The life of a vineyard manager, particularly in a cool climate such as Long Island's, is not a simple or easy one. Unpredictable frost, variable temperatures and weather, drought, hurricanes and migratory birds are just few of the variables that every vineyard manager must consider year in and year out, if they want to be successful in this sometimes-challenging AVA.

Richard Pisacano, vineyard manager for Wolffer Estate in the Hamptons and co-owner of Roanoke Vineyards on the North Fork, seems perfectly suited for this challenging endeavor. A Long Island native, Pisacano was born in Huntington, with his family moving to Southold when he was seven years old "as a quality of life improvement."

Growing up on the agriculturally focused East End as the son of an entrepreneur, Pisacano had aspirations of opening his own greenhouse or nursery because, as he notes, "My passion was to propagate plants. At that time, in the 1970's, there were a few in the area and I saw a bright future for flowering plants, house plants and perennials. I realized as a kid that plants and gardening would become more and more important to keep people grounded and that most of us have a gardener in us." After a time studying the industry and the "difficulty and economics of the nursery business", Pisacano decided that competing with the big nurseries was not a good idea. At 16, he started working at Mudd Vineyards in Southold "as a high school job" where he started installing and maintaining vineyards. "There was an excitement about (the wine industry)," he remembers. With only a brief time away, he's been in the industry ever since.

I talked with Rich to find out about the many changes in viticulture which he has seen over the years.