Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/528936
8 WINES&VINES July 2015 A member of Wine Communications Group Inc. President & Publisher Chet Klingensmith Chairman Hugh Tietjen Publishing Consultant Ken Koppel Associate Publisher Tina Vierra Publishing Assistant Maria Brunn EDITORIAL Editor Jim Gordon Managing Editor Kate Lavin Associate Editor Andrew Adams Senior Correspondent Paul Franson Contributing Editor Jane Firstenfeld Northwest Correspondent Peter Mitham Columnists Grapegrowing: Cliff Ohmart and Glenn T. McGourty Contributing Writers Laurie Daniel, Richard Smart, Richard Carey, Chris Stamp, Andrew Reynolds, Craig Root PRACTICAL WINERY & VINEYARD Editor Don Neel WINE EAST Editor Linda Jones McKee DESIGN & PRODUCTION Art Director Barbara Gelfand Summer Designer Bridget Williams DATABASE DEVELOPMENT AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Vice President—Data Management Lynne Skinner Project Manager Liesl Stevenson Database & Web Development James Rust, Peter Scarborough EDITOR'S LETTER SINCE THIS IS THE ANNUAL TECHNOLOGY ISSUE of Wines & Vines, I've been thinking about differences between the hard and soft technologies that wineries use. Hard technology in this case is equipment and machinery mostly made of steel, and soft technology is basically computer software made of code. Almost every winemaker likes the hard technology. Who wouldn't want a set of gleaming new stainless steel tanks like those Andrew Adams writes about in the Product Focus featured on page 46? Somewhat dif- ferent are the more traditional hard technologies such as concrete and oak fermentors. But most of you winemakers out there would buy all of these kinds of technology—if you had the money. Soft technology is a different story. You don't necessarily want it—in fact some of you might even pride yourselves on not using it. I remember visiting wineries in Woodinville, Wash., in early 2014 and meeting separately with two guys who used to work together at Chateau Ste. Michelle: Mike Januik of 10,000-case Novelty Hill-Januik Winery, and Bob Betz of 5,000-case Betz Family Winery. Januik loves his technology, hard and soft. When I visited he was proud of the CO 2 sensors and unique ventilation system that kept his staff safe and his wine sound, and he made sure to show off the Mettler Toledo T50 auto titrator in his lab. But he also loved his Logix cellar software system and credited it with helping him save 50,000 kilowatt hours per year in energy use. Not far away, Betz had his share of new winemaking equipment, too. But as for software, Betz was a traditional- ist. His preferred "technology" for keeping cellar records on fermentations, additions, blends and so on was so soft it was made of cardboard and paper: a simple spiral-bound notebook crammed with hand-written notations and wine stains. Bob is a master of wine and possibly wrote his MW exam with a quill pen, too, so he can be forgiven. But when I visited he was facing the daunting task of converting all his cursive notes from 10 years of winemaking into digital format so the new owners of Betz Family Winery—Bridgit and Steve Griessel—could preserve those records and use them going forward as reference points. During the ownership transition period, Betz remained on as winemaker. Here was a brilliant and gracious guy, former communications director for the Ste. Michelle wineries, who earned the ex- tremely difficult MW degree and then made some of Wash- ington's best wines for 10 years, who was also about to exit winery management before he had to start using cellar software. Are you that lucky? If you, your family or staff are facing the necessity of cellar software and imagining its benefits in terms of running your winery more efficiently, potentially making better wine and also saving money, then this month's cover story about winery production software (page 36) is just what you need to read. Another winery owner and veteran winemaker, Richard Carey, explains why you need cellar software and how to choose the vendor that's right for your winery. May the benefits of technology be with you! —Jim Gordon A Tale of Two Washington Winemakers, and Technology CONTACT US SUBSCRIPTIONS Email: subs@winesandvines.com Online: winesandvines.com/subscribe Phone: (866) 453-9701 EDITORIAL Email: edit@winesandvines.com MAIL 65 Mitchell Blvd., Suite A San Rafael, CA 94903 CONNECT WITH US facebook.com/WinesandVines twitter.com/WinesandVines youtube.com/WinesandVines1919 Bob Betz