The world of wine is turning (more) female – not just regarding our Team in Vihucas (where we are actually 4:2, women winning), but also according to several statistics of the past years. The German Institute of Wine for example refers to a growing number not only in terms of female students in colleges and universities dedicated to wine production and wine business, but also an increase in women completing an apprenticeship as winemakers as well as in all other jobs related to wine: women in charge of PR, the process of buying, the winery, the vineyard, as sommeliers or as owners of wine stores. And even the responsibility of entire wineries that traditionally used to be passed from father to son is more and more also in the hands of women. These trends are, of course, resulting from gradual little changes over years, not from one day to another, and – despite huge progresses – there are still areas that are “men-dominated”, e. g. the direction of wine cooperatives. However, all in all a positive trend!

Simultaneously to these progresses during the past few years, a number of organizations have been founded by women, sharing their passion for wine. All these organizations (the first, “L’Ordre des Dames du Vin et de la Table” founded in 1983 in France) in Spain, Germany, Italy and many other countries worldwide have in common that they encourage women to engage more in the – to date traditionally men-dominated – world of wine, and thus especially commit to supporting women in general and exceptional talents in particular in terms of production and marketing of wine. Successfully – as some of the most expensive wines of the world are also produced by women today, for example the wines of “Domaine Leroy” in France!

In Vihucas we have often wondered if there is any difference between men and women regarding the appreciation of wine. It is certainly not easy to find an answer that can be applied to everybody, but according to experts, indeed women in general perceive tastes and scents differently than men, which is obviously of special significance in terms of wine. Although men are still the ones that traditionally taste the wine first in a restaurant, this “honor” is more and more passed to the person that has expertise in taste. From time to time men should consider to leave that task to one of the present women, given that it is scientifically proofed that women have a more sensible sense of taste than men and thus could be the ones that are able to “better” taste nuances and possible defects of the wine.

Today, despite many changes that have taken place, women are often still the ones that are responsible for the preparation of food at home, and therefore are more frequently surrounded by smells and tastes in daily life, through which they are able to “learn” the different nuances more precisely.

From a marketing point of view, there are some persons that even think that the difference in appreciation of taste leads to real “wines for women” and “wines for men”. However, this may probably just be considered as another case of stereotyped thinking which often occurs when discussing topics dealing with “men vs. women”.

We, the team from Vihucas, rather believe that it is a matter of knowledge about a product that influences if you appreciate it differently, whether you are male or female. We work with this belief and the clear intention that everyone who enjoys a wine from Vihucas should receive the best of our land.

Speaking of women: Today, 8th of March, is International Women’s Day! Happy day to all women!