In this interview, host Speaker A talks with sommelier and wine educator Renee Sferrazza about the Spanish wine region Rueda, located north of Madrid along the Duero River. Rueda is renowned for its fresh, lively white wines made from the 1,000‑year‑old Verdejo grape, as well as Sauvignon Blanc and increasingly popular rosados. A striking feature of the region is its high proportion of women winemakers and owners – 28 of the 72 wineries (about 38%) are led by women, a rarity in the global wine industry. Renee explains that this gender balance stems from generational hand‑downs and a supportive community that encourages women to enter winemaking. She showcases six wines (four Verdejo, one Sauvignon Blanc, one rosado) each tied to a female winemaker, and notes their availability in Ontario/Canada through the LCBO and various importers (Bespoke Wine and Spirit, United Stars Wine Agency, Gradwell Wine, etc.). The conversation emphasizes how the concentration of women in Rueda creates diverse expressions of terroir, contributes to the region’s commercial success (second‑best selling wine region in Spain after Rioja), and serves as a model for gender equity in the wine world.
Chapters
Women winemakers are making their mark around the world, especially in a region of Spain. Sommelier and wine educator Renee Sviraza joins us now with more. So tell us about this one region of Spain where this is happening.
Good morning and thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be diving into the wine region of Dio Vareda, which is the wine region in question today. This is truly a region to watch. It is located just north of Madrid, right on the banks of the Duero river, and it's very well known for its white wine production from the classic regional variety, the 1000 year old grape, Verdejo. Verdejo wines are very fresh and lively in the glass, but the region does make some other great varietal wines from Sauvignon Blanc, which really do offer a different expression, and some Rosados that are coming into the market more and more. We're seeing way more Veradan wines on lcbo store shelves at restaurants across Ontario and Canada. And you're right, it's a truly progressive region. There's so many women made wines here, and I have quite a few to show off today.
Okay, before we get to them, why is this? So I understand that there are 72 wineries and 28 have women winemakers, and then most of them are also owned or run by women.
That's totally correct. So of the 72 wineries, 28 are helmed by female winemakers, which is about 38%, which is truly rare and amazing to find in the wine world. And nearly all of them are helmed by women. So when we're seeing these female expressions in the glass, we're really offering a different side of either Verdejo Sauvignon Blanc or the Rosatos, the roses that they make within the region. And it really does add to the popularity that we see for these wines in Spain. They're the second best selling wine region, just after Rioja and the number one white wine.
Any reason why there are so many women there?
Honestly, it really has to do with the generational handing down of wineries and women just being able to give the chance to try and make wine and really showcase what they're able to do. So I have four Verdejos with us today, one Sauvignon Blanc and one Rosato. And I'm going to tell you about the wine and the women behind it as well. So ready to dive in?
Let's go.
Amazing. So, first up, I have the Bodegas Queratoreas. This is their Bondemia Noctura and it's made by winemaker Alina M Uoua. Beautiful, beautiful wine. We also have the Bodegas Lan di Cuessa di Valo Ladid by winemaker Olga Tormo. Both of these two wines can be found at the lcbo, but there's more Valdejo. We have Vinicora by Diaz Ciglos. And this is by winemaking team Laura Rubino and Noelia Santa Maria. And for the last Valdejo, here we have the Bodegas Verdal Aria Organic Valdejo by winemaker Silvia Garcia. You can find this one through Bespoke Wine and Spirit and the Nicora through merchants d'. Amerika. But if you want to try the Sauvignon Blanc expression from Mureda, the Bodegas Castella di Medina is absolutely delicious. And this is made by winemaker Sara Roman, and it's found through United Stars Wine Agency. And finally, those beautiful Rosados that are finally coming to Canada, we have the Bodegas Gotica, and this is their Cymbalo Rosato, and it's made by winemaker Maria Jesdus de la Hoy Mon Salve through Gradwell Wine. So there's so much female expression here in the marketplace, which is phenomenal.
And hopefully this becomes more and more common space around the world. Right, where it's not a novelty that so many women are in this industry.
No, it's not a novelty. There are more women joining wine all the time. The reason why Rueda is so groundbreaking is just because of the sheer number of women. It's one of the only wine regions in the world that has this high percentage. And when we see women in these places of power within wine, we get to see their expression in the glass and see what they're able to create. And that passes down to many generations. This is like generational wealth, but with winemaking.
And so does this area kind of promote itself then for the. For the women winemakers and owners?
Reyda sure does. There are so many amazing women. Every time I go there and I meet them, it's like it's really a dream to be surrounded by so many women in a room. And I think that's really rare in a lot of industries for women to find. But when you see it in wine, you really see this kind of coming together. Women create so many different expressions, from really gastromic wines in Rueda to more floral leaning ones, some that are even showing a terroir that's slightly more tropical. So you're really getting the full gamut of feeling and terroir and emotion and that these winemakers and winery owners can really put into the glass.
That's fantastic, Renee. And we'll get if you missed any of the the names or the winemakers, we're going to get this all on our website@chch.com thank you, Renee.
