Kathleen Smith DipWSET

Not all milestones come with a trophy. 🏆 🍷

This weekend at the @vinoinfluencers World Awards in Valladolid, I stood among wine storytellers, professionals & influencers from thirty-four countries — nominated in the Wine Educator Innovation category. I am still holding that feeling close.

Being nominated was never about winning. It was a quiet recognition of years of showing up: the early mornings writing, the late nights editing, the tastings that turn into conversations, the glass that becomes a doorway into someone else’s land, family, and work. Hard work. Dedication. Passion for wine that has never felt like a career so much as a calling I keep answering.

Thank you — to every person who has followed, shared, commented, sat at a tasting, or simply believed that wine education can be warm, sensory, and human.

We would not be here without the stories and journeys of the winemakers. They are the soul of the bottle. Every post, every pairing, every “can you taste the limestone?” begins with them.
A nomination is a beautiful pause. The work continues — the next vineyard walk, the next glass, the next story that deserves to be told with care.
Grateful. Grounded. Still completely in love with this world.

#vinoinfluencers #wineawards #valladolid #wineevent #womaninwine