Pursuing Passion, Glass by Glass: Deborah Brenner

Have you ever wondered what your life could be if you followed your dream? Passion plus a chance encounter began Deborah Brenner’s transition from corporate executive to wine entrepreneur.

For 16 years, Deborah traveled the world as a marketer of computer technology used by television and film studios and was involved in four successful technology startups. She found success as an executive but she longed for a change and to unleash her entrepreneurial spirit. From 2002 to 2005, Deborah ran her own marketing and public relations firm and worked with many prestigious companies. But her passion for food and wine led to a trip to the Napa Valley and a fortuitous lunch with Karen Cakebread from Cakebread Cellars.

Curiosity and her journalism education prompted Deborah to do more research on women in the winemaking business. The idea for the book Women of the Vine was born, and Deborah was soon trekking to California to interview passionate (and famous) winemaking women entrepreneurs. In the process, Deborah realized that along with the book, she could champion these women more directly by going into the business herself, so the Women of the Vine® label was born.

Women of the Vine was selected in December 2007 by Wine Spectator magazine as Critical Reading, the best new books of the year for any wine lover’s library. Deborah was awarded the 2010 NYC National Association of Women Business Owners Signature Award, the 2009 NY Small Business Administration Women in Business Champion of the Year and the University of Delaware Presidential Citation Award for Outstanding Achievement.  Deborah resides in New York.