Today, DiVINes!, the Swiss fair for women winegrowers, opens at the Château de Rolle on Lake Geneva. From 5 to 7 November, women from various wine regions will come together to present their estates and wines. The list of participants includes winegrowers, owners, oenologists and other professionals. It reveals the diversity of work in wine – but does not automatically answer the question of who actually has the final say at an estate.
This is precisely where the more interesting journalistic question begins: who owns the estate, who bears the financial responsibility, and who makes decisions about the vines, the cellar and sales? And when a family estate is handed over, who is considered a potential successor? A woman at a stand is not necessarily the owner; an owner does not necessarily also manage day-to-day operations. Distinguishing between these roles is not nitpicking. It is about the distribution of assets, responsibility and decision-making power.
Visibility is not the same as control
DiVINes! has been held in Rolle since 2021. In 2026, the fair will run for three days for the first time; Swiss women farmers have been announced as guests of honour. On their website, the organisers list women with a wide range of professional titles and business names. Swiss Wine Vaud describes the event as a meeting place for women winegrowers, oenologists, wine merchants and owners. This presents a broad picture of the industry, but does not yet tell us how the individual businesses are organised.
The distinction between visibility and control is central to any examination of wine estates. A business can be family-run without all family members having an equal say in ownership or strategic matters. Conversely, a woman managing an estate may be responsible for decisions even though ownership shares are distributed differently. Without conversations and specific information, neither a general pattern for Swiss wine estates nor an individual story can be inferred from this.
The questions behind the name at the stand
A well-substantiated report would therefore need to ask individual estates: who owns the vineyards, buildings and cellar? Who bears the risks associated with investment and sales? Who decides on vineyard management, winemaking and marketing? And how is a handover being prepared – through inheritance, a sale or another arrangement? Answers would need to be attributed to the women interviewed and, where necessary, checked against information from other parties involved or publicly available business details.
The published list of participants provides an initial selection of potential interviewees, but does not justify claiming that a particular woman is the owner or makes decisions alone. Nor does a personal account given at the fair replace checking how responsibilities are distributed within the business. This distinction matters: a profile of a woman winegrower can bring recognition while leaving the power and ownership structures of her business invisible.
A fair, an opportunity to investigate
The municipality of Rolle confirms the date and venue, while the organisers publish opening hours and participants. This information establishes the event and its focus. However, the public information cited provides no details about the ownership structures, decision-making rights or succession arrangements of individual wine estates. It would therefore be premature to draw conclusions from the programme alone about the position of women in Swiss winegrowing.
Rather, the fair offers a concrete opportunity for journalistic research: those who run an estate should also have the chance to speak about their financial and strategic responsibilities. Not as symbols of visibility, but as sources of information about the work, ownership and future of the estate. A report that takes these questions seriously requires direct conversations – and answers that reach beyond the exhibition stand.
Original reviewed by the editors · 5 November 2026
