On Wed 6th September we will team up with Mackenway Wines for a tasting with Celler de Capçanes. Anna Rovira (pictured below) is one half of the winemaking team, and recently won the title of “Best Winemaker of the Year 2022” for her red wines and “Spanish Female Winemaker of the Year 2021”. Anna sat down with Decántalo for an interview which you can read here.
Spaces for the tasting are free of charge but extremely limited. Please register today to secure your place. Contact winespiritwomen@gmail to register.
Viki Baird, founder of Stillgarden Distillery spoke at Dublin Food Chain’s latest event, Unleashing the Entrepreneurial Spirit and at Grub Circus at All Together Now festival. We chatted to Viki recently, you can catch up here.
On 6th September Carmel Boyle and her husband will host a Winemaker Dinner at newly opened Keith Boyle at The Bridgehouse in Kilkenny. The event will kick off with a welcome drink at 6.30pm, followed by a 5 course tasting menu, paired with wines from Carlos Bujunda of Bodegas Pierola in Rioja. We sat down with Carmel recently for a Q&A feature that you can catch up here.
Lynda Coogan will host “Rías Baixas:A Taste of the Camino with Rafa Salazar (Vinos Tito) and chef Paul Flynn (The Tannery)” on 26th September. Lynda’s been a busy woman lately, as herself and Antonia Dominguez just launchws season 3 of their podcast, Wine: The Long and the Short Of It. You can catch up with previous seasons and dive into season 3 here. Listeners can expect conversations on producer profiles, sparkling wines, innovation in wine, and food and wine pairing suggestions.
In August our Chairperson Sinéad Smyth visited UNioN Wine Bar & Kitchen in Waterford City (pictures below). The front of house operations are carried out seamlessly by Morgan VanderKamer. Morgan is a Canadian born Sommelier and co-owner of Union Wine Bar & Restaurant in Waterford city, Ireland. She is the current President of the Irish Guild of Sommeliers and co-founder of SommiT. SommiT is a two day event taking place in Waterford, aimed at hospitality professionals. There is also a consumer element to the event this year, where passionate members of the public are invited to a special tasting. Learn more about SommiT here.
Neighbourhood Wine is back on Leeson Street! Owners Mick O’Connell & Shane Murphy will be familiar faces on the Irish wine scene, but you may not know Lucia Costa, who is slinging bottles in the shop to eager wine lovers. If you’re in the neighbourhood (no pun intended) drop in and say hello to one of your fellow Wine Spirit Women.
Ara Esparza has published her latest post over on The Wine Snug, which you can read through here – we recommend grabbing a glass of your favourite tipple while catching up.
Fiona O’Hy from The Corkscrew is sending you a fabulous save the date. On 20th September they will welcome Blank Bottle Winery to the store for two tastings. The first is a free tasting on the shop floor and a guided tasting, taking place in their cellar. The latter is €20 and the ticket price is redeemable against the purchase of a bottle of wine .
TU Dublin has launched new postgraduate programmes including a Postgraduate Diploma in Brewing & Distilling. Funded by the Human Capital Initiative 2023 they are designed to equip graduates with in demand skills across our economy. Free and discounted courses on offer at TU Dublin include; Brewing and Distilling with the School of Food Science and Environmental Health. For additional details and applications see visit here.
Kate Goodman from Penley Estate Coonawarra South Australia was announced as 2024 Winemaker of the Year by The Halliday Wine Companion Awards.
Applications to the WORTH Association Mentorship Program are open. The program enables a relationship with a professional in the recreation, tourism and hospitality field. One to two mentees will be matched with an experienced leader who will be your mentor for a 6-month period between October – April. Over that duration, the mentees will have the opportunity to engage with a positive role model, build leadership skills, and develop connections within the community with the goal of accelerating their leadership ambitions. In addition to regular mentorship conversations, the program includes access to WORTH Association events and workshops. If you are interested in learning more about the WORTH mentoring program please click here.
There are two upcoming International Grape Days: 10th September is International Port Wine Day and 16th September is International Grenache Day. Don’t forget to tag us in your social media pictures and let us know what drinks you’ll be indulging in.
Celtic Whiskey have announced that The Irish Whiskey Awards will take place at Midleton Distillery on Thursday 26 October 2023.
Our friend Ollie from Lanzarote Wine Shop wrote an interesting report, which you can now read here, on the region’s current revolution at the moment. Grape prices are up 70% in the past two years and it is having major ramifications across the industry. In our view this is something that was needed to secure its future, and it is now creating exciting opportunities across the industry.
Wine Enthusiast announced its Future 40 Tastemakers 2023. We were thrilled to see Alice Achayo, The Wine Linguist, announced as one of the elite group. Alice was part of the passionate group of wine professionals who travelled to London for this year’s Women in Wine Expo, alongside WSW chair Sinéad and vice-chair Sevgi. Also in attendance at the Expo was Ritu Singhal, a passionate publisher behind Fine Wine & Champagne and Liquid magazines. Ritu wrote an article covering Women in Wine Expo, giving readers a flavour of the event and the dynamic women who were in attendance. You can read her piece here.
Local Enterprise Office (LEO) are encouraging Irish businesses to avail of their Green for Mirco programme. You will receive free expert consultancy to embed green principles into your business and a free audit & implementation plan. Small Changes can make a big impact on your business. Don’t delay, apply here today.
LEO also have a wide range of free online and in-person courses that can assist any of our members currently in business, or those thinking of starting a new business. Courses include a Business Advice Clinic, Online Marketing & Social Media, Website Security and GDPR Compliance and much more. Check out the full list of courses here.
Two new Masters of Wine have been announced, Erin Jolley (US) and Andrea Lonardi (Italy). This recent announcement sees one more woman added to this prestigious group. Born in Washington D.C. Erin Jolley owns Drink the Rent, a French wine importer. The good news is much welcomed following the death of the first female MW, Sarah Morphew Stephen in June earlier this year. As part of her MW examination Erin wrote a research paper titled, “A study of wine references in the lyrics of two American artists, Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead, in songs from the 1960s and 1970s”.
Dingle Distillery has a small number of casks remaining, as part of their Descendants Cask Programme, which gives individuals, friends, and businesses the opportunity to become one of only 100 ‘Descendants’ – cask owners. As a Descendant, you will be sent a complimentary bottle of our Dingle Whiskey every year to enjoy while waiting for your personal whiskey to mature. In addition, you may request an annual sample of your cask to observe its evolution over time. Learn more.
The owner of Ballykilcavan Brewerycalled out Electric Picnic on X (formerly Twitter) to question why the music festival is favouring a large Dutch brewing company, over supporting local brands like themselves. Ballykilcavan Brewery is just 2.5 kilometers from Electric Picnic, and seems a fitting partnership for the festival, who are advertising their sustainable aspects. In fact, the brewery isn’t even allowed to sell or showcase their beers at all. This is a topic we have discussed for many years. Think of the many big festivals that take place throughout Ireland. From sporting events to concerts and everything inbetween. The beverages on offer are usually huge international brands. And, yes we know they have the funds to provide sponsorship and the likes, but in a country that is BURSTING with incredible craft beers, meads, spirits and more, why on earth are we not proudly showing them off at national events? You can see the video posted by Ballykilcavan here.
Students wanting to sit their WSET will be glad to hear of the following upcoming courses. Premier Wine Training will run WSET 2 on 18th September and WSET 3 on 13th September. There are both online and in-person options.
Vinspire Wine & Spirit Academy has a number of upcoming WSET courses, offering wine and spirits training. These include an intensive three day WSET in wine course starting on 4th December. WSET 1 in spirits on 16th September and 27th November, and an intensive three day WSET 2 in spirits course starting on 20th November. For the full list of available courses visit here. Wine Spirit Women members enjoy 10% off WSET Level 1 & 20% off WSET Level 2 with Vinspire Academy (valid until March 2024).
Here in Ireland we’ve been having some fantastically good weather the past number of days, so we thought it very fitting for this month’s Q&A to sit down with Blanca Valencia, who is no stranger to the sunshine.
Hailing from Spain she is a freelance event organiser and specialises in PR for Spanish food and drinks, and is also a speaker, cook and writer.
Recently she spoke at Electric Picnic and All Together Now festivals, promoting her cookbook Soup.
Learn more about Blanca and her work here.
The Embassy of the Argentine Republic is hosting an Argentine Wine Fair on Monday 4th September in the Hilton Hotel, Charlemont Place, Dublin 2 from 12-6pm. Contact Jean Smullen at jean@jeansmullen.com to register (trade and press only).
Rioja Wine Ireland is back this year with its 100km of Diversity event where participants travel east to west to discover the region’s three zones, diverse terroir and exceptional wines. This trade and press only tasting will take place on Tuesday 5th September, 2023 from 11-5pm in the Westbury Hotel, Balfe Street, Dublin 2. To register, please contact Mary Ellis, Phipps PR at mary.ellis@thisisphipps.com
Cork’s beloved cocktail bar Cask is heading to Belfast’s Merchant Hotel cocktail bar for a takeover as part of their Connoisseurs Club. Tickets are £20, include a welcome drink and £5 will be donated to Air Ambluance.
Dublin’s 64 Wines are hosting an Australian Wine Tasting with Adam Wadewitz on 13th September. Later in the month they will host a Beaujolais Tasting with Michael Lawlor on 27th September
Wines Direct has two upcoming tastings in their Mullingar store. War of the Worlds on 9th and Summit Sips on 21st September
Carrington Wine Merchants portfolio tasting for those working in the trade on 18th September. Details TBC.
Boutique Wines is hosting a portfolio tasting 25th September at Row Wines, open to those working in the trade. They will showcase wines from France, Spain, Italy and South Africa, including 20 new wines from family-run organic wineries. Press & trade only. Contact Avril to RSVP avril@boutiquewines.ie
Rias Baixas: A Taste of the Camino with Rafa Salazar (Vinos Tito) and Chef Paul Flynn (The Tannery) will take place on 26th September. Press and trade only. Contact Lynda Coogan to RSVP info@winetastingireland.com
The Galway International Oyster & Seafood Festival runs from 22nd – 24th September.
In Antrim, Indie Fude are once again teaming up with The Errigle Inn for a night of Beer & Cheese Tasting, on 28th September (and the last Thursday of each month). Guests will enjoy a Guided talk on 5 local cheeses paired with 5 beers from some of the best local breweries.
The Bushmills Salmon & Whiskey Festival runs from 15th – 16th October.
The 8th annual Food & Drink Business Conference & Exhibition will take place on 5th October in Dublin. Over 3,000 visitors are expected to attend the event which aims to highlight key trends and challenges facing the food and drink sector.
Ireland
Wines Direct are recruiting a Business Development/Account Manager to be responsible for North Dublin/Midlands.
The Heritage Hotel in Co.Laois is holding a recruitment evening on Wednesday 6th September, from 4.00pm – 7.00pm.
A Sales Manager is needed at Rebel City Distillery. The Sales Manager will maintain, make, and build key relationships with our distribution partners, retail customers and stakeholders. Position is based in Cork city but can involve working from home within commuting distance from Cork city, position will involve extensive domestic travel.
Café Rua are hiring full-time Front of House positions. Interested parties can email their CVs to jobs@caferua.com
Dublin’s Old Street restaurant is hiring bartenders. More information can be found here.
Luxury hotel Galgorm are recruiting across a number of roles, including Food & Beverage Assistants and Bar Staff.
A Distillery Brewhouse Operator is wanted at The Great Northern Distillery.
Sales Assistant – Molloys Ballyfermot and Francis Street.
The Morning Bakery is hiring a full-time manager in Dublin.
Global
English sparkling wine producer Nyetimber is recruiting for a copywriter.
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Senior Marketing Coordinator to join the Customer Business Support team reporting to the Customer Business Support Manager. This is a versatile role responsible for managing customer communications, product information, supplier visits and customer trips to producers.
In Wrocław, Poland a Supervisor is wanted to oversee front of house operations at Kapka Wina.
WINE SPIRIT WOMEN 