Position Overview
Flint Vineyard has an exciting vacancy during a period of significant expansion. A fantastic opportunity for someone seeking to develop their skills in wine production and kickstart a career in winemaking.
Reporting to the Winemaker, the Cellar Hand / Vineyard Assistant plays a key role in supporting all aspects of the winemaking and viticultural processes. This hands-on role spans cellar, vineyard, bottling and packaging ensuring daily activities meet exceptional quality standards while maintaining strict Health & Safety protocols.
Flint Vineyard currently has 21 acres under vine and plans to significantly increase this over the next few years. There is a 125,000 bottle capacity winery on site including state-of-the-art and novel equipment such as concrete egg tanks, foudres, isobaric fermentation, filtration and bottling and inert pressing and storage. There is a commitment to quality and striving for perfection at every stage.
This role is ideal for someone looking to grow within the wine industry and develop their skills within an experienced team. A positive attitude, strong organisational skills, and a demonstrable passion for wine are key requirements.
Key Responsibilities
- Perform all winemaking tasks, including bottling and labelling, while adhering to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
- Conduct routine operations such as grape processing, press operation, racking (transferring) juice, must, and wine.
- Clean and sanitise cellar equipment, tanks, tools, and workspaces to uphold hygiene standards.
- Assist with barrel management, including washing, filling, sulphiting and inventory tracking.
- Carry out vineyard tasks including pruning, canopy management and harvest.
- Supervise and motivate a small team of vineyard operatives, with support from the Vineyard Manager, to ensure efficient working.
- Be prepared to get involved and take a lead role in wider activities such as vineyard establishment tasks (e.g. planting, fencing, trellising).
- Perform basic wine analysis operations (e.g. SO2, TA, pH, enzymatic).
- Operate forklift to handle materials and equipment safely and efficiently.
- Maintain accurate records.
Candidate Profile
Essential & Desirable Qualifications/Experience:
- Previous experience as a Cellar Hand would be highly desirable.
- Minimum WSET Level 3, or Plumpton College short winemaking course, or equivalent.
- Forklift experience is preferred but not essential.
Skills and Attributes:
- Self-motivated, proactive, resilient, and energetic.
- Positive attitude with demonstrable passion for wine and winemaking.
- Comfortable working with spreadsheets and other electronic production tools.
- Be able to make a world class cup of tea.
- A pragmatic, practical approach to problem solving and the ability to learn and apply logic to technical processes and issues arising from these.
- Capable of working in a physically demanding environment (manual handling, confined spaces, working at height, bending and kneeling).
- Willingness to work additional and long hours during harvest (September to November).
Benefits
- Opportunity to work within a dynamic, growing team with a passion for producing excellent wine.
- Engage with the wine industry and expand wine knowledge.
- Training opportunities to support skill development (e.g. forklift operation, working alongside Head Winemaker, sponsored wine production courses).
- Benefits package including 28 days paid holiday.
- Wine allowance: 12 bottles per year.
- Preferential rates on additional wine purchases and wine tours.
Location:
Flint Vineyard, Middle Road, Earsham, Bungay, NR35 2AH.
Employment Type:
- Full-time.
- Working Hours: 8:30am-4pm Mon-Fri, 37.5 hours per week.
- Flexibility for extra and long hours during harvest (September to November).
How to apply:
If you are interested to work with us at Flint then we would love to hear from you. Please send an email to emily@flintvineyard.com with your CV and a covering letter by the 16th March 2025.
Successful candidates will be asked to attend interviews in the last two weeks of March.
