Christine Allen, in the Wine Institute's communications department, says
there are approximately 1,700 commercial wineries in the U.S. But many wineries
have several winemakers, depending on their size. "The exact number of winemakers
in the U.S., to our knowledge, is not tracked," she says.
Peter Ficklin is a winemaker. He says there are over 1,000 wineries in
California alone. But an accurate estimate of the number of winemakers in
the U.S. is hard to determine.
"Not only do you have winemakers working in the vineyards, you also have
people who have a degree in winemaking -- and they are running the labs in
larger corporations. Some of these corporations have five, six or even a dozen
winemakers," says Ficklin.
The future is a little brighter for winemakers, according to Merilark Padgett-Johnson.
She is an instructor and program coordinator for an enology and viticulture
program.
"There are many opportunities both now and in the future. The western
states in particular have experienced a recent planting boom of wine grapes.
These vines are at or near to bearing fruit, so facilities and winemakers
are needed to process and ferment this new supply of fruit."
According to Padgett-Johnson, the salary range for winemakers is very broad
-- "anywhere from $36,000 a year to six figures, depending on the specific
winery and their labels."
She adds that salaries vary according to how much wine a particular facility
is able to produce and the consumer price of the particular wine being made
and bottled.
"Cash flow of the facility, reinvestment back into the company, and whether
the winery grows its own grapes or buys them can also determine employees'
salaries," she says.
If winemakers can do it all -- the microbiology, the enology, the cellar
work -- they certainly make more money than they would if they had to pay
for outside expertise.
Earnings and employment information from the U.S. Department of Labor
is not available for this field at this time.