Welcome to the third in our new series Women in Wine! We’re honored to introduce you to superstar Caroline Guthrie, owner of Guthrie Family Wines and Stewart Cellars. A seemingly always-on-the-go winemaker/mom/wife/amazing woman achiever (goals!), Caroline graciously took time out of her non-stop schedule to give us a peek into her life at the helm of not one, but TWO wineries here in Sonoma and Napa Valley. (We were lucky to have the opportunity to work with her on furnishing the stunning Stewart Cellars tasting room patio a few years back, and it’s still one of our teams fave spots!)

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Why wine, what got you started in the wine industry?

Working in the wine industry was never part of my grand plan, but my parents have always been wine connoisseurs, so I suppose it was ingrained in me at a young age. Couple that with my love for chemistry and its a match made in heaven. But it really wasn't until I sat in on a blending meeting with a well-known winemaker in the Napa Valley that I realized I really had a knack for it. I left that meeting with a job offer to work in the cellar at a winery in Argentina, and I haven't looked back since!

What are some highlights and challenges to this journey?

The main highlight is the interesting people I meet. In the wine industry, I certainly meet many winemakers, but I also meet many chefs, farmers, graphic designers, event planners, chocolatiers, and interior designers. I'm more of a math and science girl, so to have so many artistic people around me is just an absolute treat. The biggest challenge of the wine industry is how competitive it is. Napa Valley and Sonoma Valley attract the most talented winemakers from all across the world, so you better bring your A-game or you don't stand a chance!

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What or who has been your greatest influence in business and why?

My greatest influence in business is actually my husband, Blair. He is the complete opposite of me when it comes to our interests or how we tackle tricky situations, but he is the hardest worker I know and is so passionate about winemaking and viticulture. And even though I only take his advice 50% of the time (though he would say less), I like bouncing ideas off of him and working through hypotheticals. He is my best friend and my number one fan, and he gives me the encouragement I sometimes need to take the risk and go for the challenge.

How do you personally define business success? Is it money? Freedom? Influence? Creative expression and innovation? Something else?

I like to set goals. Whether they are yearly, monthly, daily, even hourly! When I set a goal for the business, it is often revolving around monetary growth. Because at the end of the day, in order to have some freedom, you need money.

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What is a daily ritual you live by?

Would it be a cliché if I say coffee? Except that I only drink decaf... I stopped drinking caffeine when I became pregnant with our first child. It was so miserable kicking the caffeine addiction, I decided I wouldn't get back on the caffeine bandwagon. So now coffee for me is literally just a ritual... a warm, delicious, foamy ritual.

What do you do for encouragement or to be motivated?

I run, and I don't stop. I do all my best thinking while running and I like to physically push myself to my absolute limit, and then keep going. It reminds me that I'm capable of doing hard things.

What is a typical day like for you?

A typical day starts with a morning run and then my husband and I make a mad dash to get lunches made and the kids off to school. I'll often head to the tasting room in Yountville or will work out of my car scrambling from meeting to meeting. My favorite meetings are the ones in the vineyards though. Fresh air, walking amongst the vines, taking stock of what's to come that harvest, it can be very therapeutic. In the evenings, my husband and I will make dinner and sit down at the table with the kids to catch up on our days. Finding the balance between work and family life will forever be a challenge, but we seem to be in a good spot right now. Once we put the kids to bed, I sequester myself to our bedroom to watch whatever show is trending at the time and tackle a gargantuan pile of laundry.

What are you most excited about at work right now? What keeps you up at night?

Because of the smoke taint issues from the wildfires, we chose not to pick 90% of our fruit in 2020. And while that was an easy decision since we would never make wine from fruit that has been exposed to wildfire smoke, it certainly put us in a precarious position. So to fill the void, we're rolling out with new wines and varietals that we've never made before. It's a really exciting process, from winemaking all the way to label design. As for what keeps me up at night, isn't it obvious? Wildfires!

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What do you suggest is the best way to experience your wine locally or from afar? What are your offerings?

If more "off the beaten path" varietals are your jam and you prefer a minimalist winemaking approach, then you will certainly find something interesting within Guthrie Family Wines. We make Carbonic Carignan, Picpoul Blanc, and Grenache just to name a few. For Stewart Cellars, we like to highlight certain appellations with the varietal it's well-known for, like Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir and Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. We keep it 100% varietal, too, so each varietal can really shine. Both Guthrie Family Wines and Stewart Cellars can ship almost anywhere in the US, and you can often find our wines in restaurants and bottle shops both locally and throughout the country to the East coast.

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What are some of the environmental impacts of winemaking in the Valley?

Monoculture is certainly a big concern. The agricultural practice of growing only grapevines and nothing else results in a lack of biodiversity and upsets the natural balance of the soil. What we need to strive for is polyculture in the vineyards, and in agriculture in general. By planting seeds or letting wild plants grow between the rows of vines and around the borders of the vineyard, we can preserve the soil and aid in the development of a healthy microbiological ecosystem. There is also a great amount of concern over synthetic and man-made herbicides and insecticides being used in vineyards throughout the valley. For that reason, we only make wine from organically grown grapes.

What is it like being a smaller winery in an industry saturated with winemakers?

There is certainly lots of competition with so many wonderful winemakers in our region, but what we notice most being a smaller winery is that so many wineries around us are owned by large corporations. There are not many family owned-family run wineries left and it can be a challenge competing for market share with a large corporation that can simply buy their position onto the shelf at the supermarket or onto the wine list at a restaurant. Luckily, being a smaller winery, we have the ability to innovate quickly, and because our focus is on quality and less on quantity, we garner loyal customers and club members that stick with us for the long haul.

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What is next for your company?

At Guthrie Family Wines, we have a Pétillant Naturel Hard Apple Cider that we'll be releasing in the coming months. It was a fun way for us to make something new from the 2020 vintage since so much of the fruit was lost to smoke damage. At Stewart Cellars, we are really starting to focus more on our Wine Club and having interesting new wines for them to enjoy. We have Wine Club members that have been with us since our inception, and they have been asking us to make a sparkling wine, so we did it! We cannot wait to release it this Fall.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received?

Don't sweat the small stuff. Remember when that book came out in the late 90s? The full title was "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff... And It's All Small Stuff". Such a catchy title and sage advice! (Although, I disagree slightly... it's not all small stuff!).

Big thank you to Caroline - you are incredible and we are inspired!

Be sure to follow along on Instagram: Guthrie Family Wines and Stewart Cellars!