These women know how to make life fun, and delicious.
Susana Balbo, the first female winemaker in Argentina takes her unique approach to viniculture where she believes the future of Argentine wines is, surprisingly, high-end whites.
Courtney Dunlop and Michelle Feldman merged their passion for wellness, vitality, and a nice bottle of vino to co-found Good Clean Wine. Their reds, whites, and roses are free of chemicals and other stuff you don’t want to sip. And because the grapes come from the rich soils of Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna, you can count on deep flavor.
Q&A with Susana Balbo
We hear want to start a white wine revolution. Please share!
Since red and white wine consumption is equitable around the world and Argentina’s exports of white wine is only 13% of its total wine exports, I see a great opportunity for the remarkable white wines produced in our country. Argentina has the adequate microclimate and terroir conditions to develop high impact white wines in the market.
Your award-winner Críos Torrontés wine is beautifully fresh and aromatic. What’s your magic?
Torrontés grapes originally grow in warmer weathers and sandy soils. We produce these grapes in a vineyard with calcareous soils and a much colder weather than that from where the varietal is originally. This provides those fresh herbal characteristics and the orange peel and white flowers notes.
What were the challenges of being the first female winemaker in Argentina?
Earning my colleagues’ respect by showing them that I had the knowledge and that I was capable of making high-quality wines while stamping them with my personal footprint, which, by the way, was far different from theirs.
If you could produce wine anywhere else in the world? Where and why?
I cannot find any place in the world where I can make such high quality wines with the style I like other than Argentina. However, due to my Italian roots and the special place Italy has in my heart and to my grandparents that grew in Orbassano, I would make my wines in Piamonte.
Q&A with Courtney Dunlop and Michelle Feldman
What does clean mean when it comes to your wine?
"Clean" is our way of saying minimal intervention. Good Clean Wine has no added sugar or concentrates, no sulfites added at fermentation, no dye, no synthetic tannins, and no commercial yeast. It's just grapes.
Your POV: can a glass of vino enhance wellbeing?
Both of us have consistent, intense exercise routines, we eat well, and take care of our health in a holistic way. And part of living well in a holistic way means experiencing joy—and wine brings us joy.
Your vineyards are in two different regions of Italy. Do tell.
Yes! Maremma, deep into the Tuscan countryside, and Emilia-Romagna. Both have long wine cultures and rich soil. Some of the grape varietals date back to the Bronze age.
What’s your favorite, or let’s say unique, way to drink your wine?
Pour Spumante over ice. Wine snobs mock people for putting ice in their wine, but, first of all, drink wine however you want. Second of all, when it’s a thousand degrees outside, putting a dry, fruity sparkling wine over ice is refreshing and delicious.