Yes, I am a woman and a winemaker. Historically men have dominated this field, but today I interact with many women winemakers. There are even a few visionary women winemakers setting the trends. 

Winemaking requires a combination of art and science, but it has been shown that girls may shy away from the science side of winemaking. In the first grade both boys and girls report to like math and science equally, but by the time they are in eighth grade boys are twice as likely to be interested in these subjects.

To get girls interested in math and science fields of work there is a yearly conference for 7th and 8th grade girls called Expanding Your Horizons. Last weekend I taught at this conference, which is put on by the Sonoma County AAUW (Association of American University Women). This conference is designed to be a fun day out for girls (and boys) where they can relate science and math to their daily lives.

I have been demonstrating winemaking for this event for a few years now. No, we don’t drink wine, but we do have fun. I have had the fortunate experience to meet a fabulous flavor chemist in my career. She has these great kits that I use for the kids. If you got a piece of yellow Jell-O would you assume it was lemon flavored? I bet you would. We teach the kids that our flavor memory uses all five senses, not just taste. It is always interesting to me what the kids use to describe the aromas of rose (grandma anyone?), or toasted oak.

I love giving back to something that I utilized during my youth. And if a few of these girls got excited about making wine that would be great, but the greater victory would be to have boys and girls equally excited about math and science.

Julie Murrell
Assistant Winemaker