We spoke to Shannon Leary last November. She’s a winemaking student at California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, and by now, soon to graduate. So when we heard about the Garagiste Festival‘s new scholarship program for Cal Poly winemaking students, we figured this would be a great opportunity to post our interview with Shannon. The transcript is below.
Anne and Shannon were probably talking over each other, so it didn’t come out in the video, but Shannon did say that the male to female ratio among her classmates is evening out. That’s good news as far as we’re concerned. One other thing – it sounds a little obvious that Shannon would want to be a winemaker. However, what’s she’s talking about is the job title, not the activity. The winemaker is usually the head honcho at a winery, whereas other folks, who probably also have winemaking degrees, are often lab techs, assistant winemakers, etc.
Shannon – It’s exciting. It’s been a great four years and I’m excited to see what’s next.
Q – Have you got any job prospects yet or are you just barely tapping that?
Shannon – I ‘m just finishing up an internship, so I’m going to start looking into different options here in the next few months and see what’s out there.
Q – Is that scary or…
Shannon – Mostly exciting. There’s lots of good opportunity and different areas you can go to and different parts of the industry that you can get involved in.
Q – Is there more equity in the classroom environment between men and women?
Shannon –It’s the industry so far, with female mentors and people who are helping me get started in my career and I’ve been encouraged a lot in the past few years with my career. So I’m looking forward to it.
Q – Why do you think that is? That we’re finally starting to see that even out?
Shannon – I think women bring a lot of unique things to the table. In any career, for that matter. But just a different perspective, different capabilities. And I think it’s a great industry for everyone to be involved in. Very passionate, very charismatic. And I think anyone wants to be involved with that.
Q- What makes for a good wine education program in today’s industry?
Shannon – One of the things that I really love about Cal Poly is the hands on experience that you get. So we have internships that are part of our curriculum. Labs. All of our classes are based on practical winemaking. Learning how to get out there and be a part of the industry. So when we graduate, we’re ready to get going. And that’s what I really love about Cal Poly. Each program brings unique things to the table. But I’ve loved my experiences so far. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve had great professors and classmates.
Q – What got you interested in wine age 21?
Shannon –Um, I did not come from a winemaking family at all. What I was looking for in a career was an industry where there was people I was going to like to work with, and something new every year, and challenging. And the wine industry definitely has that. So it’s an ever-changing career, and like I said, the people are great to be around. Very warm, friendly people who are willing to help and everyone just wants to elevate the industry.
Q – And what are your goals?
Shannon –My goals. I’d love to be a winemaker, have my own label someday. I’m not sure exactly where that’s going to take me in the next few years here, but I’m open to the possibilities. We’ll see where it goes.
Q – All right.