{"id":15006,"date":"2023-04-21T13:02:56","date_gmt":"2023-04-21T13:02:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/21\/meet-2-social-clubs-cultivating-joyful-communities-in-the-wine-industry\/"},"modified":"2023-04-21T13:02:56","modified_gmt":"2023-04-21T13:02:56","slug":"meet-2-social-clubs-cultivating-joyful-communities-in-the-wine-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/21\/meet-2-social-clubs-cultivating-joyful-communities-in-the-wine-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet 2 Social Clubs Cultivating Joyful Communities in the Wine Industry"},"content":{"rendered":"


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The wine industry has a history of exclusivity. Traditionally, consumers are told whether they\u2019re tasting the \u201cright\u201d or \u201cwrong\u201d notes, wine labels are difficult to understand, and information about wines and their producers is hard to come by. Upscale restaurants with extensive wine programs can often feel stuffy and uninviting, and community events where folks outside of the industry are welcome are few and far between.<\/p>\n

Beyond those barriers, a lack of diversity in the wine industry<\/a> has been the elephant in the room for years, with an overwhelming lack of jobs available for those not \u201cin the know.\u201d At wine events, being one of just a few (if any) women, queer folks, or people of color is not an uncommon occurrence. Today, many people are working to change the industry for the better by focusing on inclusivity through community building events and education.<\/p>\n

Wine social clubs like Connecticut\u2019s Palm Wine<\/a> and New York City\u2019s preshift<\/a> are responding to the call for in-person connection and inclusivity, staging exuberant and casual events focused on serving people of color and the LGBTQ+ community.<\/p>\n

By definition, wine social clubs are not<\/em> the same as wine clubs. You don\u2019t purchase your wine in advance, you don\u2019t meet at the same location each time, and you\u2019re not beholden to membership fees. These open-to-the-public social clubs are focused on bringing people together around wine, popping up in different locations for each event, and centering the safety and joy of those most often excluded from the wine scene. Social club founders Julianny G\u00f3mez<\/a> of preshift and Onyeka Obiocha<\/a> of Palm Wine are blending music and culture with natural wine<\/a> as a way to unite communities who haven\u2019t historically been as represented in the industry.<\/p>\n

To be clear, queer people and people of color have always been part of the wine industry\u2014whether they were winemakers, grape farmers, restaurant workers, or wine lovers, they were kept out of the limelight. Centering those communities in wine events is an act of revolution, and preshift and Palm Wine are feeling the love.<\/p>\n

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\n preshift co-founder, Julianny G\u00f3mez<\/span><\/p>\n

Photo by Jonathan Johnson<\/span>
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\u201cThe folks that we interact with on a daily basis\u2014Black folk, people of color, queer folk\u2014are all really interested in trying different beverages,\u201d says Julianny, co-founder of preshift. \u201cWe wanted to break down those walls and foster a loving environment where folks can ask questions [and] where information about the wines is available in a way that works for them.\u201d Julianny and their partner Dante Clark\u2019s NYC-based events pop up in local restaurants, bars, and shops like Krewe<\/a> and Winona\u2019s<\/a>. Each event has custom playlists, uniquely curated natural wine lists, and wine information accessed through a QR code.<\/p>\n

Onyeka\u2014one of the Palm Wine co-founders\u2014crafts his events around fun and spontaneity, popping up around the globe to correspond with his travels in Paris, Barcelona, Montreal, and at home in Connecticut. Often, most of the people there are folks he\u2019s never met before. \u201cWe always have music, but it never turns into a dance party. It’s always just enough so people can get their head bobbing, but allows for genuine connection and conversation. [It\u2019s] fun, inviting, zero pretension, maximum love, and just a really good time trying some amazing wines.\u201d<\/p>\n

These pop-ups don\u2019t exist to sell the wines or lecture about them, although they do create space for conversation about the wines and the issues that surround them. \u201cWhile I don’t think that wine itself is going to change the world, I think it is a space that can allow for broader conversations than just the beverage\u201d, says Julianny. \u201cIt can be an avenue to speak about land access, land practices, how people are being compensated, and who the people harvesting our grapes are.\u201d And during preshift events, those conversations often come up organically.<\/p>\n

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\n Community members at a recent Palm Wine event<\/span><\/p>\n

Photo by Onyeka Obiocha\/Joshua Jenkins<\/span>
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\u201cThe very ethos of Palm Wine is around building community and using great natural wine as a hook to get people in,\u201d says Onyeka. \u201cMore and more, I get people who may have been intimidated or just excluded from the traditional wine world. Natural wine has the ability to speak to folks who aren’t wine drinkers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both Julianny and Onyeka find it important to serve underrepresented communities at these events, as a way to help usher in a space that fosters acceptance and joy. \u201cIf we do it right, we can allow people to be themselves and we can have joyful moments and Lord knows that BIPOC folk and queer folk need moments in which we can shrug the world off for a couple of hours and find some joy,\u201d says Julianny.<\/p>\n

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\nDo you know of a wine social club in your area? Let us know in the comments below!<\/em>
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\n 12 Natural Wines for Those Intimidated by Natural Wine
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