Terah Bajjalieh, Terah Wine Company

Title: Winemaker and Proprietor

Location: Northern California, USA

Years in the Industry:
I have been in the industry for 12 years now. I had no wine knowledge so I started out by studying and pursuing a program which prepared me for the level two sommelier exam, through the court. After finishing my initial studies, for the first two years I did everything and anything I could to gain experience. After graduating, I was hired by the French Culinary Institute to help with the certification program. I did some sales and marketing work for other somms and local wine shops. Then I switched gears and got into production, and that has been my focus for the last 10 years. This has included time spent abroad, working harvests and the time pursuing my masters degree in Europe.

My Top Three Challenges to Wellness:

1. Maintaining balance when it's harvest. The world always seems to stop for me and the focus is always work. Harvest leaves little time for anything outside of work and the necessities of life: laundry, food etc. I always feel like I lose the sense of time and generally don't have energy for self care. When I was younger and abroad working I didn't mind being completely immersed. I loved it actually, but these days it's taking a toll in a different way

2. Being consistent with my mental and physical health has always been a challenge. As a young adult this was not even on my radar, which was partly due to upbringing and environmental issues. I learned through other people's struggles and hardships that I needed to teach myself to take better care of myself. I still struggle with maintaining consistency with my personal wellness especially now that my work load is greater than it ever has been.

3. Lastly, creating boundaries for myself. I've always had a “can do attitude”, I don't think I usually see limits to what I take on work wise, schedule wise and that's added more pressure than I need. It's totally self induced admittingly, but it has become a habit I need to learn to break. Creating boundaries with relationships and family is also always a challenge and has bleed over into my personal wellness at times.

How I Keep It Together to Stay Well:
At times when I'm focusing more on wellness, yoga and meditation has really helped. Being outdoors, hiking or near the ocean always feel really refreshing. Traveling has always given me a sense of escape and excitement which has helped with my mental wellness. These days a slow start to a morning sipping on coffee with a quiet and calm atmosphere is always something that makes me feel better, and calmer. It is usually my favorite part of the day.

What Inspires Me:
Travel and visiting wine regions or new cities. Learning and being challenged, or being in a creative space around things like art, street art, photography. Vibrant food and beverages experiences where all my senses are alerted usually are really exciting and inspiring to me.

A Quote I Love:
“That which does not kill us makes us stronger.”-Friedrich Nietzche

You can connect with Terah online at Instagram @terahwineco @terahwinecompany, Facebook Terah Bajjalieh Terah Wine Co and online at www.terahwineco.com