Tasting Room Manager

Job Description:

Tasting Room Manager
Location: Estate House at Balsall Creek, Newberg, Oregon
Reports to: Founder/Owner
Employment Type: Full-Time
About the Role
Balsall Creek is seeking an enthusiastic, hospitality-driven Tasting Room Manager to lead our tasting room and own the guest experience, team performance, and growth of our direct-to-consumer business, creating a memorable experience for every guest who walks through our doors. You will bring energy, professionalism, curiosity and a sense of fun to the role.
This role is about much more than just serving exceptional wines. This position is the face of Balsall Creek and plays a key role in translating our wines, vineyard, Estate House and family story into an exceptional, welcoming experience.
You are comfortable coaching a team, talking about wine with first-time visitors, handling a busy tasting room, analyzing sales results, or stepping in to solve a guest issue. You will lead and inspire the tasting room team, cultivate meaningful relationships with guests, drive wine sales and club memberships, and ensure that every interaction reflects our commitment to quality, authenticity, and outstanding service.
Key Responsibilities
Guest Experience & Brand
• Create a warm, personalized, and memorable experience for every guest, from arrival through departure.
• Foster a culture of genuine hospitality, attentiveness, and thoughtful service.
• Welcome guests, lead or oversee wine tastings, and confidently share the winery's story, wines, and vineyard.
• Build lasting relationships with visitors and encourage repeat visits, referrals, wine club memberships, and direct-to-consumer purchases.
• Professionally resolve guest concerns and service issues, turning challenges into opportunities to strengthen relationships.
• Maintain an elevated yet approachable environment that feels refined, relaxed, and genuinely welcoming.
Sales & Wine Club Growth
• Lead the team in achieving and exceeding tasting room sales and wine club goals.
• Coach staff on authentic, consultative selling techniques.
• Create opportunities to introduce guests to wines that fit their tastes and interests.
• Track key performance indicators such as sales, average transaction value, wine club conversion, reservations, and repeat visitation.
• Develop strategies to increase direct-to-consumer revenue while keeping the guest experience at the forefront.
Team Leadership & Development
• Recruit, train, coach, and motivate tasting room staff.
• Establish clear service standards and lead by example.
• Conduct regular team meetings, training sessions, and wine education.
• Provide ongoing feedback and recognize exceptional performance.
• Develop a team culture centered on hospitality, teamwork, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Build staff knowledge and confidence around wine, food pairings, vineyard practices, and the Balsall Creek brand story.
Tasting Room Operations
• Oversee daily tasting room operations, including opening and closing procedures, reservations, guest flow, staffing, inventory, and cleanliness.
• Manage reservations and special experiences to ensure an organized and seamless guest journey.
• Coordinate with marketing, events, and wine club personnel as needed.
• Ensure compliance with Oregon alcohol-service regulations and company policies.
• Maintain appropriate inventory levels and communicate product needs.
• Monitor tasting room presentation, including wine displays, merchandise, tasting areas, and outdoor spaces.
• Help develop and implement service procedures that improve efficiency without compromising hospitality.
• Manage the POS (Commerce 7) and reservation (Tock) systems to ensure accuracy and proper use by the tasting room associates.
• Manage labor and staffing levels and adjust as necessary to improve performance and efficiency.
• Create and maintain industry relationships and partnerships.
Events & Social Experiences
• Support the planning and execution of private tastings, winery events, dinners, educational experiences, and other special programming, ensuring each event reflects our standards for hospitality, presentation, and guest experience.
• Partner with internal teams to ensure events are thoughtfully planned and flawlessly executed.
• Help create distinctive guest experiences that showcase the Estate House and Balsall Creek wines.
Qualifications
• 3+ years of experience in hospitality, wine, tasting room, restaurant, hotel, or related customer-facing management.
• Previous supervisory or management experience preferred.
• Passion for hospitality and wine, and a willingness to continually expand wine knowledge.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and leadership skills.
• Understands the relationship between exceptional hospitality and commercial success – creating experiences that naturally inspire wine purchases, club membership, and return visits.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to remain calm, gracious, and solutions-oriented in a fast-paced environment.
• Comfortable with sales goals and performance metrics.
• Ability to work weekends, holidays, and a flexible schedule as required by the business.
• OLCC service permit or ability to obtain one, as required.
• WSET, CMS, or other wine education is a plus, but genuine hospitality and a willingness to learn are equally valued.
Compensation & Benefits
• Competitive base salary commensurate with the market and experience.
• Participation performance-based incentives and tips.
• Paid medical
• PTO
• 401K
• Wine discounts

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