Issue link: http://latinschool.uberflip.com/i/133183
Alumna, Vintner Conservator & Inspecting recently harvested grapes. Falling in Love with the Land After Alison's graduation from Stanford University, she began a career in licensing management for the Disney Company in Los Angeles. Her expertise soon expanded to Disney Latin America, and then Disney International Publishing, where she helped standardize the quality of Disney products worldwide. The birth of the first of three sons led Alison to move to the creative side of the business as a writer and editor for Disney, which involved less travel. It also led her and Geoff, then an attorney practicing aviation law, to begin looking for a larger home for their growing family. On a chance visit to Santa Barbara County, their interest in the area began to take root. Alison explains: "During a tasting at the winery of family friends, the matriarch of the family told us about a nearby bankrupt winery in very poor condition. Back in Los Angeles, we began to ponder trading our half-acre in Brentwood for the 48 acres in disrepair in the beautiful, lush countryside of the Santa Ynez Valley." Leaving corporate America behind, the Rusacks made the move to pursue their new dream, which Alison describes as an evolving one. In the early days, Alison and Geoff worked side by side on every aspect of their business. "We learned about winemaking through hands-on experience – from cleaning tanks to figuring out formulas for sulfur additions – that was my job," says Alison. "When it was time for our consultant to leave us, he literally left Post-it notes with detailed information for us!" Alison recalls. Alison remembers the season of their first crush on their winery premises in 1996. "Along with excitement for our first harvest, I had a newborn baby and two toddlers. We had start-up kids and a start-up winery at the same time, and all needed attention. . . In our family, we deal with everything with laughter!" After their first harvest, Alison and Geoff worked together on everything from crushing the grapes to pouring wine in their tasting room. Later, additional staff was added, and the facilities were renovated and upgraded. A husband and wife winemaking team was hired as a perfect pairing for the Rusacks' vision of the developing winery. The most visible change in the vineyard came after the 2001 harvest, when many of the original vines were pulled out and replanted. Alison Wrigley in seventh grade at Latin. Latin School of Chicago 21