This Saturday, May 9, Trocadero Wine School will host a Mother's Day Weekend Wine Class at Vincent on Camelback. Along with brunch from Vincent's restaurant, the class will focus exclusively on celebrating wines made by women.
Women vintners and enologists have been gaining visibility in recent years, and we have a feeling the trend is only going to continue. Although only 10 percent of California wineries are led by women, females make up nearly 50 percent of enrollment in vintners degree programs today.
See also: 20 Mother's Day Food and Drink Specials in Metro Phoenix
Veteran wine enthusiast and educator Bill Dunphy heads up Trocadero Wine School, which is an Approved Program Provider for Wine and Spirit Education Trust. Dunphy says this weekend's class will begin with a toast to mothers and women everywhere using the famed French champagne, Veuve Clicquot.
Aside from the fact that it's a classic champagne, the choice to use Veuve Cliquot is a symbolic one -- the champagne house was helmed by a woman, Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, after her husband died in 1805. Madame Cliquot is often credited with modernizing the champagne industry, and Veuve Cliquot is still considered one of the world's premiere champagnes.
Dunphy also says that while the full line-up of wines for the Mother's Day class hasn't been determined, it will be comprised of a mix of Old World and New World wines (that's European and non-European wines, to be clear).
Dunphy did give us a few hints as to what participants might expect to taste. He mentioned Gina Gallo, the lead winemaker at Gallo Family Vineyards in Sonoma, who followed in her father's footsteps to become one of the most prolific winemakers in the world. Gallo, he says, has been instrumental in making Sonoma Chardonnays of a distinctly higher quality.
He also mentioned Lynn Penner-Ash, an Oregon vintner who started as enologist at the legendary Stag's Leap Winery, and whose wines are now consistently ranked among some of the best in quality in Oregon each year.
Moving south, Dunphy noted Susana Balbo in Argentina, whose excellence in crafting Malbec wines has helped increase its rising popularity and visibility in recent years.
The brunch will take place from 1 to 3 p.m., and tickets are still available online at $79 for a single ticket and $139 for a pair.. The event is open to participants who are 21 years of age or older. Trocadero Wine School offers several other wine appreciation classes, including an upcoming Father's Day class that Dunphy mentioned would be called "Big Bold Reds.
For more information check the Trocadero Wine School website.
