Trester Goetting has been named associate winemaker at Ladera Vineyards. A long-time Napa Valley resident, he has worked at Tulocay Winery, Domaine Carneros, Yorkville Cellars and St. Clement Vineyards, and joined Ladera in 2004 as assistant winemaker.

In his new position his role will expand to include more direct winemaking decisions, including barrel aging and bottling.

Ladera also announced the appointment of Sarah Taylor as regional sales manager for parts of California and Nevada. Her wine experience includes sales manager at Western Wine & Spirits, and she also has experience in the restaurant industry.

Applications are still being accepted by Napa Valley College for a full-time winery technology instructor who will be responsible for teaching winemaking classes and for the operation of the teaching winery on the campus.

Minimum educational requirements for the tenure track position are a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university, plus two years of wine industry experience, or an associate degree from an accredited college and six years of industry experience.

Application material may be obtained from the NVC Office of Human Resources at 259-8020, or e-mail to jobline@napavalley.edu. Applications close Nov. 30.

Information about the position is available from Dr. Stephen Krebs, Viticulture and Winery Technology program coordinator, at 253-3259.

Two Yountville vineyards owned by Charles Krug Winery have received organic certification. That brings to seven the number of the winery’s vineyards that have received the California Certified Organic Farmers designation, totaling neatly 400 acres.

The conversion to organic farming began in 2003, and the winery has also enrolled about 150 acres in the Fish Friendly Farming program for the Napa River watershed.

A tribute to Brother Timothy, the late master winemaker and California wine industry pioneer, will be held Nov. 29, Brother Timothy’s birthday, at the Merchants Exchange Building in San Francisco.

The event is chaired by deacon Bob Little, with co-chairs Margaret Duckhorn and Brother Stanislaus Campbell, FSC.

Some 35 wineries will participate, and dinner will be prepared by Hiro Sone Lissa Doumani of Terra restaurant in St. Helena and Ame in San Francisco. A live auction will feature cult wines, plus numerous lifestyle, luxury and travel lots.

Proceeds will be used for scholarships and the legacy endowment for the Brother Timothy Legacy Campaign sponsored by the Lasallian Education Fund.

For information, call (415) 835-5969, or e-mail kent@lasallianeducation.org.

Franciscan Estate’s fall open house Nov. 17 will feature a series of floral still-life paintings by Alex Gnidziejko, the first time his work has appeared on the West Coast.

The artist will be at a VIP preview from noon to 1 p.m., with the main event set for 1 to 4 p.m.

The preview is limited in attendance and costs $40 per person ($25 for wine club members) and includes admission to the main event. Admission to the main event is $25 per person ($20 for wine club members).

Reservations are recommended. RSVP to events@franciscan.com or call 967-3993.

Vintner’s Collective recently e-mailed a “Secret Society” invitation to taste two of its vintner members’ wines that followed a Mission Impossible theme.“Your mission as a wine lover and society member is twofold. You must taste and experience new releases from Longfellow and Ahnfeldt,” the invitation said.

It indicated that there are “a number of secret societies meeting on the afternoon of Nov. 17 (2 to 5 p.m.), each with its own agenda,” and each attendee must figure out who the other members of their society are. They’re challenged to find the code phrases of the other “societies,” too.

Cost is $25 per person, free to club members. For details call 259-1980, or e-mail doug@vintnerscollective.com.

 Shafer Vineyards has donated $25,000 to the St. Helena Family Resource Center, an agency that helps working families in Napa County’s upper valley communities.

The Center matches people to service providers including WIC, Children’s Health Initiative, Alateen, Legal Aid of Napa County, Fair Housing Napa Valley and the Wolfe Center.

“There’s a healthy trend in the nonprofit world toward coordinating services among various agencies and we applaud the efforts of the St. Helena  Family Resource  Center for its efforts in this area,” said John Shafer, chairman of Shafer Vineyards.

 Previously the winery has given gifts such as this to Napa-area nonprofit agencies including the Wolfe Center, If Given A Chance, Napa Emergency Women’s Services, and Calistoga  Family Center.

 

 Peju Province Winery in Rutherford ha the released its 2005 Napa Valley zinfandel and 2005 Napa Valley syrah. The new vintages went on sale Nov.1 in the Peju’s tasting room and online at www.peju.com.

 Peju’s zinfandel and syrah wines were introduced shortly after Tony and Herta Peju acquired the Persephone Vineyard in Pope Valley in 1996 to expand the winery’s production beyond the Bordeaux varietals produced from its 30-acre Rutherford Estate.

 Sarah Gott has joined Clif Bar Family Winery as consulting winemaker. Her first Clif Bar Family wine, the Climber White, released this month. The collection of reds will release in spring, 2008.

Gott grew up in Northern California and graduated from the UC Davis with a degree in viticulture and enology.  She built her reputation as a young rising star at Joseph Phelps from 1993 to 2001.  In 2002, she became winemaker at Quintessa where she focused on producing Bordeaux-style red wine. She also works along side her husband Joel Gott at Joel Gott Wines.  When this mother of three is not making wine, she trains as a triathlete and enjoys sharing wine with family and friends.

Langtry Estate & Vineyards has launched a new vineyard tour program in which guests ride in battery-operated Global Electric Motorcars during the tour.

Visitors with an appetite and a taste for adventure can opt for the Tephra Vineyard Lunch Tour, offered Tuesday through Saturday at 11:30 a.m. This tour travels to the high elevation Tephra Ridge Vineyard where guests learn about the Bordeaux grape varieties that grow on Tephra Ridge and have lunch in the vineyard, along with a taste of Langtry Estate and Guenoc wines. The cost is $40.

For guests interested in Tephra Ridge but not a full lunch, Langtry Estate offers the Tephra Tour at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. A wine tasting and cheese pairing are included with the tour. The cost is $25 per person.

Reservations are required and can be made by calling the hospitality office at 987-2385.