Heidi Bridenhagen
2023 Women in Wine Awards: Excellence in Winemaking
Wine industry leadership journey: “Virtually every moment of my career has provided opportunities for leadership — including leading teams, collaborating with mentors and mentees, building wine portfolios and wineries, as well as developing vineyards,” Bridenhagen said.
She said every person she speaks with each day provides a chance to lead, encourage and support, noting that these interactions can be active or quite passive. She reminds herself that being a leader does not always mean you are the key decision maker or in the spotlight.
“I’ve had the privilege to work with talented winemaking teams at Argyle in Oregon, Markham and Textbook in Napa, and Dough Wines on the North Coast. Helping people around me succeed has been my best sense of leadership.”
Personal contributions that made an impact: “As winemaker, I developed a portfolio of fine wines at MacRostie Winery in the Russian River Valley that has helped elevate us to the top tier of pinot noir producers in California, while further cementing the reputation owner Steve MacRostie established for our chardonnays,” Bridenhagen said.
Bridenhagen is also Dough Wines’ winemaker. She believes the work she is doing there is crucial to creating a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable food and wine culture, with greater representation and equality throughout the food and wine industries.
“This is something I am very proud to be a part of,” she said.
As director of winemaking for parent company Distinguished Vineyards, Bridenhagen says she is continually learning, asking questions and ultimately helping drive the exceptional quality of wines across the entire Novato-based company’s family of brands
About Heidi and the company
In 2013, at the age of 29, rising star Heidi Bridenhagen was named just the third winemaker at Sonoma County’s MacRostie Winery and Vineyards.
As the winemaker for Dough Wines, Bridenhagen brings a strong scientific background to her winemaking, having first earned a B.S. degree in biochemistry at the University of Colorado at Boulder before traveling throughout Europe, exploring the wines of France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. She also gained invaluable experience making wines at Oyster Bay in New Zealand, and at Sonoma-Cutrer in California.
As a winemaker, Bridenhagen strives to combine her scientific expertise and her creative skills. A believer in the value of exploration and experimentation, she has spent her career working with diverse and acclaimed vineyard programs, most notably in the Sonoma Coast. This has led Bridenhagen to the Dough Wines project, launched in October 2020, where she is utilizing Distinguished Vineyards & Wine Partners’ vineyards and its network of growers and négociants to choose high-quality lots from top AVAs.
Formed in 2008, Distinguished Vineyards is a dynamic mid-size wine and spirits company that includes a collection of iconic, premium brands from around the world. Recognized as benchmarks from their regions, the portfolio includes the highly acclaimed Argyle Winery in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, MacRostie Winery in Sonoma County, Markham Vineyards in Napa Valley, Wither Hills from Marlborough, New Zealand, and FUJI Whisky from Japan.
The company has more than 1,000 acres of sustainably certified estate vineyards and has achieved local certification for sustainable practices at each of its wineries.
Heidi Bridenhagen
Distinguished Vineyards & Wine Partners
Marin County
Director of winemaking
7250 Redwood Blvd., Suite 109, Novato, CA 94945
Website: distinguishedvineyards.com