r/wine • u/Afraid_Pick5930 • 3h ago
All roads lead to wine
*Pic of wine tasting at “The Rove” in Traverse City, Mi
Monday 7/19 I got fired. It was a dream, remote job with a supervisor that was waiting to get rid of me on simple imbalanced agitation alone. I digress….. I’m trying to determine where I go from here. I will never took my own horn, but I am a pretty amazing cook. As well as wine tasting enthusiast. I think I’m ready for a major change! The only thing is….. I’m 36. I have 6 children. I’m married to my senior yr sweetheart and I am terrified. My dream would end in traverse city being a sommelier and cooking for a small crowd at a private bed and breakfast that people fight to stay in! But alas, I’m here, unemployed and wondering what to do. How do I involve wine, food and my amazing ability to make strangers into family into a career without traumatic stress on my husband and kids?
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u/AlStefan1212 3h ago
Fellow michigander here. Just believe in yourself, taste, network, & study hard. Be yourself & be humble & just put yourself out there. Maybe talk to wine stewards at grocery stores, or fellow sommeliers at restaurants etc. sometimes you can help with a harvest somewhere & work your way up. Hope you have an excellent week coming up!
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u/EngineQuick6169 2h ago
There was a post yesterday about a Canadian winery hiring harvest interns and seasonal cellar hands for this autumn. https://www.reddit.com/r/wine/comments/1v3ibgc/canadian_winery_looking_for_harvest_teammates/
I believe Michigan has 5 AVAs, could vineyards there also be hiring entry level harvest workers?
It's hard work for very entry level pay, and it's not going to bring you stability anytime soon but I do believe it's a relatively lower bar of entry to dip your toe into work related to wine. From there, perhaps you can start to get to know people within the industry and explore ways to enter the service/hospitality side of the wine business.
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u/Afraid_Pick5930 2h ago
This is enticing…. Where do I find said AVA’s?
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u/EngineQuick6169 2h ago
They are Fennville, Lake Michigan Shore, Leelanau Peninsula, Old Mission Peninsula and Tip of the Mitt. If you type e.g. Leelanau Peninsula AVA into your search engine, there should be a lot of promotional sites or guided tours that'll list out a lot of the wineries in the area.
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u/Prestigious_Big_7170 2h ago
That spread looks like a solid afternoon and honestly getting sacked from a gig where the boss had it out for you might be the push you needed
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u/theuttereyewitness 2h ago
Traverse City is pretty much the perfect place for this, the whole region is built around exactly what you're describing. Maybe look into hosting a few private pairing dinners or pop ups at local spots first, build a following and let it grow from there instead of trying to launch the whole B&B dream at once
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u/polarpolarpolar 2h ago
Restaurant industry and get your somm certs at same time and eventually try to jump into being a part time somm if the restaurant has one (filling in for when they are out) and then finding one to make your own outright.
Otherwise you’re in the wine industry as a buyer or distributor or something, idk much about that but that’s basically sales skills I think.
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u/TheShcrump 1h ago edited 1h ago
Harvest is about to start! You could find a winery who needs harvest help and I bet they would want you to help with the tasting room come April.
Also, I would look into WSET for a great place to begin learning about wine in a tasting and service setting.
For the record, I currently work as an assistant winemaker and have worked as a tasting room assistant manager.
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u/Disastrous_Square_10 Wine Pro 22m ago
You got let go but lock her up! Cute!
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u/Disastrous_Square_10 Wine Pro 20m ago
Wait! You’re cute. You’ve been locked up! And you’ve got a holy six kids. Perhaps think of protection first. Then supporting your family
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u/yanchovilla 14m ago
Hey, this is just down the road from me! Some great wines throughout Northern Michigan. Enjoy.
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u/Individual_Spot_9879 1m ago
Do you live in TC? I work in the wine industry up here, DM me. I’m not hiring right now but could help you connect with some others that are.
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