This week on #TheWineHacker we are talking about women… and wine! We sent through some questions to our Wine Hacker Sara, aka The Wine Informer, to see what her thoughts were on the matter.
For you, what does it mean to be a woman in wine?
I feel happy and proud! Finally, I see, on the threshold of the third millennium, that the world of wine is becoming increasingly pink. Or rather, let’s not classify, the world of wine is taking on a thousand different colours, personalities and characters! There are still many challenges, and sometimes it is true that being a woman, your voice needs to be louder and stronger than the others… but this is not only in the world of wine, unfortunately.
But I see that many women are now established in the world of wine and are being listened to. For this reason, to celebrate and connect women in wine from all over the world, I founded the GirlsWineClub in 2020 together with Olga, aka @Winederella, Melbourne sommelier and digital creator.
The goal was to create a community that united women from every corner of the world, without prejudice or differentiation: winemakers, oenologists, writers, digital entrepreneurs, communicators, bloggers, or simply wine lovers.
This June we launched #wonderwomenofwine, a month entirely dedicated to sharing tales of women in wine from France, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Australia, Italy, United States, Africa, South America through our Wednesdays #girlswinechat, sharing experiences and incredible stories.
Iincredible feeling to see all these women united and inspired.
What challenges do females face within the wine industry?
For many years, or even centuries, the world of wine has been a male dominated world where women were regarded with great distrust. As a result, women had to be more prepared, more aggressive, and wear a “thicker” skin in front of men.
There was a great turning point in the 90s. Despite this, there are still inequalities that still need to be overcome.
We need to be optimistic and continue to pursue our dreams for ourselves and future generations. It is also important to educate our children on how to be more “genderless”.
See how we raise our children, already in their heads we set up categorizations through colours, jobs, toys, books, television… but this is all a different complex conversation that I will leave for another time!
Why is it so important for the wine industry as a whole to acknowledge the women in our industry?
Because in every sector you have to listen to different voices to create turning points, new trends and realities. We can see and enjoy the results gradually through female winemakers, producers, consumers, educators who continue to transform and revolutionize the world of wine.
We need to give freedom of expression to everyone, without differentiation of gender, age or color.
What do you think the wine industry needs to do to be more inclusive for women?
As I said earlier, every sector needs to give everyone a voice without differentiation.
How is the wine industry currently succeeding in empowering and accommodating women?
In Australia we see amazing women in wine inspiring our community. There are so many women in our industry now to admire – Vanya Cullen, Georgia Dale, Kia Klepec, Mijan Patterson and Livia Maiorana – just to name a few. There are many more!
If you had any advice for women looking to enter the industry, in any facet, what would it be?
To be tenacious, professional, without giving up your femininity, to no longer be experienced as a limit but as an element of distinctiveness.