Rebranded as “Women Winemakers and Culinarians Celebration,” 2024 Series to feature Four Days of Food and Wine Events including Saturday, March 9, Grand Tasting —
January 29, 2024 – Santa Ynez, CA – Spanning four days in March 2024 – March 7-10 – the now-annual but newly renamed Santa Barbara County Women Winemakers and Culinarians Celebration returns with an event series held in honor of International Women’s Day. The 2024 events will once again include the seventh annual grand tasting food and wine showcase, this year on Saturday, March 9, where the winemaking talents of more than 30 Santa Barbara County women winemakers will be on display in Santa Ynez, California. The Santa Barbara County Women Winemakers and Culinarians Celebration will once again benefit a regional nonprofit, with event proceeds from the 2024 gathering donated to She Raised Her Hand, a new initiative that provides opportunities for women veterans to find community, purpose, and strength in their identity as veterans.
The charitable grand tasting event, which runs from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM on March 9, will be held at newly-debuted, boutique vineyard venue, 27 Vines. Tickets to the March 9, 2024, grand tasting, as well as ancillary food and wine events running March 7-10, are or will be available at www.SBWomenWinemakers.com.
“It’s the joy of camaraderie among the dozens of us showcasing our craft, and our event guests, that makes this such an inspiring celebration. Now in our seventh year, tradition continues, yet with new venues and new events, all to help women veterans in our own communities. The event’s success is both humbling, and very exciting,” said Santa Barbara County woman winemaker Karen Steinwachs, part of the all-female Women Winemakers and Culinarians Celebration event production team and co-founder of the annual celebration.
Other events in the four-day 2024 series include Wednesday, March 6, and Thursday, March 7, women winemaker and chef dinners at various Santa Ynez Valley restaurants, such as a March 7 wine-paired dinner at Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Café, featuring plates by Executive Chef Brooke Stockwell paired with wines by Karen Steinwachs (Seagrape Wine Company), Gretchen Voelcker (Luna Hart Wines), Jessica Gasca (Story of Soil), Sunny Doench Stricker (Future Perfect Wine), and Brit Zotovich (Dreamcôte Wine Co.). A portion of the proceeds from each of the dinner events will be donated to varied 2024 non-profit beneficiaries.
On Friday, March 8, guests are invited to dress their best for an evening Soirée and Silent Auction celebrating behind-the-spotlight women heroes that make winemakers and chefs shine. Sous chefs, assistant winemakers, viticulturists, farmers, winery and restaurant owners, will join attendees at the nighttime event, which will be emceed by food blogger and comedienne, Anna Vocino, who will also lead a panel discussion of the varied, featured women in these industries.
The weekend will conclude with a Sunday brunch. All ancillary event details and ticketing will be released over the next few weeks, and will be available at www.SBWomenWinemakers.com.
International Women’s Day has been celebrated worldwide since 1909, with a focus on working women’s achievements and issues. In a working environment which records about 10% of the global wine industry as female lead winemakers, Santa Barbara County continues to see a much higher percentage of women winemakers than most regions in the world – with nearly double the average and growing each year, as is evidenced by this year’s Women Winemakers and Culinarians Celebration winemaker event roster.
The March events bring together the varied sampling of the County’s female winemakers in a show of support for each other and other working women, world-wide; those who toil and labor while honing and elevating their craft in their workplace, while also balancing work-lives with family and community service.
The seventh installment of the annual grand tasting event will once again be a daytime happening, an intimate, alfresco wine tasting reception complete with elevated hors d’oeuvres. The three-hour wine and food tasting event (11:00 AM to 2:00 PM) will boast 30-plus Santa Barbara County women winemakers, all of which will be on-hand to pour tastes of their wines and talk with event guests. Passed and stationary appetizers will be offered by their female counterparts in the Santa Barbara County food world, while live music by Arwen Lewis will add to the event’s convivial ambience. Also returning to this year’s event, will be the popular “Estrogen Collection” wine bottle opportunity drawing.
Participating winemakers and wineries confirmed to date include:
Karen Steinwachs, Seagrape Wine Company; Lane Tanner, Lumen Wines; Kathy Joseph, Fiddlehead Cellars; Alison Thomson, Lepiane Wines; Helen Falcone, Falcone Family Vineyards; Gretchen Voelcker, Piazza Family Wines and Luna Hart Wines; Laura Hughes, Loubud Wines; Dana Volk, Dana V. Wines and Happy Mommy Wines; Jessica Gasca, Story of Soil; Wynne Solomon, Peake Ranch Winery; Samra Morris, Alma Rosa Winery; Alice Anderson, âmevive; Megan McGrath Gates, Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards and Toccata; Kristin Bryden, Zaca Mesa Winery; Amy Christine, Holus Bolus and The Joy Fantastic; Claire Wilson, Provignage; Sunny Doench Stricker, Future Perfect Wine; Allyson Bycraft, Babcock Winery & Vineyards; Anna deLaski, Solminer Wine Co.; Clarissa Nagy, Riverbench Vineyard and Winery; Amber Hogan, Amber Rose Wines; Kristin Harris Luis, Cote of Paint Wine; Brittany Rice, Sunstone Winery; Brit Zotovich, Dreamcôte Wine Co.; Sonja Magdevski, Casa Dumetz Wines, Clementine Carter, The Feminist Party; Angela Osborne, A Tribute to Grace Wine Company; Magan Eng, Kunin Wines; Jill DelaRiva Russell, Cambria Winery; Adrienne Rule, Rideau Vineyard; Alisa Jacobson, Turning Tide Wines; and, Christi Heck, Lavender Oak Vineyard (all additional participating winemakers/wineries, TBA).
The women winemakers will be side by side at the March 9 grand tasting event with some of Santa Barbara County’s leading culinary ladies, the latter of which will also be present to chat with guests and showcase their edible contributions to complement their colleagues’ wines.
Culinary talent for this year’s event will be organized by Brooke Stockwell, Executive Chef, Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Café, and will include Taylor Tate, executive pastry chef, peasants FEAST; Joy Reinhardt, chef/owner, Ellie’s Tap & Vine; Sarah Price, owner/operator of Lompoc-based Sassafras Mobile Food Truck and Restaurant; Vilay Saikeo, chef/owner of Lompoc’s Savory & Sweet Eats; Janelle Norman, owner and cheesemonger at Solvang’s Cailloux Cheese Shop; Melissa Scrymgeour, chef/co-owner, Clean Slate Wine Bar; Lisa Thompson, chef at Global Gardens; Louise Smith, chef/owner, Louise’s Kitchen Table; Shannon Casey, owner of Rancho Olivos; Shanté Norwood, owner/baker at Té’Stees Cupcakes; and treats- and truffle-maker Jessica Foster of Jessica Foster Confections. Foodie donations will be made by Shawnda Marmorstein, owner, Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Café and Café Farm. Additional event chefs and participating food businesses will be announced over the next few weeks.
The March 7-10 events are sponsored in part by Visit the Santa Ynez Valley, 27 Vines, and Jump On The School Bus. Tickets for the March 9 grand tasting, available at www.SBWomenWinemakers.com, are priced at $99.00++ per person and include plentiful appetizers, sweets, and wine tastings. The March 9 event venue, 27 Vines, is conveniently located in the heart of the Santa Ynez Valley. Santa Ynez area event parking information will be distributed to all ticketed guests prior to the event date.
