Laura Principiano of Zuccardi Q&A
In honor of Women's History Month, we spoke with some of the top women winemakers working in the industry today to learn more about them, their craft, and the wines they produce. Stay tuned throughout the month of March as we update this women in wine series with more interviews and be sure to check out our wine list featuring wineries who have women winemakers on staff.
Laura Principiano, Head of Winemaking at Zuccardi from Mendoza, Argentina.
Laura is also in charge of Research and Development, a role in which she defines the styles and quality of the wines with the Winemaker, Sebastián Zuccardi.
Wine.com: What’s one thing people wouldn’t know or expect about being a winemaker (or your path to becoming one)?
Laura Principiano: Being a winemaker is a life decision, a lifestyle. It is the possibility of creating, discovering, interpreting, and understanding nature. It is the possibility of living and doing something that you are passionate about and never feel that you are working. It is a great challenge if you want that, and the most important things are the place, the grape and the wine. As a winemaker my job is to work behind the scenes to help all of these things be naturally expressed. It is also exciting to be "reborn" with each harvest, because each one is unique and has new challenges. It is also humbling in the sense to be vulnerable, because I understand what nature commands.
W: How would you describe your approach to winemaking? What makes that unique?
LP: My way of winemaking is always to respect the grape, respect its origin and identity and in each harvest, show its best version. This is possible because I am part of a great team where we all collaborate and try to achieve our best interpretation of each grape, plot, vineyard and region. To work in every detail at the vineyard and winery has allowed us to have more knowledge to make better decisions every year and greater respect for what nature gives us. Also, the work at the winery with concrete vessels has allowed us to better reveal the grape’s true identity.
W: In two words, how would you describe the magic of Zuccardi wine?
LP: Purity and identity.
W: What is one piece of advice you would give other women working their way up in the wine industry?
LP: I would say that making wines fills you with joy and is a challenge, but it is one of the most beautiful jobs in the world. That it is working without limits, full of new things every day. I would tell them to be curious, taste wines from all over the world, get to know people, and be interested in the places, because in the end, wines are not only grapes, they are culture, place and people.
W: What’s your can’t-fail food and wine pairing?
LP: Pasta and a very good Bonarda.
W: If we were to take a cellar dive into your personal wine collection, what would we find?
LP: Wines of friends, wines that came from a trip, wines that meant something special, and wines that I like.
Thank you, Laura!
Shop All Zuccardi Wine