Wine, Women, and....What?

Ryan and I are celebrating our first Mother's Day and Father's Day this year, and we've agreed to mark this special occasion with small but significant gifts. Ryan bought me a lovely locket into which I can tuck photos of him and Calla. I'm still searching for the perfect First Father's Day gift, and my efforts have brought to light some interesting and slightly annoying insights into the way that wine and wine-related goods are marketed. Forgive me for using this space as a place to vent, but hey, it's my blog!!

I've been looking at a few online sites, some of which I've purchased gifts from before, and some of which I have not. Most retailers have conveniently grouped gifts into categories--"for the sporty dad," "gifts under $100," "gifts with monograms," "gifts for grillers," etc. Some sites just have general "for him" and "for her" categories. It's these categories that offer some incredible insight into the way retailers look at gender. Guess in which category you can find all of the wine and wine-related gifts?

Do people actually believe that only dads and men want decanters, corkscrews, wine travel bags, wine-of-the-month club memberships, wine-themed books, wine journals, and--not to be overlooked--actual bottles of wine? Browse the same sites under the "gifts for her" category and you get gardening tools, plush bathrobes, lingerie, and jewelry. (And yes, men garden, too....) In our house, wine gifts know no gender. In our house, the wine expert is the woman. In our house, the person who decides how and where to spend money on wine and wine-related goods is, yes, the woman. Sure, Ryan enjoys wine, knows a thing or two about it, and has a discerning palate, too. But just as I would defer to his judgment on economics, (he's a banker), red meat, and camping equipment, he lets me have the final say on wine.

I'm not the only wine professional who doesn't fit into the old-school image of wine connoisseurs as bearded men wearing smoking jackets in deep leather chairs. Many of the best wine reps--those who work for importers and distributors--are women. Their knowledge of wine regions, grapes, producers, and vintages is impressive. I was taught by a woman, Amy Mumma, the Wine Woman of the Year for 2005. She's a world-class wine consultant who teaches, speaks, and writes for some of the most prestigious organizations in the industry. The finest restaurant in Seattle boasts a female wine director. When I speak to reps, to importers, and to others in the local trade, they all tell me that women have some of the best palates and are some of the best salespeople they know.

The wine trade is a ripe industry for women because women are consuming more wine on a daily basis. The wine industry's efforts at marketing wine to women are working. This is a good thing. It would be a great thing for retailers to realize if they want to capture a greater share of the money that is spent on wine, on glassware, on wine-themed books and magazines, and on other wine-related goods and gifts.

Wine isn't the only product or leisure activity to fall victim to gender-biased marketing, I know. My challenge is to explore websites, ads, and stores and to examine how their wine and wine goods are or are not marketed to women. I hope the gender bias I see right now becomes obsolete soon. If you've seen evidence of the other side of the story, please, feel free to help prove me wrong. I would gladly drink to that.