Celebrate Women in Wine this week and next at Boulder Wine Merchant!

Celebrate Women in Wine at Boulder Wine Merchant!

The origins of sexism in the world of wine stretch back to antiquity.

Until Pasteur showed that microorganisms, namely yeasts and bacteria, were what caused wine to ferment (and to spoil), many believed that a woman’s menstrual cycle could spoil fermenting must.

It’s hard to believe today but sadly it’s true.

There are even some of us in the wine industry old enough to remember the occasional European winery where women were not even allowed in the cellar!

Think of that! And then think of the many brilliant women winemakers active today. What would the wine industry be today without the current generation of women growers, enologists, wholesalers, retailers, marketers, etc.?

Keep in mind that the overarching inclusion of women in wine is still relatively recent. Unfortunately, women in wine still face hurdles in competing with their male counterparts.

Brett and the Boulder Wine Merchant have always made a point of supporting women in wine. As we approach National Women in Wine Day (March 25), we have been featuring women-led winemakers at our weekly Wednesday tastings. Just last week we hosted two women-owned wineries from Sicily.

At last year’s Boulder Burgundy Festival, the event’s featured winemaker was Christine Gruère-Dubreuil (above). She is just one of an expanding number of women who are taking over their family-run wineries in Burgundy — something unimaginable to generations past.

Stop by and stay tuned to find out what we will be pouring at our Wednesday tastings this month. We have something really special planned for next Wednesday, March 25, National Women in Wine Day.

We hope you will raise a glass with us as we celebrate Women in Wine all month.