Celebrating Women Winemakers

While the number of women as the head winemaker in wineries around the world is growing, they still are very much in the minority. For example, in California alone, women as head winemakers at California wineries, make up only 14% of the total, a mere 4% increase since 2011.*

We are in full support of championing the growth and recognition of women winemakers around the world, and the two ways we can do that is by shining a light on who they are and the incredible wines that they make, and by buying their wines to share with you. We invite you to join us in a wide range of women winemaker-focused events this year. As the organizers of Portland Wine Week, we've included several women winemaker events threaded throughout this year's Women in Wine track (you'll see more added soon). And we’ve added a Women Winemakers theme to this year's Wine Sail schedule in beautiful, coastal Portland, Maine. And that’s exactly how we’re kicking off our jam-packed Portland Wine Week Wine Sail schedule on June 16, plus two more on July 9, and August 27.

We can't wait to pour you their incredible wines, such as the one pictured below from a 2020 Wine Sail where we're proudly pouring one of our favorite women winemaker's wines, Deirdre Heekin's, "Harlot's & Ruffians" from her La Garagista Farm + Winery, in Barnard, VT. Deirdre was a James Beard Finalist for Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer in 2020.

References: *Facts and Figures Gathered in Our On-going Research on California Women Winemakers, by Lucia Albino Gilbert, Ph.D., and John Carl Gilbert, Ph.D., Santa Clara University. Issued March 2021.