The world of wine and alcohol for women

Our winemakers and Master Blender are talented!

 

CAVAVIN is proud to count among its winemaker and Master Blender partners women who make the world of wine, Champagne and spirits grow every day.

 

Meet them through their testimonies...

 

 

1. Briefly introduce yourself

 

"Miren de Lorgeril, 57 years old; I have been running the Lorgeril house and estates for 25 years. 

Based on a historic family estate in the Cabardès AOP, we have gradually expanded our presence by taking over estates throughout the Languedoc. We now have 6 estates in 9 AOPs in the Languedoc and Roussillon.

We are also a wine merchant specialising in long-term partnerships with winegrowers throughout the region. We sign all our wines.

We are also very involved in wine tourism with gites, restaurants, hosting seminars and stays on several of our estates." - Miren de Lorgeril

 

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"I am Joy Spence, Master Blender of the Appleton Estate Distillery in Jamaica, where I have been creating world-class rums for over 40 years.  

I am the first woman in the world to be appointed Master Blender in the spirits industry." - Joy Spence

 

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"Fanny Boyer, winemaker at Château Beaubois in the Costières de Nîmes PDO in the south of the Rhône Valley. I represent, with my brother François, the 4th generation of our family on this beautiful terroir of rolled pebbles." - Fanny Boyer

 

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"In 2003, after obtaining my Masters in LEA (foreign languages applied to commerce and business), I joined the family business alongside my father and two uncles.

At the same time, I prepared a DTO (oenology technician diploma) and a vineyard technician diploma in Dijon.

 

19 years later, I work with my two sisters on a 50-hectare farm in Champagne. We produce 500,000 bottles a year and we do everything from A to Z: from planting the vine to marketing the bottles, including the vinification.

 

With my sisters, we each have our own area of expertise, but all the major decisions are taken as a group:

 

- Lise, a trained oenologist, supervises our vineyard,

- Aline, also an oenologist, is our cellar master,

- As for me, I am essentially in charge of the commercial and HR aspects.

 

I went into sales because I like the challenges and the human relationship we have with our customers.

What I also like is the richness and diversity of our job. It allows us to evolve in a world where people are passionate about what they do.

I also appreciate the versatility of the winegrower's job - even if I spend 80% of my time on sales, when necessary I go to production to give a hand." - Claire Baron

 

 

2. What about the place of women in the wine world today?

 

"The place of women is important and continues to grow: more and more family estates are being taken over by women; today, 30% of farms are run by women. The presence of oenologists is also very important, with the majority of DNO promotions being women; in my company, the two cellar masters are women.

 

Every year in the guides, women appear in large numbers among the best winegrowers!

However, this presence still lacks visibility, as women are often more discreet. In the professional bodies in particular, they are still not very visible: I was the first woman to direct an interprofession and since the end of my mandate, there have been no others." - Miren de Lorgeril

 

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"It's amazing, as a woman, to be part of this male-dominated industry and to be able to challenge the norms and open up the profession to more women. We're starting to see more and more women in the spirits world, but I think we could do with speaking up more to show how open the doors are for women in this field.  

 

As a woman in rum making, I have encountered many challenges. I had to work harder to be recognised and I suffered from machismo in some areas. I had a mission to lead the way for other women so I had to succeed.

 

The industry should promote the fact that there is no gender inequality in the spirits production and blending professions, and universities should do more to encourage female students in this direction. I think women think they can't work in this industry on the production side, but they can. 

 

Over the past 40 years I have been fortunate enough to create some of the finest and most award-winning rums in the world, including Appleton Estate 8YO Reserve and Appleton Estate 12YO Rare Casks. I also created Appleton Estate Joy Anniversary Blend, launched in 2017 to celebrate my 20th anniversary as Appleton Estate Master Blender." - Joy Spence

 

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"In our region of Occitania, about 30% of farms are run by women.

This percentage has increased enormously over the last two decades. The share of key positions dedicated to women in viticulture, oenology, commerce and management has also increased. Our estate has been managed for several generations by women alongside their husbands, fathers or brothers.

 

For my part, I vinify the wines and market them. François manages the Biodynamic vineyard with a master's hand.

 

The national association "femmes de vins" groups together several regional associations. I have been a member of the "Vinifilles" for 12 years. We are 21 representatives of the wine industry in this region. We deal with both technical and marketing issues. In particular, we pass on the diversity of our terroirs to sommelier schools.

 

For primary, secondary and high schools, we teach taste and smell by tasting grape juice or discovering aromas in the form of games.

 

Far from being a feminist group, we want to be considered as winegrowers who are an integral part of this profession.

 

The female gender complements the male gender like a blend in our wines. The duo that François and I form is a reflection of this..." - Fanny Boyer

 

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"The wine world is becoming more and more feminine...

Nowadays, we can meet women on the way to the vineyards, in the cellar or in the sales department. They are no longer exclusively confined to administrative tasks.

Women have access to numerous training courses in viticulture and oenology that are open to all - which was not the case 40 years ago.

The world of wine is becoming more feminine, from the vine to the glass, from production to sales, and the entire wine industry is taking a new turn.

More and more young women are taking an interest in this exciting field and we feel that they are more integrated and involved in this formerly exclusively male world. Great prospects are to be expected!" - Claire Baron

 

Find all the productions of our winemakers and Master Blender directly in the CAVAVIN, the nearest to you.