5 Tips to Make This Bottling Season a Success

The rhythm of bottling season is as familiar to the California wine industry as rolling hills of vineyard rows. It’s a time of bustling warehouses, the hum of bottling lines, and the careful choreography of precision and passion. Yet, with that rhythm comes the challenge of ensuring everything runs smoothly. How can vintners and bottling facilities transform this hectic season into a success?

As hiring support for various wineries in California, a common question we hear is: How can I get ahead of the busy bottling season — to keep my production on time and avoid mistakes — all while also growing my business?

It begins with thoughtful preparation and the right strategies.

1. Take Care of Staffing ASAP

Bottling lines can only move as fast as the hands and minds guiding them. The heart of a successful bottling season lies in your workforce. But finding skilled bottling line associates — especially those with the experience of a previous season — can often feel like searching for rare vintages.

Consider leveraging a local temp staffing agency with expertise in the wine industry. This also ensures that your hires will have already been vetted by a team that understands the unique requirements of bottling line work. Aim to hire early, giving new additions ample time to learn the operation.

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2. Master the Art of Sanitation

Every bottle that leaves your facility tells a story—of quality, care, and dedication. Behind that story lies an often-overlooked hero: sanitation.

Properly cleaning and sanitizing your bottling and capping system is key to preserving flavor and consistency. As well as equipment, your sanitation protocol should include spoons, funnels, and any other utensils used in the bottling process.

3. Check in on Your Storage — Prepare and Repair as Needed

Be sure to check your storage and refrigeration systems for required maintenance, such as cleaning and replacing filters and lightbulbs. And with supply chain issues still causing problems globally, securing bottling consumables such as bottles and corks well in advance can help to prevent delays in the bottling process.

4. Make Sure You’re Maximizing Your Software

By investing in tools that automate inventory tracking, bottling line scheduling, and shipping logistics, you free up time for production, bottling, and all the other demands of one of wine country’s busy seasons. Ask yourself, “Which tasks could be more efficient with technology?”

If you use a software management system, check with your provider to make sure your business is getting the most out of all its features — that includes production, inventory, billing, and shipping tools. Likewise, perform recommended computer and software updates and maintenance to avoid unnecessary technical issues during bottling season.

5. Ensure Your Job Listings are Crystal Clear

You only have so much time to hire before you’re swept up in the seasonal rush. If you’re posting calls for job applicants to social media or your website, make sure that you clearly outline the requirements. We like to break a job listing for a bottling line worker down into “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves.” Don’t forget to think about logistical details — for example, have you struggled with employees not making it to work due to a lack of reliable transportation? Add it to your job description to help set expectations.

Here’s an example from a recent job description on Star’s site for a mobile bottling role:

You’re good at:

Participate in set-up, clean-up of bottling line.

Rotates between various functions on bottling line

Assists in inspection of finished goods for quality control purposes.

Able to lift up & carry up to 40lbs repetitive

Fully supports the policies and procedures.

Fully supports the commitment towards safety practices and policies.

Performs other duties as assigned by Bottling Manager.

Extra awesome:

6 months of previous experience on a bottling line preferred.

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Ability to learn quickly.
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Able to work well in fast paced environment.

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Basic reading, writing and math skills.
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Quality conscious person.
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Must have reliable transportation, be punctual and maintain good attendance.

(Again, if you work with a staffing agency like Star, there are hiring experts to help you with this.)

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Are you a winery in California in need of reliable seasonal or long-term staff? Contact Star Staffing today. We can help you explore options that fall in line with your requirements.