The Wine World Has a Sexual Harassment Problem

Road to Wine Expert

This episode is not a normal Road To Wine Expert episode. It’s an episode where I talk about my thoughts and feelings related to some heavy topics. It’s probably not best to listen to this one with the kids.

Also, the topics covered here may be sensitive to certain listeners. I’ve titled the episode and listed details in the episode notes as such. But I want to be fair to everyone, and make it clear that you do not have to listen to this involuntarily.

If you’re unsure, it’s probably best to skip this episode and stick to the regular wine content when we return.

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When I read one of the recent headlines from the New York Times:

The Wine World’s Most Elite Circle Has a Sexual Harassment Problem

My immediate response was which one.

I couldn’t even pinpoint who they were talking about.

The world of wine has a sexual harassment problem. Alcohol and sexual assault are so closely tied together.

We have to talk about the bigger interconnected issues of our industry like sexual harassment, sexual assault, gender equality, racism and sobriety.

I want to start by saying that I’m incredibly proud of the brave women in this story for coming forward and the journalism of Julia Moskin and the team at the New York Times for making this happen.

If you are part of this story and you’re listening, know that before this you were one of my wine heroes and your journey as it continues to evolve will continue to inspire me. So thank you.

But, circling back to this headline. Let’s not kid ourselves. It’s not just the Court of Master Sommeliers.

This ugly problem goes far deeper. We can’t brush it off as something only affecting a greatly outnumbered group of women inside a tiny circle of people employed in the wine industry.

This is something bigger.

I recently reread Bianca Bosker’s Cork Dork. I was listening to the audiobook while rucking, which is walking and carrying a weight on your back. I was huffing and puffing on a cold Autumn day, trying to stay warm. The following passage stopped me dead in my tracks.

“I never finished the beer. By then, it was near midnight, and aside from a girl who had come with her boyfriend, I was the only woman left. The combination of the late hour plus the alcohol plus the gender ratio was moving in a predictable direction. I was learning that while the job does have its perks, for women, who are still in the minority, it can come with less pleasant side effects. Already a judge had volunteered to let me spend the night in his “big” hotel room. (I hadn’t asked.) And it was also getting increasingly difficult to ignore one of the sommeliers, who far from sober, had escalated from awkward attempts at flirting to openly groping me. So I went home. To my regular-sized hotel room.”

If this article and this passage don’t make you angry, unsubscribe.

I feel like we have this expectation that men can behave badly because they’ve had too much to drink. Which is ridiculous. This isn’t Mad Men or Animal House, this is today. It’s 2020.

And boys can no longer be boys. And frankly, men all over need to be doing a better job.

As someone who has worked in retail and other parts of the industry, this behavior is not limited to men with fancy pins on their lapels.

My friends have shared their horror stories from working in restaurants, wineries, hospitality and beyond. Even going out with your friends to a bar, you shouldn’t have to worry about protecting yourself.

When you see an intoxicated man at a tasting making a fool of himself, and you have to step in. Cut him off, throw him out, it can’t be tolerated. Don’t tell me it’s a bar or it’s a wine tasting. That’s not an excuse, and it’s definitely not an invitation.

We have to do a better job of identifying this behavior and stopping it immediately. Being a poor excuse for a human being, shouldn’t afford you an opportunity to get a warning, have that get reviewed by committee, get kicked around and be undecided. It has to stop now. It must stop now.

As someone who is trying to help people understand and navigate wine education, I can no longer endorse or support the Court of Master Sommeliers.

I’m going to amend my materials.

I’m going to continue to highlight and amplify other forms of wine education.

There are so many avenues out there, so many more welcoming and inclusive communities.

And that’s what I hope to build here on the Road to Wine Expert Podcast.

I thank you all for listening. I look forward to the continued dialog about this and other big issues. I truly believe that much of the spirit of the wine industry is welcoming and I know that spirit will allow us to create a better version of this industry in the future.