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Early 1900s
Isabelle Simi Haigh, at the age of 18 years old, assumed management of her family’s winery (SIMI)
as a young woman after her father’s death in 1904. Isabelle opened one of the
first wine tasting rooms in California. (Sonoma)
Jean Parker was one of the first women winemakers in South Africa. Like many of the women in winemaking her story is
marked by tragedy as her husband died in a shooting accident. According to her sons, who now run the Altydgedacht winery, most widows would have given up,
but not Jean ''who came from tough Scottish stock''. She took a course in winemaking at Elsenburg and built the winery's reputation, passing the thriving
business on to her sons.
1960s
Maryann Graf, came on the scene in the sixties. She joined Simi Winery in 1973, during the height
of the revival in the California wine industry, which had been in hiatus since the early 20th century due to Prohibition (1919-1933) and World
War II. In 1975, only about 5 percent of the students enrolled in viticulture and enology courses were women (Sonoma)
Zelma Long: Zelma is one of America’s best known winemakers with an enviable
international reputation. One of the first women to study enology and viticulture at U.C. Davis; she began her winemaking career at Robert Mondavi Winery,
rapidly working into the Chief Winemaker position. After 10 years, Zelma was recruited by Simi Winery in Sonoma County. Simi was later acquired by Moet
Hennessey, under whom she worked for the next 18 years as both winemaker and CEO.
1970s
Kay Simon is the state's pioneering woman winemaker. In 1977 she took the job as assistant
winemaker at Chateau Ste. Michelle and was promoted to red winemaker in 1979. In 1983 she founded Chinook Wines in Prosser with her husband, Clay Mackey.
(Washington State)
1980s
Phyllis Zouzounis: Phillis has been making wine in Sonoma for over 25 years. She began her winemaking career working at Dry Creek Vineyard in 1980.
In 1995 she became winemaker and general manager of Mazzocco Vineyards where she made awarding winning wines for
several years. In 1987 Phyllis and her partner, Jim Penpraze, started their own Dry
Creek winery, Deux Amis,
making award winning Zinfandels. Phyllis was honored as a pioneering woman winemaker.
Heidi Peterson Barrett grew up in the Napa Valley in a winemaking family and was
destined to become one of California's leading winemakers. in 1983, at age 25 became winemaker at Buehler Vineyards. It was here that she first
attracted critical acclaim by greatly improving the wine quality and taking the production from 6,000 cases to 20,000 cases. Robert
Parker has dubbed her the "first lady of wine". TIME Magazine named her "The Wine Diva of Napa ".
Susana Balbo: In a country dominated by male winemakers, Susana Balbo stands out not only for her gender, but for
her incredible skill and experience. She has been making wine since she earned her enology degree in 1981, and produced a wider variety of wines than
any other winemaker in Argentina. She has made wine in Australia, California, Chile, France, Italy, South Africa, and Spain, and she spends a
month each year in a different wine region of the world studying with local winemakers and growers. (Argentina)
Melissa Moravec: Melissa studied Enology and Viticulture at U.C. Davis. She
began her professional career at Carneros Creek Winery during the harvest of 1983 and became their winemaker in 1988. She is a leading wine consultant
and produces her Casa Carneros wines from her estate vineyards.
1990s
Louisa Rose: Yalumba's senior winemaker and the winner of International Wine & Spirit
Competition 2004 Women in Wine Award, wine has few thorns. "I don't know of any women winemaker associations in Australia. From a personal perspective I
have never experienced any problems being a woman. I was the first woman winemaker at Yalumba in 1992." (Australia)
Donatella Cinelli Colombini: Donatella Cinelli Colombini is a woman who does not
have need of presentations. She is one of the formost winemakers of Italy. She runs two wineries, Her most innovative creation, though, is Casato’s Brunello
‘Prime Donne,’ a wine designed by an all-female team of respected wine experts who based their decisions on instinct and organoleptic observations. (Italy)
Gaetana Jacono:
An explosive mixture of passion, pride and a keen sense of challenge encouraged Gaetana Jacono, to assert herself as a woman winemaker in Sicily, where
tradition is still deeply rooted. Gaetana took over her family winery, in 1990, at the age of 23. In just over ten years she has ‘revolutionised’ this
small, agricultural property, which sold most of its wine locally, in bulk, into a modern commercial winery, which is gradually gaining global acclaim.
(Italy)
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