Wine Notes
by Carolyn Prusa
Women Winemakers of the World Unite
Women winemakers around the world are making their voices heard – and getting a lot of help from the internet.
Women winemakers around the world are making their voices heard – and getting a lot of help from the internet. A new Website (womenwinemakers.com) that debuted recently to promote California's women winemakers is the brainchild of Dr. Lucia Albino Gilbert, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology and Counseling Psychology at Santa Clara University. "Our searchable webbased resource introduces users to California's talented women winemakers and their accomplishments," said Dr. Gilbert.
To answer precisely the question of how many Golden State wineries have a female as their lead winemaker, Gilbert and her team queried over 3,200 of them - that would be darn near all. I found the results, less than 10 percent, disappointingly low.
Women for WineSense is an organization to promote women working in the wine industry. Formed in 1990, the organization currently has ten chapters throughout the US: Napa/Sonoma: Denver, Colorado; New Jersey; Rochester, New York; Central Oregon (Bend); Portland, Oregon; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Dallas, Texas; Richmond, Virginia; and Seattle, Washington. (womenforwinesense.com)
Both Websites offer a wealth of reading material related to women and wine.
Even in the patriarchal societies of Europe, women winemakers are organizing. Take for example, Femmes de Vin with its many thriving chapters throughout France: Alsace, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Vallée du Rhône, Provence, Languedoc, and Champagne. As recently as 2000, when the chapter of Burgundy's women winemakers was started, there were six members – from a region of over 4,000 wine estates. As of 2010, membership was at forty-five, still small but growing. (femmesdevin.com)
Chile is a leading country in South America on many fronts, not the least of which as a global wine exporter. I'd be hard pressed to find somebody who hasn't at one time or another purchased a good value Chilean Cabernet or Sauvignon Blanc. According to a report in Wine Enthusiast, roughly one in three of Chilean winemakers (including head winemakers, assistants, and consultants) are women. The ratio of female to male enology students in the country's universities is roughly the same. You go, girls!
While women winemakers around the world have made progress opening up the profession, they are still a distinct minority. But what they may lack in numbers, they more than make up for in skill. Consider, for example:
Sandrine Garbay, Chief Winemaker/Cellar Master Chateau d'Yquem, Sauternes, France
Sandrine Garbay is the Chief Winemaker and Cellar Master for the legendary Chateau d'Yquem, whose luxurious, late-harvest sweet wines tip the top of the scale, in quality as well as price. At just 18 years of age, when most young people are just beginning to contemplate their life mission, hers was set to be an enologist. After graduating from the Bordeaux University with a doctorate in enology, she went to Chateau d'Yquem, working her way up to the top position, while bringing the wine to new heights with her knowledge and dedication.
Ntsiki Biyela, Winemaker Stellekaya Winery, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Ntsiki Biyela is South Africa's first black female winemaker and a winning Woman Winemaker of Year in 2009. When I first saw the story of this rising star in South Africa's traditionally white, male winemaking industry I was blown away. Up until 1998 when she won a winemaking scholarship to Stellenbosch University, Ntsiki had never tasted wine. Nor had she ever been away from her village in the hills of Zululand. Her choice of study was a fluke. Though she had been a good student, none of her grant applications for college were approved until an airline, hoping to promote diversity, offered to pay her way to study viticulture and oenology. Not about to miss a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to further her education, Ntsiki didn't think twice about accepting the offer.
Cecilia Torres, Winemaker, Viña Santa Rita, Maipo Valley, Chile
Since 1989, Cecilia Torres has been responsible for Santa Rita's world-famous Casa Real Cabernet Sauvignon. After graduating from the Universidad de Chile, she started her career in the early 1980s at Santa Rita as an assistant winemaker. Later, Torres moved to Viña La Rosa before returning to Santa Rita in 1990. And that's where she's been for the past 20 years.
Margo Van Staaveren, Winemaker, Chateau St. Jean Winery & Vineyards, Sonoma County, California
In 1979, Margo Van Staaveren graduated from the University of California, Davis with a B.S. degree in Fermentation Science. She joined Chateau St. Jean as a laboratory technician in 1980, and by 1989 she had worked her way up to assistant winemaker and then to associate winemaker. Margo was designated as winemaker and director of operations in August 2003, and continues to work there. During her long tenure with the winery, Margo has played a pivotal role in every facet of the winemaking process. Margo and her husband met at Chateau St. Jean Winery & Vineyards, where they were both employed at the time. Their children were born and reared while Margo has been at Chateau St. Jean.
I can't imagine a better place to grow up than amid the vineyards and wine casks of California.