08 March 2021

Women in wine: 5 ways to toast International Women’s Day

08 March 2021

With #ChooseToChallenge the theme for this year’s International Women’s Day (March 8), we’re raising a glass to the women carving careers in the wine world – a field notoriously dominated by men.

Of course, it still helps if you’re born into a winemaking family, but with greater opportunities opening up – from studying viticulture and oenology, to marketing and sales – more and more women are making their mark and shaping the way we drink.

As Debbie Lauritz, winemaker at Robert Oatley, one of Australia’s most outstanding wineries, puts it: “It’s critically important to champion women across all levels and areas of the wine business. Whether it be viticulture, winemaking, sales, marketing, finance or management – so that young women leaving school and looking for careers in our field can visibly see women in all these jobs, thus removing any stigma of it being a male-dominated industry.”

Robert Oatley SS Cabernet Sauvignon NV digi

And who wouldn’t drink to that? A real star and multiple medal-winning wine, look out for Robert Oatley’s Signature Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, Margaret River, Australia (£15.99, Ocado), with its wonderfully intense brambly fruit with a discreet leafy note, fine, elegant structure and ripe tannins, it will impress any cab sav lover.

Christina Rasmussen, a wine expert and writer, recalls when she first started out in the wine industry: “I’m 29 now, so when I was 24, for the first three years I was so nervous, especially when I was writing, that people would judge me, or look down on the way I wrote about wine because there’s a lot of prescriptive writing.”

Rasmussen is also a budding winemaker and co-founder of LITTLEWINE, a content platform, wine club and bottle shop which specialises in organic, small-batch artisan wines, to shine the light on a diverse array of winemakers.

Her advice to any young woman coming into the industry is to surround yourself with talented women: “Try and meet amazing women in wine, because there’s a great support network that’s building. And also, just have confidence and faith in yourself, because when I look back at all of those fears I had in the early years, I wished there’d been someone to tell me not to be afraid of doing things a little independently.”

Rasmussen sees it as her duty to support younger women entering the wine world, and if they’re interested in getting in touch, she says: “I’m always on the other end of social media or an email to support those women.”

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To mark IWD, LITTLEWINE has released a Celebrating Women Winemakers’ Box (£75, LITTLEWINE), with £7 for every box sold donated to Refugee Women’s Association, ‘to help fund their vital work to empower and enable refugee, migrant and asylum-seeking women and their families with their journey to integration and a new life’.

Inside you’ll discover an Austrian white, Satellit 2018 White Field Blend made by Jutta Ambrositsch; a Spanish red, Quite 2018, Mencia by Verónica Ortega; and Ocarina 2019, a French, dark rosé by Saskia Van Der Horst. With typically more structure and complexity than a pale pink rosé, one of the things that irks Rasmussen is when people describe this wine as being ‘so feminine’. “But there’s also power in femininity and this wine is powerful, and I think it’s a beautiful representation of women,” she adds.

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A wine that needs little introduction, New Zealand’s most awarded winery turns out one of our best loved sauvignon blancs – and “despite all the crazy new challenges of harvesting during lockdown”, senior winemaker Helen Morrison is very happy to share their Villa Maria Private Bin Sauvignon Blanc 2020, Marlborough, NZ (£9.50, Tesco) with the world. “The wine packs a punch and we are confident it will delight its loyal followers once again, with distinct tropical and grassy flavours paired with crisp and zingy acidity,” says Morrison.

Morrison says when she first started judging back in 2007, most often there was only one female judge per panel of five members. However, more recently it’s nearing equal numbers, and she’s seeing more women than ever join the wine industry in varied roles and capacities.

Keen to get involved? “Seek out solid work experience from casual vintage positions first,” suggests Morrison. “This will give you a good gauge on the type of work we do and if it inspires you. There are many romantic notions of what winemaking involves, but mostly it’s physically hard work and plenty of cleaning, but it’s the people we work with and the crafting of special wines, just once per year, that helps balance this.”

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Proving the princess of pop is at the top of her wine game, there’s lots to love about Kylie Minogue’s new release – Kylie Minogue Côtes de Provence Rosé 2020, France (reduced to £15 from £20 until March 16, Morrisons). With enticing aromas of ripe berry fruits, watermelon and orange blossom, a graceful, silky palate of just-right, creamy fruit and refined minerally note, it’s styled to charm.

And thanks to the rising demand for celebrity wines, the Kylie range is a big hit – but you don’t need to be a pop icon to make it into the winemakers’ hall of fame.

“There are more and more opportunities to work with emerging female winemakers in what’s becoming a less male-dominated industry – and it’s really important to me to get that diversity on the shelves in our stores,” says Helen Tordoff, head of wine, Morrisons. “We’d encourage any female winemakers or entrepreneurs to get in touch with us, as we’re always looking for new talent and new products.”

Elsewhere, a wealth of winemaking talent can be found behind supermarket own-labels. Winemaker Sue Daniels started working at M&S Wine in 1995, and says she’s seen a really positive shift in the industry during that time. “More and more women are taking on a variety of different roles, which is so great to see. Increasing diversity within an industry brings fresh ideas,” adds Daniels. “We’re always pleased to support other female winemakers across the world, and International Women’s Day is a great reminder to shout about this.

“We’re an unusual winemaking team at M&S, as both of us are women, and we work with our partner wineries to blend the entire M&S own-label wine range. It’s so important for us to champion diversity in the workforce, including female winemakers.

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“I’ll be celebrating with a glass of Delacourt Brut Champagne (£20, Marks & Spencer stores),” says Daniels. “This champagne is made by cellar master Elisabeth Sarcelet. We’ve been working with her for several years now and she is leading a largely female team of winemakers to produce some fantastic champagnes – perfect for a toast to women in wine!”

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