As with all myths, this one has an element of truth to it. In the Oxford Dictionary, the primary meaning of “to make” is “to form (something) by putting parts together or combining substances”. In the winery who actually puts the parts of the wine together? That all depends on the size of the winery.

In small production wineries under about 1500-2000 cases per year, if they’re charging less than $40 per bottle, it’s usually the winemaker and his/her family who actually handle the grapes, sorting them, putting them in the destemmer, moving them to the fermentation tanks, getting the barrels ready, crushing the grapes, racking off the juice, moving pallets by forklift, and so on. They’re actually making the wine by putting parts together. (Wineries that make expensive wine can afford to have a crew do all that “making” although lots of artisan winemakers enjoy being hands on.)

But as production exceeds that level, the physical labor is more than one or two people can do. They need to hire help. The winemaker has to pitch in when short-handed or during times of peak work load or emergencies. But routine tasks of “making” are done by hired help—temporary migrant workers, interns, underpaid newbies trying to get a foothold in the industry, and better paid production managers who divide their time between supervising and pitching in. And once production starts to creep over 5000 cases, which includes most of the wine made in the world, the winemaker does very little “making”.

What do “winemakers” do? They make most of  the decisions about what to do with the grapes or wine and when it should be done. They spend a lot of time checking their vineyards or testing in the lab. They are buried in spread sheets, planning, planning and more planning, and supervising the work crews. (not to mention schlepping the wine and trying to sell it after its made.)

In the modern winery, winemakers are really wine designers. They work hard but its mental labor and communications not the physical labor of making.

In the modern winery, the term “winemaker” is often misleading—“wine designer” might be more appropriate. In most wineries with an annual case production above about four or five thousand cases, the winemaker’s job is to determine what to do with the wine. It’s someone else who carries out these instructions. The actual “making” is performed by cellar workers who spend much of their time on the business end of a hose or in the seat of a forklift.

Most of the physical labor in a winery involves moving the wine from container to container and preparing containers for their  next occupation.

Oliver Styles used the occasion of May Day (celebrated in many countries as International Worker’s Day) to call attention to the job cellar workers do.

They don’t get their own label, they don’t get their own tank named after them, they aren’t courted by the media, they aren’t asked to look after next year’s capex or barrel order; but without the work that they do, a winery could not function.

They usually don’t make much money, the work is often seasonal or part time, and it can sometimes be dangerous. But if they don’t do their jobs well, wine quality suffers. When winery equipment isn’t clean, critters grow; if the barrels or vats aren’t ready, the grapes or wine are sitting where they shouldn’t be.

We don’t think about it often, but wine quality absolutely depends on this work. One consequence of our focus on advanced technology and information is that we lose sight of the physical processes that actually make things happen. They are just a means to an end; grunt work. But just as we learn more about the world by walking through it rather than driving past it in a car or by preparing a meal rather than eating fast food, we know more about wine when we pay attention to the physical processes that make it.

When means and ends are no longer separated life in its fullness comes into view.

Cellar rats, vineyard workers—without them the world is a poorer place and they have a perspective on wine few of us can share.