job fair at the Giant Center in Hershey, which turned out drawing around 500.

Within that context was the blurb I saw on the holiday e-letter from the Wine School of Philadelphia, 2006 Fairmount Ave., which I've blogged about in the past and have its Web site linked to my blog. School founder Keith Wallace wrote about a one-hour talk and wine tasting he's planning tomorrow (Thursday, Dec. 10) on how to get into the wine industry. Cost for a workshop that Wallace has entitled Becoming the Next Robert Parker is $18, primarily to cover the expenses for the wine.

Wallace said this idea is an extension of the one-on-one discussions he's already having with his students at the nine-year-old school, helping them not only decide what they want to do but finding the route to get there. He said a number of those students have gone on to successful career as either a winemaker or the owner of a company that has a connection to wine. "You're not going to make great money," he said, "but you can have a decent living and actually be able to enjoy life and be your own boss. And in this economy, why not do what you love?" So, he continued, he'll talk on Thursday about how to scout out these potential jobs and find a niche.

And those opportunities to make money do exist, he noted, although at one point breaking into a laugh and noting "not in wine education, by the way. Most of the money I make comes from a lot of the other things I do on the side." He noted that while the wine industry as a whole is hugely regulated, "it's like the Wild West. It's highly regulated, but state by state there are no clear dominant leaders, except in distribution, but it's a place . . . that you can really start something and ramp up very quickly, to the point of actually becoming a national figure, or at least a regional figure and turning that into a company."

Showtime is 6 p.m. Thursday at the school, which offers an A to Z of classes from 101s to more specialized education experiences such as Napa Valley & Beyond and Winter Cooking and Wine Class. Even saw a special wine and food arrangement that Wallace is cooking up with Luca Garutti, the chef at nearby L'Oca Bistro. That four-course dinner and Italian wine class is on the calendar for Wednesday, Jan. 13, from 6 to 9 p.m. Cost is $52 per person, taxes and tip not included.

Blind tasting account worth looking at

I haven't had the pleasure yet of meeting Tyler Coleman, but I am an avid reader of his Dr. Vino wine blog. He's a journalist through and through, challenging the biggest names in the industry, and I love his passion both for wines and the business. His book, "Wine Politics, How Governments, Environmentalists, Mobsters and Critics Influence the Wines We Drink," is simply a wonderful job of reporting.

That said, I wanted to link you to his blog for a piece he wrote today on a blind tasting of 2005 vintage Bordeaux wines that he attended in New York on Wednesday night, one that included Robert Parker. Pretty fascinating stuff.

On reviews and Parker and valuable insight

Always hate an interview sitting for more than a couple of days, but this one with Pennsylvania wine grape educator Mark Chien is already beginning to age. We probably talked a week and a half ago. I read his most recent e-letter, which was part rant and part advice:

"Robert M Parker Jr and Us - I often use the phrase "wine growing" which is growing grapes specifically for wine. It can apply to any wine from sweet Concord to the driest red vinifera. The goal is to grow a high quality grape that will make the best wine of its type. It is easy to get isolated and locked into a particular set of ideas or practices in the vineyard. Ultimately, the wine is meant for someone to drink. Whether it is a quaffing wine or a cult wine, it is probably a good idea to be aware and informed of those who will pass judgment on your end product, certainly a wine consumer but possibly a wine critic. Like it or not, wine criticism, like wine competitions, is part of the landscape of the commercial wine business. It's useful, sometimes even instructive, to know what the pooh-bahs are thinking and saying about wine. I encourage all wine growers to taste benchmarks of the wines they make with no exceptions. The range is from 2 Buck Chuck to $50 reds. Someone out there is judging what you do relative to the competition and it only makes good business sense to know where you stand relative to others in the same type and class. Robert M Parker Jr is the most influential wine critic in the world. I rarely agree with what he says and cannot bear his bombastic, overbearing and confrontational style of prose, but like it or not, his opinion matters to all of us in the wine biz, even the smallest winery in the woods. Not that every customer reads Parker but the range of his experience and knowledge can help us to become better wine growers. His recently released 7th edition of the Wine Buyers Guide is good for a door stop but doubles as a very informative guide into the qualitative variables that produce the best wines in the best wine regions. I skip the individual winery notes and go right into the regional guides that describe some production practices that might offer a few tidbits of useful information to a dedicated wine grower in Pennsylvania. It is well worth reading for that information."

The few e-letters from Chien that I’ve had the chance to read have been a blend of information and opinion. He said the latter can often be a problem because people will read it and think it’s the official stance of his department or the state or Penn State, when it’s simply the perspective coming from someone who’s passionate about wine and wine-making and likes to share those opinions. It would be a shame if that part of Chien's contribution to these e-letters ever disappeared.

Talking more specifically about Parker and his guide, Chien told me that the information one can glean if they read around the personal commentary can be quite valuable.

“For anyone who’s really trying to make good wine,” he said, “the thing about Parker is that over the years . . . he has absorbed a tremendous amount about how the best winemakers are making wine, and if you read his words carefully you can learn an awful lot about it.

“I’m not saying that he’s a viticulturist or an enologist by any stretch, but . . . in a way his view is very useful because he’s not formally trained as many people in this industry are not, and he takes that information and he tries to connect dots based on his experience. . . . as much as maybe like myself doesn’t like Parker or even agree with him . . . you have to understand him because so much of the wine-consuming world considers him so important. From that standpoint, whether you like him or not, he’s an important part of your business if you’re trying to service that end of the wine spectrum.”

We talked about how so few people are reviewing wines in this region at the present; Chien was talking specifically about Pennsylvania but you could say the same about Maryland wines as well. He noted that in general the country’s primary wine reviewers wouldn’t even know where to go to taste wines in Pennsylvania. “If they just took a dart board of the wine map of Pennsylvania and threw darts at it and went around and tasted those wines, chances are they’d come away with a very bad experience,” Chien said. “But, you know, the same thing would happen if they did that for Burgundy. So they know who to cherry-pick in Burgundy and Australia and California, but they don’t know who to cherry-pick in our area, and unless they’re willing to make the effort to try and find out, chances are they are going to get a lot of 70 and 80 wines instead of high 80s and low 90s wines, which is what all of us want them to find.

"It’s a learning experience for al of us. We have to take the time to educate them and at the same time while we’re sort of educating ourselves and making better wines.”

Wine Society pours heart, soul into education

It was the wine excellence awards held Jan. 18 at the Harrisburg Hilton that first got me to look at the Pennsylvania Wine Society Web site. Now, I'm a regular, at least as an observer of what this more than 21-year-old organization is educate those who want to understand and appreciate fine wines. It's a group of around 155 strong that holds events at least once a month, primarily at the Harrisburg Hilton. Club president Paul Seymour said by phone the other day that they've brought in a number of distinguished speakers during the history of the organization, from Robert Parker (“although I don't think I could get him today,” he said, laughing) to importer Bobby Kacher to Best Cellars owner Joshua Wesson.

“For the most part, we try and bring in outside speakers who are recognized experts, producers, importers, educators, people from the restaurant industry,” Seymour said. “We've had quite a few well- known people in the wine industry who are speakers.”

They generally meet at the Harrisburg Hilton, although Seymour noted they held their 20-year anniversary gala at the Country Club of Harrisburg and have held several other events at the National Civil War Museum. Events usually draw around 50 or 60 people, although some have lured up to 100.

Membership costs $30 annual for an individual and $50 for two persons living at the same address. It's a little higher for anyone wanting the perks of a patron membership. “Our mailing list goes beyond Harrisburg,” Seymour said. “It's primarily the Harrisburg area, but some from Lancaster, some from York, some from as far as State College, Reading.”

While the organization draws people often with national recognition, it tries not to stray too far from its roots. The excellence awards, recognizing the 10 best wines in the state, were held for the seventh time. Among the speakers have been Lee and Eric Miller from Chaddsford Winery in Chester County, and twice York County's Allegro Vineyards has been represented.

“We reach out somewhat,” Seymour said, when asked about how much they showcase wines and wineries in Pennsylvania. “I'd say primarily Old World, although we do some New World. In addition to Pennsylvania wine excellence event, which is every January, usually we'll have at least an East Coast if not a Pennsylvania winery at least once every other year, I would say.”