#WomenInWine Wednesday: Jamie Benziger

Who: Jamie Benziger

What Does She Do: Jamie is the winemaker for Imagery Estate Winery, whose catalogue includes close to 30 wines from Sauvignon Blanc to Sangiovese.

Where Does She Come From: Yes, you read her last name right. Let’s just say that winemaking is in her veins. Jamie is the daughter of famed winemaker Joe Benziger.

Imagery was founded in the 1980s by her dad. Before taking over as winemaker in 2017, Jamie received her degree in marketing and wine business. After school, she went on to work in the wine labs at St. Francis and Bogle, as well as travel the world working at different vineyards. Since taking over the reigns, Jamie has continued to pushed the winery to new heights by putting exciting spins on traditional varietals by blending them with ones that might not be as well known. In addition to that, Imagery is also catering to a younger market by creating a cool intersect between technology, art and wine. (Their tasting room constantly features tons of art from up and coming artists.) Their main goal is to get their consumers to broaden their palates.

I’ve had the pleasure of trying their 2017 Pinot Noir. It’s smooth and with just a hint of oak. Notes of strawberry and cherry. It has a bit of Petit Verdot in it which gives it a little more body.

Jamie was just named one of Wine Enthusiast’s 40 Under 40 Tastemakers of 2019. Cheers to Jamie! And in her and Imagery’s honor, continue to Broaden Your Palate.