The consequential role of women in the Lodi wine industry

Oak Farm Vineyards winemaker Marilia Nimis-Schrader presiding over a recent harvest in Lodi's Mokelumne River appellation. March is Women's History Month. We should, no doubt, celebrate the contributions of women to events and history every month, on each day of the year; but in its wisdom, U.S. Congress (in 1987) selected March as the month to celebrate the achievements of women towards our nation's fortunes and destiny. The wine industry, however, is one place where women are still "catching up," so to speak, despite the fact that women make up just over half of the country's population, and currently over 58% of the country's overall work force...