the vilafonte wine blog

Post-harvest 2012 Vilafonte Wine Club newsletter

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Wed, 30 May 2012 09:54:00 +0000

It has been a wonderful time in the Vilafonté winery and vineyards and we now enter into a post-harvest calm period. We are happy to report that the 2012 vintage has been perhaps the highlight of the past decade and we have achieved a continuation of our ever-improving quality. This is quite impressive after a string of four vintages since 2009 that have potential for greatness. We keep raising our own standards and the results are very satisfying. The 2012 harvest can be characterised by a couple of key quality indicators.

The first indicator, berry size, indicated that we had larger berries than our statistical average. This has resulted in lush, pretty wines that will have lower tannin levels than many of our previous vintages. The 2012 vintage is ‘showy’ and produced impressive wines that will please many critics, but will perhaps not have the longevity of the spectacular 2009 vintage. Many members have stocked up on the 2009 specifically because of its above average ageing potential. The larger berry size contributed to an increased yield of high quality juice, despite the fact that we barely produced 3 tons per hectare – an incredibly low yield by any industry standards.

A second characteristic of the 2012 harvest was a much later harvest date than usual. This is a consequence of unusually cool ripening conditions that allowed the vines to reach phenological ripeness at a slow measured pace. These ripening conditions were absolutely ideal, despite an unseasonal heat wave in early January, which caused many wineries such damage. We would be delighted if we could get these conditions every year. In 2012 we finally commenced harvest on Valentines Day February 14^th, well ahead of the rest of the industry, as is our norm, but unusually 2 weeks behind our average harvest commencement date.

In general, we can report that we have had excellent results and we feel that the vintage will produce some ‘show-stoppers’. The 2012 vintage will now remain in barrel for another 2 years allowing our wines to continue their development into the bottle and for release in about 2014.

our soil-type is called 'vilafontes'

Included in this newsletter is a photograph, which epitomises what Vilafonté is all about. This simple image, taken during harvest 2012, is an image of Vineyard Manager Edward Pietersen with a handful of our precious vilafontes soil – the very essence of what our wines are all about. The ‘heart’ connection with our Valentines Day harvest date is entirely coincidental.

Our wine club continues its measured growth and we have many new developments in the pipeline including newly upgraded wine packaging, a winter mixed case vertical offer and a brand new club website. We have planned a number of discrete member-only events across the country, which we will be communicating separately. Thank you to so many of you for having recommended friends and colleagues for membership. While we cannot accept all applications, we will always strive to accommodate referrals.

Vilafonté Wine Club Manager, Sophia Hawkins is committed to engaging with our members exclusively. Her details remain Sophia@vilafonte.com and her direct-dial phone is 021-8864083. Remember, no request is too much trouble.

While the Vilafonté winery is not open to the general public, I would like to personally ensure you that as a wine club member, we will always welcome you with open arms. Let us know when you are in Stellenbosch.

Thank you for your support and your engagement.

Mike Ratcliffe

Managing Partner

new look Vilafonte advert going into Wine Style magazine this month

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 24 May 2012 09:44:00 +0000

Debonair Vilafonte winemaker Martin Smith in a lighter moment

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Tue, 22 May 2012 15:14:00 +0000

Series M 2009 at The One and Only, Cape Town

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Sat, 19 May 2012 19:04:00 +0000

Series M 2009 at the Top 100 SA Wine, Consumer tasting, held at The One and Only, Cape Town

Harvest is wrapping up in South Africa

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 13:25:00 +0000

While winemakers inevitably have a multitude of different opinions on the outcome of a harvest, there are some threads that come through that when woven together correctly, can start creating a clear picture. The Vilafonte Vineyards winemaking team wrapped up harvest this week while the Warwick Wine Estate team have another couple of days to go. In general, harvest 2012 in South Africa can, in my opinion, be considered a huge success. But why? What are the defining characteristics?

The one overwhelming common theme is that an unseasonal heat-wave descended on the Winelands in early January - a critical period for phenological ripeness. With the benefit of advanced weather forecasting being relatively common these days, the heat wave was identified about a week in advance and any and all reasonable responses to the impending temperatures were taken by those that were paying attention. Unfortunately there are very few tools to deal with excessive heat and the most powerful tool is irrigation. For those that have either decided not to invest in irrigation or who have a philosophical preference to dry-grown viticulture - 2012 will probably at least get them thinking that the judicious application of supplemental irrigation is more of a necessity than a nice-to-have. Dry-grown vineyards in the Cape lost significant tonnage and the remaining grapes would have suffered from heat stress symptoms like high pH and dropping acidity. Berry shrivel would also be an unforeseen symptom that can lead to elevated alcohol. All of these outcomes are not good.

On the other hand, this heat-wave was the only speed-bump in 2012 and for those that were able to manage it - there was no measurable negative outcome. Since mid January, the Cape has been characterized by refreshing lower than average temperatures which have provided what could best be described as an idyllic environment for the steady accumulation of sugar and the pursuit of phenological ripeness. Interestingly, in many of our vineyards we observed advanced ripeness at lower sugars which again provides an indication that 2012 could be considered a benchmark year. On observation of the grapes at harvest, we noticed a slightly larger berry size, but excellent levels of all the goodies that lead to colour extraction, flavor compounds as well as nicely ripened tannins which create mouth-feel and texture in the wines. Without trying to 'talk it up' too much, possibly the biggest indicator of quality comes from the significantly reduced rate of berry variability which leads to concentration in the wines and is one of our most important indicators of quality - this is not a subjective measure and at the risk of being technical, we had the lowest berry variability measurement of standard deviation in my career. This basically means that at harvest, a huge proportion of berries were perfectly ripe - simultaneously.

Despite the above, I remain a cynic and I like to see out beautiful wine through fermentation before a truly great vintage can be pronounced but the signs are there at Warwick and at Vilafonte.

Stay tuned.

Mike Ratcliffe

beautiful Cabernet Sauvignon coming into the Vilafonte winery today...

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 07:30:00 +0000

Harvest 2012 starts in South Africa

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 17:48:00 +0000

Harvest action in the Vilafonte vineyard

January in South Africa is a strange time in the wine industry. It is a cross roads between the relaxed business of Christmas holidays and the serious business of verasion and harvest preparation. Winemakers and viticulturists shake the cobwebs out of their ears and get busy understanding what it is that nature is going to be presenting them for harvest. (Of course the more serious Viticulture practitioners would have ignored Christmas and worked throughout the season.) It is often with trepidation that eyes are cast towards the weather report to make sure that the hint of a serious thunderstorm or a late season heatwave which may or may not upend the best prepared plans. Inevitably the best grapes come from the best vineyards and always, the best vineyards are managed by the most precise and most fastidious viticulturists. Only the best can truly make any difference when faced with the onslaught of mother nature.

Tomorrow (February 13th) will be the first day of harvest in the luxurious Vilafonte vineyards www.vilafonte.com and it is actually about 2 weeks later than usual – a frustrating delay for a wine growing team obsessed with detail. The harvest is looking excellent with a greater number of berries in our test panels indicating an average to small berry size, but a potentially larger harvest of high-quality grapes. It will be a 4am start tomorrow morning and I, along with my entire team, are excited and nervous at the same time.

The harvest started at Warwick Wine Estate last Wednesday with the early harvest of some beautiful Sauvignon Blanc that will eventually become the Warwick 'Professor Black''`sauvignon Blanc – our well known standard bearer that is occupying a lot of our attention at the moment. Early indications are good and I was able to taste the first rich, sweet, ripe juice straight from the jaws of our brand new 'uber-fancy' grape press imported just-in-time from France. Delicious. There is so much more to come in the annual dramatic episode that we call harvest – stay tuned. I will do my best to find some time to keep you posted.

Cheers.

Hooray! We are in the Top 100 wines in the world - again.

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 18:28:00 +0000

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 18:25:00 +0000

Vilafonte rainbow in Signature restaurant JHB

Mini tornado blows through Vilafonte vineyards

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 10:46:00 +0000

Dear team

We have experience the same thing very similar of which happen in the East Rand (SA) on Sunday evening.

Yesterday afternoon at about 3pm. While working with the tractor busy mulching in block A, while working in the direction of the store. Strong winds stand up behind the tractor and move side-ways past the tractor.

I kept an eye on it as it getting stronger and higher as it moves in the direction of the upper store (where we store the chemicals).

I suddenly realize but this wind looks different than some winds that I have ever seen. I also realize that Piet and Gerhardus are busy inside the bottom store busy cleaning the fingers of the water filters. It strike my mind that I should scream to tell them to get out of the store as danger is coming. This all happen so fast that by the time that I want to do what I decided to do to alert them, it was all over. This all happens in 4 seconds.

My assumption is that it seems that; it looks like the wind starts at the vineyards just at the trees of the fence between us and Rainbow chickens. It seems like it was busy building momentum and picking up speed.

The bottom store was too big and hollow and therefore it split the head from the tale and it did not continue to grow further after the store.

Piet and Gerhardus were fine as it could not do any harm to the bottom store. Piet and Gerhardus could not hear the sound which came from the fall of the top store hall as they have experience a different sound as the wind hit the bottom store.

It was scary

I alert the authorities via rescue services of what we have experience.

I hope you believe me

Edward

The Vilafonté 'Series X' cigar goes beautifully with the Vilafonté 'Series M' 2004

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 13:33:00 +0000

Series 'C' 2008 scores 93 Points

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 08:14:00 +0000

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate scores 93 points Vilafonte Series C 2008. Here it is officially.

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 10:17:00 +0000

CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Vilafonte 'Series C' 2008 nails it with 93 points - again!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 15:13:00 +0000

A fun event this weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 14:45:00 +0000

Vilafonte winemaker Martin Smith stuns the crowd at the Winemakers surf classic

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 15:47:00 +0000

Perfect winter conditions greeted wine industry surfers who gathered near Stilbaai in the Boland for the annual Rip Curl Vitner's Surf Classic.

Duncan Savage from Cape Point vineyards won the Junior division (under 35 yrs) of the event, which is supported by Rip Curl and Reynolds Rocha. Annual standout Gunter Schultz, from Tamboerskloof, won the Seniors (36 to 43) while Gary van Wyk from Takana Vineyards won the Masters (44 years and older).

Solid 4' surf greeted the riders at the small reef and sand spit they call Kakgat at 8am - early start to get through a mammoth 28 heats in the three age divisions, plus ladies, who boasted all of one contestant. Conditions were at times testing with a solid overhead shorebreak and outgoing tidal rip keeping contestants sharp as they tried to paddle out.

"In the very first heat of the day, one guy took almost 10 minutes to get out to the back. He only got one scorable ride," said organiser Miles Mossop, who hails from Tokara wines.

But once the tide turned and began to push, the surf filled in with solid 3- 5 footers on the outside.

As Cape Town was blasted by westerly near-gales, driving rain and wild seas, the Boland was sunny and mild with clean surf. A brief buster and a rain shower passed through at midday, then backed away to enable the second half, and the finals, of the event to proceed in pushing glassy waves in the afternoon. "There were whitecaps out to sea, but hardly any wind on the coast," said Mossop.

The riders who made the finals revelled in the clean surf, although there were some heavy wipeouts on the ledge. Beginner Albert Ahrens was to later win the Shark Bait Award after he was swept hundreds of metres out to sea in a strong rip. He was rescued by Francois Hanekom, who later won The Hof (David Hasselhof) Award to much hilarity at the prize giving held at the Stable in the evening.

In another first, Martin Smith of Vilafonte stunned the crowd with his Standup Paddle Board riding, the first time one of these craft have been entered the competition, in which any type of surfboard goes, from longboards to fish and to short boards.

Smith tried to impress the crowd with a set wave from the outside reef, and was racing the section across the reef with great aplomb until he got hammered by the curling inside bowl, much to the delight of onlookers.

"It was another wonderful event, with fantastic catering, cool drinks and kegs of beer to keep everyone nourished, followed by a festive prize giving dinner and much spontaneous mirth at the Stables Restaurant in Stilbaai afterwards, said Mossop.

Mossop noted with pleasure that winemakers really came to the party this year in terms of bringing 'heaps' of their own wine to the function.

The traditional bottle of Big Red was dished out to contestants, "slightly more of an easy drinking wine this year that should be consumed quite soon". The Big Red is a 1.5 litre bottle of blended wine comprising contributions from the entering wine estates who donate the wine before the event.

I love it - a refreshing new take on wine bottle photography!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 14:45:00 +0000

Vilafonté invited to represent South Africa at the New York Wine Experience in October this year - nice!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:10:00 +0000

The New York Wine Experience is a joyous three-day celebration of great wine. Only at a Wine Experience can you sit down and taste the world’s best wines guided by the estates’ owners and winemakers. You’ll enjoy outstanding vintages, rare wines from the producers’ cellars and top-scoring wines from around the world.

Our focus this year is on stars of the wine world. To highlight this we have planned a weekend program that will engage all of your senses while adding to your wine knowledge. Our goal is always to offer a program that will be educational for both novice and expert. Daytime seminars filled with unique wines from around the world, food and wine pairings from star chefs, a black-tie gala and more promise to make this event a favorite.

The Grand Tasting

Vilafonte excels in Wine Spectator - again. Click on the image to enlarge

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 07:23:00 +0000

Vilafonté Series M 2006 is being released in LCBO Vintages on April 2nd:

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 10:20:00 +0000

Vilafonté Series M 2006, Wo Paarl is being released in Vintages on April 2nd: Blend, South Africa, $39.95 (7757)

Reviewed by John Szabo, Canada's first and currently only Master Sommelier, earning the title from the Court of Master Sommeliers in London, England in 2004.

Bordeaux blend. Classy, elegant, generously ripe and oak influenced, but the balance is maintained; flavours wander nicely through the dried red berry to ripe black and blueberry spectrum, with plenty of spice and roast coffee notes along the way. Long finish. Nice wine. Tasted February 2011. Value Rating: ** (90)

The regal Series M blend starts with aromas of dark juicy plum and black currant, coffee and chocolate, rolling into an array of bright, spicy black fruit, tobacco and cedar. Rich and savory on the palate but enlivened by good minerality, it’s a classic South African red with world-class balance. Score: 90 (Steven Kolpan, Wine Enthusiast, Aug. 2010)

Release Date: Apr 02, 2011

Agent: HOBBS & CO. WINE MERCHANTS

www.hobbswines.com

A new seal for South African wines, a world first

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 13:17:00 +0000

Vilafonté cleans up again in the USA with Stephen Tanzer

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 09:24:00 +0000

2007 Series C Paarl (74% cabernet sauvignon, 11% merlot, 9% cabernet franc and 6% malbec; aged for 25 months in 94% new French oak): Full bright ruby. Crushed cassis, licorice and violet on the nose, complicated by minerals, mint and graphite. Juicy, intense and weighy, with a downright 3-D texture to its black fruit, bitter chocolate, mineral and mint flavors. This powerful and extremely unevolved wines needs time to harmonize its firm, slightly spiky tannins. Should be a knockout in five or six years. 91(+?)

2006 Series C Paarl (54% cabernet sauvignon, 40% merlot and 6% cabernet franc): Full ruby-red. Sexy, sweet aromas of dark berries and chocolatey oak. Dense, plush, sweet and fine-grained, suavely combining its chocolatey merlot and cassis-and-herb cabernet sauvignon elements. Offers a bit less violety lift (cabernet franc?) than the 2007 but this is bigger and more generous today, not to mention more harmonious. Finishes suave, broad and long. 92

2006 Series M Paarl (43% cabernet sauvignon, 39% merlot, 15% malbec and 3% cabernet franc): Bright ruby-red. Merlot-dominated aromas of plum, chocolate, mocha and lead pencil. Fat, broad and sweet, with a slightly medicinal quality to the plum and herb flavors. Finishes with rather serious tannins that call for at least a couple more years of bottle aging. 90

believe it or not! This is really how we make wine at Vilafonte

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:35:00 +0000

Vilafonté 2011 Harvest Report by Zelma Long

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:19:00 +0000

The key characteristic of the Vilafonté 2011 harvest was that it was early, short and fast. Due to our location, we have an early bud break and bloom normally, and so we harvest in February and early March, usually over a month period of time. In 2011 we started a week earlier than normal and finished before the end of February, the earliest finish ever, and the shortest; our harvest was 19 days long.

Harvest of our 17 blocks of wine grapes – Cabernet, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Malbec – proceeded in an orderly and very consistent manner; once harvest of one variety started; the others ripened in sequence and we harvested day after day. There was a short pause between the end of Malbec and the beginning of the Cabernets, and once we started harvesting them on Feb. 17, we brought in grapes daily until the end of harvest. Valentine’s Day was graced with the double harvest of our Cabernet Franc and the last of our Malbec.

The weather was cooperative and its particular characteristics for our site and our harvest period were: consistent, warm temperatures - lack of the cycling from cool to warm that we normally see. Night temperatures were consistent with a 5 year average, and in February warm temperatures over 30C. were 40% higher than the 5 year average. We had (1) slightly more breezes or wind than normal; (2) no rain; (3) no severe heat spells. However the 2 day heat spell in early January, around veraison, caused some crop loss in Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Grape characteristics were quite positive with regards to evenness of ripening; we measure quantitatively the variation in ripeness within each block…we call this “berry variability” and a scientist would call it “standard deviation”. This year our ripeness on a grape to grape basis was within a very narrow band; predicting excellent concentration in the wines. Indeed, in the winery their colour is deep; and tannins, though significant in the grapes, were properly modulated in the extraction fermentation process.

Overall, the baby Vilafonté wines exhibit the usual characters of their respective locations in the vineyard, and in general have lovely concentration, deep black/red colours, and their distinctive black and red fruit flavours. In March they are either finishing fermentation or starting malo-lactic fermentation, having been drained from the fermenters directly into their own specific barrels for aging. Like two year old children, this is not the “prettiest” time for the wines, but in a few months they will begin to blossom and the 2011 vintage will most clearly reveal its nature and character.

Zelma Long,

Winemaking Partner

Zelma Long #2 on the list of 'The worlds leading women of wine'.

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Ratcliffe's Wine Blog) — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 09:10:00 +0000

Les Grandes Dames

Today is the 100th International Women's Day--the perfect opportunity, we felt, to highlight the achievements of some of the wine world's most important women.From winery owners to winemakers to critics to journalists, a significant portion of the wine industry's leaders are, in fact, women. So to figure out who stands above the rest, we assembled a panel of winemakers, journalists, sommeliers and other successful wine professionals, and asked each of them to name the five most important women in wine of all time (See the panel below). Dozens of women were named, but three in particular received the greatest number of votes from our panel for their contributions to the wine world:•

Jancis Robinson: The runaway winner, she's a Master of Wine, author of several books and writer of a weekly Financial Times column that's considered to be the pinnacle of wine journalism. She's one of the most respected, level-headed wine critics in the world--and a genuinely nice person, to boot. Check out her site, here.

• Zelma Long: She's perhaps the greatest consultant winemaker you've never heard of--a winemaker's winemaker who got more votes from our panel than Helen Turley, Heidi Barrett or Philippine de Rothschild. Long was Robert Mondavi's head enologist through the '70s, then turned around the Simi winery and became its CEO. She's consulted for wineries in Washington, Oregon, Israel, France, Argentina and Italy, and she's also the winemaking partner of Vilafonté in South Africa--as well as owner and winemaker of her own company, Long Vineyards, in Napa.

• Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, aka, Le Veuve ("widow") Clicquot: Widowed at age 27 in 1805, Ponsardin took the reins of her husband's Champagne business--and changed the entire industry. Under her leadership the technique of riddling was instituted and perfected, which transformed Champagne from a sweet drink to the fine, dry, fizzy wine we know and love today. Next time you open a great bubbly, know there was an even greater woman who inspired it. And that was just for starters in her long, brilliant career.

Among our nine panelists, more than 25 different women were named at least once for their contributions to the wine world--which goes to show just how many important and influential women there are in this industry. There are winery owners, winemakers, writers, Master Sommeliers, Masters of Wine, you name it--each of whom has moved the wine industry forward in one way or another.

Read on to learn a little more about each of these women, and get a sense of how much they've influenced what wines the world sips each and every day.

Leading Women in Wine

We asked each of our panelists to name the five most important women in the wine world, of all time. The following women all received at least one mention from our panel. Some received two or three mentions, but no one earned as many votes as Jancis Robinson, Zelma Long and Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin (Le Veuve Clicquot), above.

• Alessia Antinori is a 26th-generation winemaker in the famed Antinori family of Italy, though she spends much of her time--at the moment--marketing the family's ranges of wine in new and established markets around the world for months at a time. Still in her early 30s, it's this young, fresh face that's bringing new attention to one of Italy's most established families and traditions.

• Fiona Beckett is one of the leading food and wine writers in the U.K. She's written more than 20 books, with pairing food and wine as her main focus; she's a regular columnist for The Guardian. Check out her sitehere.

• Heidi Peterson Barrett is one of America's--if not the world's--most respected winemakers. She's known for making some of California's most successful cult wines, Screaming Eagle chief among them. Today she consults for several different producers, and also has her own label, La Sirena.

• Lalou Bize-Leroy is the owner of Domaine d'Auvenay and Domaine Leroy in Burgundy, and for nearly two decades she helped run Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, the Burgundy producer that makes some of the most sought-after and expensive wines in the world (she left in '92). Leroy, in particular, produces several grand cru, premier cru and village-level wines, and all the wines are made according to biodynamic principles.

• Lilly Bollinger has a story that somewhat mirrors that of the Veuve Clicquot. Lilly's husband died in 1941, and she ran the Champagne estate for the next three decades. She expanded and improved production, and traveled the world to sell the Bollinger Champagnes. She's perhaps best remembered for what she once said of Champagne: "I drink it when I'm happy and when I'm sad. Sometimes I drink it when I'm alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I'm not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise, I never touch it--unless I'm thirsty."

• Laura Catena is a true renaissance woman. She's a physician, a mother of three, the author of a wine bookand the president of her family's winery, Bodega Catena Zapata, in Argentina. Follow her on Twitter, here.

• Sylvie Cazes is perhaps the most powerful person in Bordeaux. She's credited with the successful running of Chateau Lynch Bages (and several other holdings in the family business over the past 20 years), and she was elected president of the Union des Grand Cru Classes de Bordeaux in 2008. She's also served on the Bordeaux City Council, and just last month she was named managing director of Chateau Pichon Comtesse de Lalande. Only in her mid-50s, expect Cazes to be a guiding force in Bordeaux wine for a long time to come.

• Jeannie Cho Lee is the first person from Asia to become a Master of Wine. Born in Seoul and educated at Smith College and at Harvard, Cho Lee currently lives in Hong Kong. She's a widely published wine journalist and critic, and also works as a consultant for Singapore Airlines. She has her own site, Asian Palate.

• Diana Cullen and her husband Kevin are considered pioneers of the Western Australia wine industry. They planted their vineyard in 1971, and gained quick acclaim for their high-quality wines. In 2000, Diana was inducted as a Member of the Order of Australia for her service and contribution to the development of the wine industry. She died a few years later, but her daughterVanya Cullen, also named to our list, is carrying her mother's legacy forward. She's been head winemaker at Cullen since 1989, and she's earned many accolades and awards; she was named Woman of the Year by U.K. magazine The Drinks Business in 2008. She was the first Australian to receive the honor.

• Veronique Drouhin Boss is a pioneer in Oregon Pinot Noir. She and her father, Robert Drouhin, were among the first to see Oregon as a serious spot for Pinot on par with their home of Burgundy. She's made the highly acclaimed Domaine Drouhin wines since 1988. Read our interview with her here.

• Merry Edwards has been a fixture of the Sonoma wine industry since the 1970s, working as a consultant for several different high-profile producers. But her relentless pursuit of perfection with her own wines, Pinot Noir in particular, is what's drawn the most admiration from her peers near and far. Find her wines here.

• May-Eliane de Lencquesaing ran and made the wines at Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande for three decades. She's also widely known and respected for her work promoting and marketing Bordeaux wines around the world.

• Mary Ewing-Mulligan is the first American woman to become a Master of Wine, and she's co-author of the books Wine for Dummies and Wine Style, along with her husband Ed McCarthy. Learn more about her wine classes at the International Wine Center here, and follow her on Twitter here.

• Laura Maniec is one of the youngest American women ever to be inducted into the Court of Master Sommeliers. She was wine director at the BR Guest Restaurant Group for 10 years, and is soon to open her own wine bar, Corkbuzz, in New York. She plans for Corkbuzz to offer wine tastings and classes.

• Corinne Mentzelopoulos is the owner of legendary Chateau Margaux. She's credited with completing and advancing the work of her father, who took over the estate and began restoring it in the '70s after it had fallen on hard times. Much like de Lencquesaing, above, Mentzelopoulos is lauded for her work marketing the wines of Bordeaux around the world, but she's also known for her keen business sense that led her to the right time to buy the estate outright in 2003.

• Hazel Murphy is largely responsible for the exploding popularity of Australian wine through the '90s and 2000s. She spent approximately 20 years as head of the Australian Wine Bureau in England, and on her watch Australia's wine exports rose from the thousands of cases per year to the tens of millions. Most importantly, she did what so few had been able to accomplish to that point: She exposed people to wine who'd never before thought about buying it. The rest is history.

• Ann Noble is a professor emeritus at the University of California Davis, best known for inventing the wineAroma Wheel. It's considered to be one of the best tools for helping those new to wine -- as well as seasoned wine professionals -- better understand how to taste and assess wine. She has a PhD in food science from the University of Massachusetts, and she was the first female faculty member of U.C. Davis' viticulture department.

• Mary Penfold was the wife of Christopher Rawson Penfold; they emigrated to Australia from England in the mid-1800s. Together they established what is today Australia's -- and one of the world's -- most famous and successful wine companies. Mary ran the winery and vineyard for about 40 years, her viticultural and winemaking expertise unmatched in Australia during that time. Her ability to experiment in the vineyard and winery, too, led to many grape-growing and winemaking techniques adopted and developed by others after her death in 1896.

• Norma Ratcliffe is one of the most important trailblazers in the South African wine industry. She and her husband began growing grapes and vegetables in the 1970s, and Ratcliffe became so enraptured with winemaking that she went to train in Bordeaux in the mid '80s. Many of South Africa's successful winemakers, in turn, trained under Ratcliffe. She's still the director of Warwick Estate in Stellenbosch.

• Andrea Robinson is a Master Sommelier, the author of several wine books and has hosted wine-related shows on Food Network and Fine Living. Visit her site,here.

• Louisa Rose is chief winemaker at Australian producer Yalumba, where she's worked for nearly 20 years. In particular, she's known for thinking outside the Shiraz, and has made some of Australia's most prized Viogniers. She's also the first female winemaker to be the head judge of the Perth Royal Wine Show.

• Baroness Philippine de Rothschild is the owner of legendary Chateau Mouton Rothschild, and has led the family business from strength to strength since she took over in 1988. Back then, a bottle of Mouton released for somewhere between $50 and $100; the 2008 was released at more than $1,100 per bottle.

• Martine Saunier is the first woman to establish a wine-importing company in the United States, and is currently president of Martine's Wines. Throughout her career she's taken regular trips to France to find new and interesting wines which, early on, she sold through a mailing list. More than a salesperson, she's credited with being an ambassador for French wines in America.

• Serena Sutcliffe is a Master of Wine--the second woman to earn the distinction, and one of the very few people to pass the exam on the first attempt--and the head of Sotheby's wine department. She's earned several awards for her service to wine education and written several wine books; she also shares much of the credit for popularizing wine auctions beyond a few, small circles of private collectors.

• Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan is only the fifth American woman to become a Master of Wine, and she helps train wine- and spirits-industry professionals. She's a regular fixture on American television and radio, offering straight, easy-to-understand wine guidance. Visit her site, here.

• Madeline Triffon is only the second woman to pass the Master Sommelier exam, and has been exposing Detroit-area diners to the great wines of the world since the late '70s. Today she heads the wine department for the Matt Prentice Restaurant Group in Michigan.

• Helen Turley stands alongside--and perhaps above, some would argue--the greatest California winemakers ever. She trained some of California's other cult winemakers, such as Heidi Peterson Barrett (above) and Mark Aubert, and has consulted for wineries such as Pahlmeyer, Bryant Family and Colgin. Her own, small-production wines, Marcassin Vineyard, are some of the most sought-after in the world; the mailing list is a years-long wait.

Our panelists:

• Gary Vaynerchuk, host of Wine Library TV

• Mary Ewing-Mulligan, Master of Wine, educator and co-author of Wine for Dummies

• Randall Grahm, winemaker

• Elin McCoy, Bloomberg wine writer and author of The Emperor of Wine

• Stephen Brook, writer for Decanter magazine

• Natalie MacLean, author of Red, White and Drunk All Over, and a new book coming this fall

• Michael Olivier, South African wine critic and author

• Alpana Singh, Master Sommelier and director of wine and spirits for Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises

• Ben Edwards, Australian wine critic and author

• Richard Betts, Master Sommelier