Black woman lands 10K a month gig to learn about wine

Being paid to sip wine while living rent-free on an exclusive winery in Sonoma County, California sounds like a luxurious Black woman’s dream to many of us. But for Lindsay Perry, this will be her new reality.

Perry, 28, of Austin, Texas, was announced as one of the two national winners for the Murphy-Goode Winery’s “A Really Goode Job” campaign search, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

She will receive a $10K per month salary, free rent for a year, and will be supplied 30 cases of Murphy-Goode wine to take home as compensation for time spent at the winery.

Perry’s job requirements include learning the growing and dynamic world of e-commerce, working with a team to drive awareness and build demand for Murphy Goode Winery, shadow winemaker Dave Ready Jr. and the winemaking team during harvest and assist in winery operation.

Starting Sept. 1, Perry will shadow Ready for 90 days before moving into a role aligned with her respective interests and expertise.

The contest made international headlines in March receiving over 7,000 applications from around the world. The top 17 finalists arrived in Healdsburg, California where they spent a week meeting employees and each other, as well as having in-person interviews. Ultimately, Perry was chosen for her creativity, sense of humor, drive, and passion for wine, according to the winery.

The Pennsylvania native who currently works as sports marketing professional had already received scholarships to recently complete the Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) I and ll wine education certifications through Wine Unify and Roots Fund.

“I’ve completed WSET Levels and l and ll with the Napa Valley Wine Academy, so I’m able to recall hundreds of wine facts at the drop of a hat,” Perry said in her application video.

“Working for Murphy-Goode Winery will present a unique challenge and represent a big pivot in my life. I’ll be jumping into the wine industry in the best way possible. Having the opportunity to shadow Dave, learn to make wine and grow professionally through this year of exploration, will change the trajectory of my life,” Perry said on the Murphy-Goode Winery site.

Perry will be joined on this adventure with another contestant winner, 28-year-old Veronica Hebbard, an engineer from Orlando, Florida.

According to WineIndustryAdvisor, Murphy-Goode looks forward to welcoming Perry and Hubbard to the team and working closely with them to make their wine industry dream jobs a reality.

Throughout the application process, both candidates stood out due to their passion for wine, creativity, humor, and drive.

“When we started out on this journey, we cast the net wide to find candidates with unique experiences and points of view,” said Ready. “I’m looking forward to working with Lindsay and Veronica this harvest, but also learning from each of them, and seeing what new ideas they will bring to the job.”

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