Producer Spotlight: Susana Balbo

Susana Balbo spent two decades in winemaking before starting her own project in 1999. Over 25 years later, she is still one of Argentina's most iconic figures.

Originally Susana wanted to study nuclear physics, but with the political instability of Argentina in the 70s it was impractical for a girl from the remote mountain region of Mendoza to travel for education. Instead, she studied the vineyards she was surrounded by, and graduated at the top of her class to become Argentina's first female oenologist in 1981. As you can imagine, it was no cakewalk carving out a career for herself in an otherwise all-male field. She finally landed her first winemaking job in the even more remote and more mountainous town of Cafayate and immediately made an impact by changing the flabby, unctuous Torrontés wines of the time into bright, lifted examples of aromatic complexity. She became known as "The Queen of Torrontés," among her many other accolades. If you'd like to try an example of her white winemaking, consider picking up:

Susana didn't stop at revolutionizing Torrontés though. She has since been elected as president of Wines of Argentina multiple times (unsurprisingly, she was the first woman to serve in that capacity). Under her leadership, Argentinian wine exports basically quintupled - we all might not be drinking Malbec if it wasn't for her! Speaking of Malbec, she makes a good one:

Today, Susana's children work in the winery, and she continues to produce excellent wine. She has lifetime awards, made an indelible impact on the world of wine, and even served in Argentina's National Congress for two years. Her style continues to be elegant and precise, crafting wines that express refined authenticity and versatile drinkability. We encourage you to discover them for yourself!

If you'd like to learn more about Susana Balbo's story (and it's far more interesting than we've been able to summarize here), check out this interview to hear it in her own words, and feel free to peruse our collection of products from women owners and winemakers: