Inspiring Women Winemakers: Changing the Wine Industry for the Better

Winemaking

March 1, 2023

Over the past couple of centuries, a lot has changed within the wine industry–including a woman’s place in it. In the history of winemaking, there have been many inspiring and monumental women. Barbe-Nicole Clicquot, Isabelle Simi, and Hannah Weinberger were particularly crucial in shaping the wine world into the dominating industry it is today. 

Wine and cheese–been there, done that. Wine and girl power… NOW we’re talking!

Barbe-Nicole Clicquot (1777 – 1866):

The first woman to run a champagne house

One of the most influential figures in winemaking history is Barbe-Nicole Clicquot. Besides being a winemaker, Clicquot was a great businesswoman. At a time when women weren’t allowed to take on professional responsibilities, Clicquot surpassed everyone’s expectations. In her role as one of the world’s first international businesswomen, Clicquot opened many doors for women in the industry. 

After her husband’s passing, twenty-seven-year-old Barbe-Nicole Clicquot took over the family business. Originally, the Clicquot company was focused on banking and textile production. Back then, the company only exported wine as a side gig. Barbe-Nicole Clicquot, however, decided to take the business in a different direction. Clicquot shifted the company’s entire focus to winemaking. Despite not having much to work with, Clicquot managed to create a successful business from the ground up. 

Clicquot created the world’s modern champagne market. Until Clicquot, champagne making was a time-consuming, tedious, and some would even argue a “wasteful” process. Clicquot developed a new technique called riddling to keep up with the high demand for her champagne. Riddling allowed her to produce champagne at a much faster rate than her competitors. 

Isabelle Simi (1886 – 1981):

One of the first female winemakers in the U.S

In 1859, 27 years before she was born, Isabelle Simi’s family moved from Montepulciano, Tuscany to San Francisco, California. California was a new start for the Simi family, who were excited about starting a winery in Alexander Valley. But in 1904, when Isabelle was only 18 years old, tragedy struck and her father and brother died of the flu. The family business was all she had left. 

The Simi Winery was one of the only California wineries to survive prohibition. Isabelle Simi wasn’t just a winemaker. She was a very driven, meticulous, and astute businesswoman. Simi sold “sacramental” and “medical” wine despite strict prohibition laws. Simi winery flourished after prohibition and established its name across the country. When Isbelle Simi retired, she sold the winery to a man named Russell Green, another grape grower in the area. At that time, Simi wines were already being distributed all over the country and had won many honorable awards.

Hannah Weinberger(1840 – 1931):

The first female winemaker in Napa Valley

The booming Napa wine industry we know today didn’t fully kick off until the 1960’s, but even in the 1880’s wine was highly sought after. After moving from New York to California, Weinberger and her husband started the J.C. Weinberger Winery. After her husband’s tragic murder in 1882, Hannah Weinberger took over the winery herself, becoming the first woman winemaker in Napa Valley. In a world where all the odds were stacked against her, the J.C. Weinberger Winery thrived under her leadership. Eventually, Weinberger was forced to shut down her business at the start of the prohibition era. Weinberger defied the gender roles of her time and will continue to live on as a role model for other women in the wine industry.