Calling all painters, water colorists, and artists with a fondness for vineyard themes. It’s time to touch pigment to paper for the annual Mano Tinta wine label design competition, a contest that puts the winning work of art on posters, print ads, and no less than 500 cases of wine bottled to benefit area vineyard and farm workers.
Creative types along the Central Coast are invited to paint, sketch, photograph, or even tweak computer images for the competition, as long as the work reflects a theme related to the pursuits of vineyard and farm workers. Entrants have until July 31 to submit their art to Talley Vineyards, where all entries will be prominently displayed throughout August.
Visitors to the Talley Vineyards’ tasting room can vote for their favorite piece while sampling the 2006 Mano Tinta, a hearty blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, and Petite Sirah. During the first week of September, organizers will announce the contest winner.
“Last year, we got nearly 40 submissions from people ranging from little kids to professional artists,” said Anna Heacock, marketing and regional sales manager at Talley Vineyards. “We had graphic designs from Allan Hancock College students, watercolors, pastel sketches, and even some finger paintings.
“There are no restrictions on submissions,” she added. “It can be whatever you find will represent the integrity of the Mano Tinta program.”
Mano Tinta, Spanish for “dyed hand,” refers to both a robust red wine and a fundraising effort designed to help San Luis Obispo County farmworkers and their families. Organizers Brian and Johnine Talley, who started the program in 2004, chose the name because of its allusion to winemaking and the scarlet stains that result from many of its activities.
Though Mano Tinta refers directly to winery and vineyard staff, whose hands often bear telltale red stains, the program benefits all farmworkers. One hundred percent of the grapes, materials, and labor used to produce Mano Tinta wine are generously donated each year, and all money raised through sales of the wine goes directly into the Fund for Vineyard and Farm Workers.
The Fund, as Heacock calls it, helps to support the Literacy Council, Clinica de Tolosa, and Jack’s Helping Hands, as well as other organizations addressing housing and family health care concerns. All provide services to area farm workers.
“The Mano Tinta project is very community based and hands on,” Heacock said with a smile. “From the vintners who donate the fruit, to the packaging people, to the people who spend all day bottling the wine, everyone feels very strongly about giving back.
“The thing that’s amazing is how generous people are,” she continued. “Our winemaker, Leslie Mead, heads up the program, and everyone he asks, donates. They’re happy to, because it’s such a great concept.”
In the past, the art competition has culminated in a single, festive dinner and wine release party. This year, however, organizers decided to dedicate an entire month to Mano Tinta and its related beneficiaries, including the Literacy Council, which has located a book drop-off bin in the Talley Vineyards tasting room.
“We thought we’d generate more publicity,” Heacock explained, “and get more information out to the public if we focused the whole month of August on Mano Tinta.
“In our Rincon Room,” she said, “we’ll display the artwork of Lorraine Cote, an Arroyo Grande resident who paints oils of vineyards and farmworkers. And on weekends, we’ll be serving Mexican-style snacks.”
The winning art will adorn the 2007 Mano Tinta, a blend of Petite Sirah and Syrah made from fruit donated by Ranchita Canyon and Talley Vineyards, and set for release in January. Everything else associated with the vintage, including glass, capsules, corks, and packaging, has been contributed, free of charge, by both local and international suppliers.
Artists who’d like to participate in the competition must submit an image that can be graphically reduced to about two inches square without losing visual effectiveness. They’re also asked to fill out an entry form that includes a description of what inspired them to create the piece.
“We like to know something about where the art is coming from,” Heacock explained, “especially if people feel a strong connection to the organization or to the vineyard workers. We found that information to be the tie-breaker last year.”
Year by year, the Mano Tinta program has grown, with ever more donors of fruit and supplies leading to increased case production.
“The more wine we can make, the more money that goes to The Fund,” Heacock said. “We love to see it grow, because our dream is to one day have Mano Tinta programs running in every county.”
K. Reka Badger doesn’t have a red hand, but she’s got a green thumb. E-mail comments or ideas to rekabadger@hotmail.com.
This article appears in Jul 9-16, 2009.
