Continuing the Women in Wine series for Women's History Month 2018, I speak with Ana Keller of Keller Estate. She helped establish the Petaluma Gap American Viticultural Area (AVA), which is Sonoma's newest cool climate appellation making excellent Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Syrah. Ana is one of the only women of Mexican heritage running a wine estate, and she is simply amazing.

Here are some of the notes from our conversation: 

• We talk about how her family got into wine.
• We discuss Ana's educational background -- she attended the University of Mexico and obtained a biopharmaceutical chemistry degree and then to King’s College in London for a Masters in Pharma Development.
• We talk about how Ana got into wine as a consumer and how her dad roped her into the business as Estate Director.
• Ana shares her feelings about mentors in the wine industry and what it was like to be a young woman in wine in the 1990s. 
• We dig into the Petaluma Gap AVA -- what makes it different, how the appellation was conceived of, and why the wines are so very different from the rest of Sonoma.
• Finally, we wrap up with a conversation about the current state of women in the wine industry and the role of amazing men in forwarding the careers of women in it. 

 

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