About Us

Ridgeview has been producing world-class sparkling wine for over 25 years. Considered pioneers of the English Wine Industry, our state-of-the-art winery and established vineyards (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier) are based in the heart of the South Downs National Park, with breath-taking views of the surrounding area. We are proud to be certified by Wines GB as a sustainable vineyard and winery, and we invest in the latest, innovative equipment to minimise our impact on the natural world whilst crafting the highest quality sparkling wine around.

OUR CULTURE

Ridgeview is a family business built on a strong sense of teamwork. We believe in passion, a sense of purpose and a commitment to excellence. Ridgeview lives and breathes a family ethos, valuing all our staff as individuals, with a unique story and an important role to play. We are a vibrant, dynamic and diverse team who make great things happen, together.

Job Description

This seasonal role will be part of a close knit harvest team, the forklift operator will assist with unloading grapes bins from lorries, tipping grapes in to presses, and removing waste grapes and empty bins. This is an essential function to keep the winery working. When not operating the forklift, the operator will be in the winery assisting the winemaking team with cleaning and general function of the winery.

Please note, a valid UK forklift license is essential for this position.

What does the job involve :

Full training will be provided on the duties required, and an induction / training day will onboard operatives before harvest starts.

Unloading :

Lorries arrive with picking bins full of grapes stacked 3 or 4 bins high. The bins must be forklifted off the lorry and taken in to the winery for weighing. Attention to detail is key to make sure the bins are unloaded in order and weighed accurately. A stack will weigh in the region of 750kg – 1250kg.

Loading Presses :

Under instruction from the winemaker, this involves picking up one bin at a time using the forklift attachment, and tipping the full bin of grapes in to a hopper at approximately 1m high to be fed in to the press. Accuracy is key to make sure all grapes fall in to the hopper. The emptied bins must then be stacked for cleaning, and re-loading on to the lorry.

Press Unloading :

Crushed grapes called ‘marc’ will be emptied out of the press, and collected in large trays. The operator will pick up the trays with the forklift and tip them in to a dumper truck for disposal. This involves working under close instruction of the winemaker.

Loading Lorry :

Take the empty bins and load them back on to the lorry for return to the customer. It is important to take instruction from the winemaker to ensure the correct bins are being loaded on to the lorry.

General Press Loader Duties :

When the forklift is not in use, general press loader duties involve assisting in the winery for general help of the winery team. This will involve cleaning and stacking empty bins, cleaning the winery floors and drains, assisting the winemaking team with loading the press by raking out grapes. Operating the floor cleaner and keeping the floors and equipment clean. Cleaning out winery presses which can involve working in confide spaces. On some occasions, smaller 16kg crates will need to be manually loaded in to the press, this can be physically demanding. Generally a press loader should be on hand to assist winemakers where requested with various tasks in the winery.

The shifts can be 8-11 hours ( could be longer ) , 6 days a week during harvest. Each person will be allocated either day shift starting in the morning or late shift starting afternoon / evening and finishing potentially as late as 2am ( although the end time could be earlier or later depending on the harvest )

The late shift, depending on when it finishes, could be classed as a night work. Once they are allocated late shift, each person would stay on this shift for the whole harvest which could be up to 2-5 weeks.

Please note all of this information is just given as a guide. All shift timings, start and end dates are fully dependant on harvest so anyone applying needs to have full flexibility and commitment during the harvest.

What you will need to be a successful applicant :

• A forklift license is essential for this position
• You should enjoy working in a close-knit team working towards a common goal and with the ability to use own initiative
• Be comfortable with physical lifting and climbing stairs to the grape press
• Able to work at heights and at nights ( a medical assessment will be required to ensure safety and reasonable adjustments )
• Be available for around two to five weeks from mid to end of September ( TBC actually dates to be confirmed nearer the time as will be dependent on grape yield and ripening)
• Flexibility with additional hours required depending on harvest

What we will give you :