Saturday, March 25^th, was the third inaugural National Women in Wine day. In a once-dominated male industry, female winemakers were less than 10% in 2010. In 2020 14% of winemakers were female, and last year the number climbed to 17.8% of women winemakers of the 4,200 bonded wineries in California. 1965 the first woman graduated from the famous wine college UC Davis; today, over half of the undergraduate class is female. Leading the way for change is a wave of strong, opinionated, talented women winemakers, which makes a whole lot of sense. According to the Wine Institute, women purchase 57 percent of the wine consumed in the United States. For women, label design, bottle shape, and the winery philosophy rank just as high as wine quality. So, wine industry marketing professionals have had to be savvier in their appeal to the female consumer. By genetic design, women are better suited for winemaking; they have a better sense of smell, better at multi-tasking, and can communicate better than their male counterparts. It is no wonder that changes in the industry are happening quickly.

"This industry is definitely perceived as predominately male; however, women are finally seeing the spotlight! I've had the pleasure of working under some spectacular women winemakers, and I know that it didn't come easy for them to acquire their titles. Women [in the industry] need to have a strong backbone and thick skin and need be prepared to receive criticism." Jamie Benziger

Meet Jamie Benziger. Yes, that Benziger family, who originally came from New York and founded Glen Ellen Winery. Later the family sold that big winery to start a quality-conscious winery in 1980, Benziger Family Winery, which became a driving force in Bio-Dynamic farming in all of California. In fact, they were the first to be a Bio-Dynamic certified winery in Sonoma. In 1986 Imagery Series was introduced as a collaboration between winemaker Joe Benziger and artist Bob Nugent to spotlight the abby-normal (a Young Frankenstein movie reference) varietal wines.

Jamie's story is about a young woman who grew up in the wine industry and studied winemaking at Sonoma State. As she grew up, she was surrounded by her father's passion for less-known varietals. She says she absorbed some of his spirit of adventure and boundless energy. Jamie has paid her dues inside and outside the family business at St. Francis, Bogle, and a stint in New Zealand. She is now partnering with her dad to create tasteful, affordable, food-friendly wines, intent on broadening the palates of consumers looking for something different. 

Imagery has made a name for itself by growing and bottling rare and unusual grapes. The winery's catchphrase has been "Broaden Your Palate," as it produced small amounts of unusual varietals and blends sold mostly from its tasting room. The small lot wines feature grapes such as Malbec, Tempranillo, Lagrein, and Teroldego. Imagery features a Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay. Each varietal is blended with another grape that you don't usually associate with the dominant grape. The Cab is mixed with 5 percent Petite Sirah, the Chardonnay has 20 percent Chenin Blanc, and the Pinot Noir is blended with 5 percent Petite Verdot. The wine I find most appealing is their Sauvignon Blanc blended with 7 percent Dry Muscat.

Sauvignon Blanc plays an essential role in Benziger's history. When Benziger was founded in 1980, the Benziger clan, five brothers and two sisters, 13 members in total, moved to their recently bought old, dilapidated ranch in Sonoma, next to Jack London State Park with a Parthenon-like structure on the property. Because they spent all their money on the ranch, they could not afford a construction crew or vineyard crew, so they did it themselves. 

Benziger's first vintage was a warm year, and the grapes were ripening faster than the winery was being built, so they needed to improvise. They bought every extension cord in Sonoma to run their equipment because the wiring wasn't complete and used car headlights to work through the night. The big problem came when the previously ordered stainless steel fermentation tanks hadn't arrived yet, and the grapes were ready to be picked. Thinking outside the box, again, they borrowed used milk truck tanks. The clan quickly cleaned out the milk tanks, dumped in the crushed grapes, and added dry ice to control fermentation. Benziger's first wine, using extension cords for electricity, dry ice, and milk trucks with the words "milk does a body good" emblazoned on the side, was a Sauvignon Blanc that turned out pretty good. It won a gold medal and took first place at the Sonoma Country Harvest Fair out of 752 wines entered.

As the concept for Imagery wines was developing, Joe had a chance to meet with renowned local artist Bob Nugent. The two actually helped break up a fistfight at a polo match of all places. After the theatrics died down, Joe and Bob had a drink and got to know each other. Bob volunteered to design a label for Joe's pet project, something that could match the expressiveness and originality of the wine inside. Nugent served as curator of the Imagery art collection for over 20 years, commissioning hundreds of international artists to design one-of-a-kind artwork for Imagery labels. The artwork is used as labels for 30 small lot, estate, or single vineyard wines each year. The only requirement was they include the Parthenon; however, they saw fit into their art. Imagery's Califonia tier wine label gives a nod to the artistic roots of their standard labels. This label features what looks like paint dripping down the middle. This is supposed to represent the creativity and passion in the bottle and the winery.

Jamie Benziger took over the responsibilities of head winemaker from her father, Joe, in 2017, although he still stops by her office every morning to talk and have coffee. Jamie, since making wines at Imagery is being noticed. Named the 2019 Best Woman Winemaker in the International Women's Wine Competition, she was also included on Wine Enthusiast's list of 40 Under 40 Tastemakers. Jamie is symbolic of the new wave of strong women winemakers leading our wine industry and a worthy mention for National Women in Wine day.

Jamie is a proven leader, but she also has a vulnerable side, as demonstrated by an anecdote she shared with me about her first harvest.

"We have a tradition at Benziger/Imagery that the person that orchestrates the biggest screw-up/mistake during harvest gets what we call the "Harvest Award." It is the highlight of our post-harvest party to see who gets this not-so-coveted award.

We were getting ready to pick our best pinot vineyard, Decoelo, in the coastal hills above Freestone. The vineyards out here start on the ridge tops and slope down the sides of the hills. Our vineyard was no exception, and the drive up the hill was on a very steep dirt road with several sharp turns. It was not uncommon for someone to lose traction and get stuck. The trick was to "punch it" and get speed to make it through the difficult parts.

As we got to the bottom of the hill, we were all lined up. We must have had 12 cars and trucks in our harvest caravan; low boys carrying tractors, flatbeds with picking bins, several crew cabs to carry the 20+ harvesters, and sorted other vehicles. I was driving by myself and decided to pull out in front and lead our motley harvest crew. I lurched forward, and started off, to make the first "S" turn, and everything seems ok, but on the last and steepest turn I don't "punch it," and my little car loses traction, and I get stuck. This quickly had a cascading effect down the line of vehicles. The whole convoy stops and now we are all stuck! It took us the better part of 2 hours to back up and unwind this mess, and it delayed the pick, which for Pinot is a big No-No. This is how I won the Harvest award for that year and celebrated my first harvest as a winemaker."

This crisp, golden-colored wine boasts a subtle honeysuckle aroma that delicately perfumes the nose, setting the stage for an unforgettable experience. On the palate, vibrant notes of citrus, lemon-lime, and grapefruit tantalize the taste buds, while a hint of dry Muscat (7%) lends refinement and softness to the finish.

Delicate bouquets of citrus blossom jump out of the glass. Fresh notes of lemon zest and grapefruit greet upon entry, with a brightness on the mid-palate. We blend our Sauvignon Blanc with 7% dry Muscat, which lends refinement and softness to the finish. LA International Wine Competition 91 pts

Ripe honeydew melon and golden apple aromas lead to nicely rich fruit flavors and a smooth texture in this medium-bodied, generous-tasting wine. Wine Enthusiast 89 pts

Imagery Sauvignon Blanc 2021

Tim and I tried the wine, and we both thought this was a refreshingly good Sauvignon Blanc with an added twist—a flowery aroma with citrus and melon. The mouth had a fleshy texture with flavors of white peach, mineral/whetstone, bright acidity, and a long lime-rind finish. This is a great wine to kick off the Spring season at a great price to celebrate women in wine day.

Regular Price: $13.99

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Cheers!

John Hannum,

Fine & Rare Wine Specialist

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