Lodi's women-owned Oak Ridge Winery is making its mark in wine industry
Nine decades since the first cuttings were planted, today three women lead Oak Ridge Winery.
Nine decades since the first cuttings were planted, today three women lead Oak Ridge Winery.
Nine decades since the first cuttings were planted, today three women lead Oak Ridge Winery.
The wine industry is still a male-dominated industry, but one female-owned winery in Lodi is seeing big success and helping other winemakers in the process.
Oak Ridge Winery was established in the 1930s as a winemaking cooperative. Now it’s one of more than 85 wineries in Lodi and they produce more than just their own wine.
“There are so many different labels out there in the market and not everyone can own their own winery or grow their own grapes, so there’s a whole separate market for custom winemaking and it is an aspect of our business,” says Emily Styron with Oak Ridge Winery. “We’re fortunate enough to have a facility that can accommodate that.”
The winery boasts a 50,000-gallon redwood tank tasting room that was once used for wine storage. Nine decades since the first cuttings were planted, today three women lead the business.
“Oak Ridge being the size that it is, owned and operated by one family, and particularly the women in that family is really unique,” says winemaker Laura Durham.
The winery’s operations and vineyards account for 2,500 acres through the Lodi viticultural area, bringing wine bottles to grocery stores across the state and the country.
“We’re one of the only harvest-to-bottle facilities in Lodi, so everything we make for ourselves is done under this roof on this production site, which is kind of unique,” says Durham.
National Women in Wine Day is March 25. The social initiative was started in 2021 by Papapietro Perry Winery in Healdsburg.
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