Happy birthday mom

Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Mom. Happy birthday to you. I enjoyed our road trip to St. Louis, Missouri. Our night out at Mango Peruvian Cuisine. Our time sparring at the Wisconsin Grape Growers Association Spring Vineyard School at Wollersheim Winery. Our early celebration of your birthday and too much Dairy Queen ice cream cake (well at least I had too much DQ). I love you so much. You are the best mother. You are adventurous, fun, loving, and my best friend. Happy birthday Mom!

Please don't call me kiddo

Hi my name is Becky Rochester. The next time I meet you at an event or visit your tasting room, please don't call me kiddo. I am 30 years old, know a thing or two about wine and deserve the same treatment and respect you would give to someone who appears older or perhaps looks richer than me.

Too many times, people assume that this customer will purchase more wine than that customer, and most of the time they are wrong. I know. I have been on both sides of this scenario. I have worked in tasting rooms and have been surprised by who purchases cases versus bottles versus not purchasing anything at all. Flat out. You cannot tell!

So treat everyone like they are your best customer. It comes down to one thing--their experience with you at your winery. This experience will determine whether or not they will become a customer for life, a marketer of your wines, a Facebook friend, if they Tweet about you to friends, if they become the mayor of earn a badge for visiting you a lot, if they join your wine club and how much wine they will purchase. A bad experience equals bad memories equals bad marketing by word of mouth equals little or no wine purchased.

Here is the thing. Younger people are drinking wine. They may even know more about wine than the older generations. I am a Generation X, but most of the time I get mistaken for a Millennial. Hey. That is alright with me. I am hip and cool, love to try new things and am always looking for my next adventure.

I don't like to have to follow up my name with a quick summary of my resume, but most of the time I do so people take me seriously. So if you are curious as to what I have been up to over the years, here is a link to About Me: http://iwasbornwithasuitcaseinmyhand.blogspot.com/p/contact-me.html.

Now that I am done venting, I feel a whole lot better. Last weekend I was asked how old I was at least five times. I am a motivated hardworking Midwestern woman who doesn't sit still. So yes. I have accomplished a lot at a young age. Next time someone calls me kiddo, I will call them an old fart.

Drink Local Wine Missouri

I spent the weekend with my mother in St. Louis, Missouri at the Drink Local Wine event. DrinkLocalWine.com's goal is to spotlight wine made in the 47 states and Canada that aren't California, Washington, and Oregon. It's the brainchild of Washington Post wine columnist Dave McIntyre and wine blogger Jeff Siegel, the Wine Curmudgeon. DLW 2011 follows the success of the first two conferences -- in Dallas featuring Texas wine in 2009 and in Loudoun County Virginia wine in 2010. Next year the DLW 2012 will be hosted in Colorado. Could 2013 be in Wisconsin? I don't see why not.

There was a great line up of media folks who attended the event:
Media lineup for DLW 2011 Missouri:
• Jay Bileti, Arizona Vines & Wines
• Mary Bloch, Around the Block
• Kate Canterbury, Capturing CoMo
• Dave Falchek, Times-Shamrock Communications
• Doug Frost, DougFrost.com
• Lisa Shara Hall, Wine Business Monthly
• Kimberly Henricks-Friedhoff, Slow Foods St. Louis
• Tom Johnson, Louisville Juice
• Russ Kane, Vintage Texas
• Todd Kliman, Washingtonian Magazine; The Wild Vine: A Forgotten Grape
• Gil Kulers, Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Wine Kulers
• Michael Levine, KC Wine Buzz
• Dave McIntyre, Washington Post; Dave McIntyre’s WineLine
• George Mahe, St. Louis magazine
• Trish Meyer, Janet Kaeberg, Discovering Midwest Wines
• Catherine Neville, Brandi Wills, Kristin Brashares, Feast magazine
• Eric V. Orange, LocalWineEvents.com
• Angela Ortmann, St. Louis Wine Girl
• Chris Perrin, BlogWellDone
• Joe and Ann Pollack, St. Louis Eats and Drinks
• Michael Renner, Sauce magazine
• Ron Ruggles, Nation's Restaurant News
• Jeff Siegel, The Wine Curmudgeon
• Andrew Stover, ChiefWino.com
• Karen Tedesco, Family Style Food
• Jenny Vergara, Making of a Foodie
• Mike Wangbickler, Balzac Communications; Caveman Wines
• Olivia Wilder, Olivia Wilder Times

One of the media attendees was Olivia Wilder. She hosts a blog talk radio show called Olivia Wilder Times™. Her guests are varied and interviews informal and conversational. The best part is she is also a fellow Wisconsinite. Todd Kliman, food and wine editor, restaurant critic for the Washingtonian magazine, and author of "The Wild Vine;" co-hosted the live show with Oliva.

Check out Olivia Wilder's live blog talk radio: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/olivia/2011/04/02/live-from-the-drink-local-wine-conference. I am featured in minutes 62:30-69:30 and talk about the Wisconsin grape and wine industry.

While they kept busy tweeting about the wines and each other, I tasted, not drank, wines from 21 wineries in Missouri. My favorite white varieties at the tasting include Vignoles, Seyval Blanc and Chardonel. As for the red varieties, the Norton, Missouri's famous grape variety, was produced in so many different ways that I had a hard time putting my finger on whether I was a fan or not. I am sure if I paired Norton with some food, I would change my mind. Riedel even developed a special Norton glass for the variety. Which makes me wonder if Wisconsin will ever have a variety and if so what will it be?

We left Friday morning and arrived in St. Louis around 5:00 PM. Friday night my mother and I explored downtown St. Louis, seeing the arch and enjoying a great dinner at Mango Peruvian Restaurant. Saturday we attended the event, and Sunday drove 8 hours through Missouri, Iowa and Wisconsin and arrived home around 5:00 PM. Overall, it was a great event. I had the opportunity to meet my counterparts from Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas, other attendees and media people who are open minded about wines and who can help spread the word to consumers.
For more information on Drink Local Wine, please visit: http://www.drinklocalwine.com/.

Check out VINOCENTS blog by Julia Timakhovich

Julia Timakhovich stumbled upon my blog and decided to partake in her own New Zealand adventure. Follow her adventures at http://vinocents.com/.

ABOUT JULIA:

Hi, Julia here. I am a wine lover, writer, former cube dweller, current vintage worker, and many other things at once. I’m restless for wine-related adventures and anything that involves travel.

In 2009, I left a long-term stint in cubicle land to work in the wine industry full-time. Since then, I’ve worked in two wine stores as a sales/marketing persona, manager and wine buyer. Then I went to Oregon and got intrigued with working the wine harvest. With a little bit of luck and a lot of effort, I got a gig to work the crush in New Zealand. I’m currently working as Vintage Cellar Hand at Drylands Winery in Marlborough.

My philosophy on life is that it should be an adventure. It’s just too boring without risks and stimulation. Wine, food and travel let me explore and learn about people, cultures and the world through very physical sensations, and I don’t want it to stop, ever.

Cheers.

Another hard day at work as the Wisconsin Grape Marketing Coordinator

Thursday, March 24, 2011 the Wisconsin Grape Growers Association (WGGA) hosted our annual Spring Vineyard School at Wollersheim Winery. Over 120 grape growers attended! The speakers were excellent and thankfully the weather was pleasant enough to wear a windbreaker and gloves in March. Another hard day at work as the Wisconsin Grape Marketing Coordinator.

My mother and me playing in the vineyard at Wollersheim Winery.

Here I am working hard at the Wisconsin Grape Growers Association Spring Vineyard School at Wollersheim Winery.

Best part of my job is spending time with my family!

It's Guinness time

Earth, Wind, Fire conquered St. Patty's Day in Chicago. The night began with my homemade tapa's and a bottle of King Estate's 2009 Pfeiffer Pinot Gris.


Earth, Wind, Fire

Then it was off to Mystic Celt, the old stomping ground, for some Chi-rish music, a little bit of dancing and a couple of Guinnesses. "Guinness is Good for You". Really it is. Just like wine, beer has health benefits when consumed moderately. Research done by the University of Wisconsin (On Wisconsin), believe that "antioxidant compounds" in the Guinness, similar to those found in certain fruits and vegetables, are responsible for the health benefits because they slow down the deposit of harmful cholesterol on the artery walls. I will not complain about that.
 

Me, Korinne, Mary at Mystic Celt in Chicago

Korinne and Mary Dancing?

Korinne and Me

We capped the night off with some Photo Hunt and a Chicago thin crust pizza (definitely not thin by any means) and watched the movie Burlesque. I haven't stayed up that late in a long time! It is hard to believe I have spent the last four St. Patty's Day in so many different places. 2011 Chicago, 2010 Portland, 2009 Tasmania, 2008 New Zealand.

St. Patty's Day with Chelsea and in Portland 2010

St. Patty's New Zealand

Boots or wine?

While packing for my trip to the Midwest, I had to seriously consider my options for my 50 pound suitcase. I could either pack an extra pair of boots or a bottle of Oregon wine. Boots or wine? Wine or boots?

The wine won. When I got to the airport I weighed my suitcase...46.3 pounds. Damn! I could have packed another bottle of wine. Korinne and Mary are going to be so disappointed. Hey, I tried.

I am excited to spend some time with my girlfriends in the big city. Work during day, play during night. I have a few new restaurants to check out and of course I am looking forward to St. Patty's day Chicago style.

Then it is off to Wisconsin to visit wineries and vineyards throughout the state, attend the Wisconsin Grape Growers Association Spring Vineyard School 2011 at Wollersheim Winery, followed by more visits to wineries and vineyards in Green Bay and Door County and lastly a road trip with my mother to the Drink Local Wine event in St. Louis.

Next trip the weather will be warmer which means I will only need to pack one pair of boots. You know what that means? More room for wine.

Things Wednesday 03/02/2011

Today I am thankful for...

1. The countdown of three days to my first anniversary of when I first met Brent at Spoon's in Salem.
2. That I have "Gone Grapes" (Click here to see)
3. Going to spend the weekend in Bend, Oregon.
4. Running over 20 miles last week.
5. Skinny cow ice cream treats.
6. Sauvignon Blanc.
7. Opportunities.

Synchronized Wine Swirling Part 1

Day 30: a picture of someone you miss



I miss you Autumn Lee. It was an honor to be your friend and co-worker.



Day 29: a picture that can always make you smile

Riding a mechanical bull in Nashville, TN.

Day 28: a picture of something you're afraid of

Whitewater - 2011 Brent's mancation vacation

Day 27: a picture of yourself and a family member

A Flipping Good Time

Day 26: a picture of something that means a lot to you

Who reads this?

Sometimes I wonder, who actually reads this blog, but according to Google Analytics a lot of people do. My first blog post was on 1/17/2008. I was just getting ready to move to New Zealand and start the wine adventure of a life time. Who knew that this would forever change my life.

I packed two suitcases because that is all I was allowed. I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. I quit my job and had little to no money in savings. I was only going to get paid $12 NZ dollars to do some intense, manual labor, and I was moving into a house with eight strangers. It was like Real World Cellar Rats.

I can still remember the first day I moved into the house. I arrived at the house and moved my stuff into the room where the only other female was bunking. The others were at work at Delegat's Oyster Bay, and since I was jet lagged I decided to take a nap. I awoke when I heard the door open and people enter the house. I quickly jumped out of bed and walked down the stairs.

Hello housemates! Turns out, I got to live with some of the coolest people in the world. Two South Africans, three Germans, one Quebec Canadian and one of my dearest friends to this day, one Austrian and one Canadian Chris Canada. I learned a lot that first vintage. A lot about what I was capable of, who I was and the fact that life is too short to take it seriously. The adventure didn't stop there. It was kind of like one BIG roller coaster ride. And that ride continues today.

Day 25: a picture of your day

Sabbatical and all...time for a blog post

Believe it or not, I have been on a blog sabbatical. The 30 Day Challenge has provided my blog with perfect sabbatical posts until I can come back refreshed and ready to go. It has been a long time since I have had so much down time. My mathematical side of my brain computes the following: 5 days a week x 2 hours per day (used to be commuting time) = 10 hours of extra time a week to do ANYTHING. This ANYTHING time is confusing. I am not used to having so much ANYTHING time.

I am the type of person used to working two jobs, going to school and having a million other things on my plate. So now what. Just enjoy life? Huh! I don't think so. There is so much to do, so much to see.

I am heading back to the Midwest in March to research the Wisconsin wine industry. Time to road trip around the Wisconsin wine country. Yes. I said wine country. There are over 70 bonded wineries in Wisconsin and over 200 vineyards!

Along with this I am going to spend a few days in Chicago visiting my friends. I miss Chicago! What else is in store this year. A trip to Iceland, a trip to Napa and who knows what else. Yep. Work hard, play hard.

Day 23: a picture of your favorite book...I mean favorite wine

I am not really a book person so instead I changed it from favorite book to favorite wine: Thelema Cabernet Sauvignon "The Mint". One of the few wines that has made such an impact on my taste buds and scored 100 boots (points).

Concentrated cassis, mocha and dark chocolate flavours spring to the fore, with a distinctive fresh mint character.