As we poured a bottle of Cecilia Monte's 2019 Serracapelli Barbaresco into a decanter to have with our Osso Buco for lunch, we were reflecting on Cecilia’s story of being denied the opportunity to make a Barolo because she was a woman.
We've tried to avoid getting caught up in the silly politics of the US (a glass of wine is helpful for that). But given that their polarised obsession with Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) is likely to be coming soon to an electorate near you (if it hasn't arrived already), we thought we'd remind you why we focus on wine made by women at Vino Cammino.
The bottom line is, we think you get better wine, for less.
Let's look at some statistics and draw some logical inferences.
Generous estimates suggest only 30% of winemakers in France and Italy are women. In Australia, a recent study says it's about half that.
We don't think the cause of that has anything to do with innate winemaking ability (feel free to drop me a line if you have a compelling argument otherwise).
So, if those things are true, what does it tell you to expect about the average quality of wine made by women?
Our hypothesis is that the women who do end up in winemaking roles have to be better than average to get there, and stay there. Our own anecdotal experience tasting around France, Italy, Spain and Australia has given us confidence that we are onto something. Oh the stories those women have to tell!
So, politics aside, we focus on wine made by women because it's easier for us to find high quality wine.
But that's not all. Here's the double whammy for women in wine, and why our customers get the benefit. Even though, in our view, the average quality is higher, the market is willing to pay less for it. A study published in 2024 asked participants in France to say how much they would pay for a bottle of wine, just by looking at the label. On some of the labels, the only change was the fake winemaker name. One was Georges, the other Nathalie. Male participants in the study were willing to pay around 30-40% more for the identical bottle, if it was made by Georges. Women were also more willing to pay for Georges' hypothetical wine, but not to a statistically significant extent. With James and David currently battling it out for most common first name on our mailing list, this really matters for Vino Cammino.
As wine buyers, we find ourselves in the enviable position of accessing higher than average quality wine, with lower average demand. Meaning we can buy outstanding wine, of outstanding value, that we pass on to you.
Now, this is the really important part. You only get the benefit of this if you are not like the men in the study. They see wine made by women and think "that’s not for me." But we reckon the men and women who are our customers have figured this out already.