Temecula wineries have much at stake.

Byline: Kelli Cotrell

Feb. 26--Linda Kissam read "Wine for Dummies" in one weekend after being hired as executive director for the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association in 1999. Story continues below Photo By Dan Elliott

Temecula vintners toast the region's growth. A former junior high special education teacher, she had worked as a director of several private, nonprofit schools after quitting her teaching career, but had no experience in wine growing or winemaking. "That was our only reservation about her," said Joe Hart, owner of Hart Wineries, one of the four founding wineries in the Temecula Valley. Since her arrival at the association, Kissam has implemented several new marketing strategies adopted by the board of directors and increased the number of events drawing people from other states to the wineries.

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