A Toast to Friendship!

Miriam Puentes and Lola Llamas; two Latina winegrowers and their passion for Celebrating Family and Friends.

Napa Valley winemakers and business partners Lola Llamas and Miriam Puentes look forward to the day when they can toast the end of the COVID-19 pandemic with glasses of Las Amigas Cuvee, the new wine they imagined and brought to fruition this year.

This sparkling wine embodies the two Latinas innovative approach to winemaking, the creation of a joint venture named Las del Vino, as well as a milestone for women in California's wine industry. "It is the first time that two Latino women here in Napa Valley have come together to promote a wine, and a sparkling wine," Miriam said. "Our goal," Lola explained, "is not only to support one another and join sales forces, but to empower all women to be their best selves”.

Las Amigas Cuvee is produced and marketed by Honrama Cellars, which is owned by Miriam and Juan Puentes and by Llamas Family Wines, which is owned by Lola and Oscar Llamas.

Both these Mexican-owned vineyards were launched about a dozen years ago, inspired by a desire to pay homage to the proprietors fore bearers and as an expression of pride in the contributions of Hispanic immigrants to the wine industry and farming in California.

"We are very proud and humble to be here," Miriam said, "and to be part of this great valley, the wine country." The idea for the new sparkling wine was conceived during the COVID-19 outbreak. "Lola and I," Miriam said, "happened to be neighbors, lived close by and we took walks together as friends talking about everything we were going to do during the pandemic." In was during this period, the region's major newspaper, the San Francisco Chronicle published a story about how Honrama Cellars was weathering COVID-19's social and economic disruption.

Miriam said she was elated by this publicity and to share her joy with Lola she suggested that two competing vineyards cross promote each other's business on Instagram. "It was going to be competition, but it was going to be good competition" she said.

This collaboration started in May 2020, Lola said. Today, their Instagram page, Las del Vino, features scores of photos and has hundreds of followers. Going forward, Miriam, who was born in Mexico City, and Lola, in the Napa Valley, wanted to turn this cooperation into something that could be bottled. Since neither of the vineyards produced a sparkling wine, the amigas agreed this is what they would make in the future, "but luckily it happened sooner than later," Lola said.

Lola and Miriam shared what their plan with their husbands while sitting in a restaurant, R+D Kitchen, in Yountville. "They were happy for us," Miriam said. The two amigas quickly went into action, tackling details, like name and labeling. Their cuvée would be a blend of wines from both vintners and would consist of 60 percent Pinot Noir and 40 percent Chardonnay.

They also envisioned their sparkling wine as appropriate for special events, such as a wedding, and anytime when people want to enjoy wine.

Currently, Las Amigas Cuvee is a "micro," Miriam said with an initial production of 200 cases. The wine is sold on both vineyard's websites for $65 a bottle, at the Honorama tasting room, at some Napa restaurants and to friends and family.

While the cuvée embodies a special relationship between two otherwise competing winemakers, both have been drawn into the industry with more than a desire to produce distinctive wines.

"It is not easy," Miriam said, "when you get into the wine business, you can't get in expecting to make a lot of money - you have to have alternate reasons."

For Honrama Cellars, Miriam said, the underlying motivation is to pay homage to her father Honorio Ramirez-Mata who while working at a major vineyard for about 20 years dreamt of making his own wine someday.

While Ramirez passed away before he could fulfill this aspiration, his daughter Miriam was determined to carry his dream forward and ultimately became a reality in 2008 when the Puentes couple launched Honrama Cellars. The name they chose for their enterprise was derived from Miriam father's name.

Honrama Cellars has grown to a point where it now produces 1,200 bottles of rosé, Cabernet, Pinot noir and Sauvignon blanc along with the cuvée. Various family mem- bers help in the production of these wines.

Llamas Family Farms also is a passion project and was started, Lola said, to hon- or her husband's family and leave a legacy for their children. Also, Oscar Llamas, a son of immigrants, dreamt of making his own wine. In 2009, he and Lola, a long- time paralegal, went into the winemaking business. Their boutique winery produces 300 to 500 cases per year and focus on Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.

"We source our grapes from Stagecoach Vineyard and a lot of Llamas family work at our little area we lease," Lola said. The couple needed a winemaker and their nephew, Alejandro "Alex” Castillo Llamas took on this role and became a partner in the enterprise.

Looking ahead, Lola and Miriam want their Las Amigas Cuvee grow as both a brand and as reminder of what they achieved working together.

"What better way to show camaraderie, to show two businesses with their own visions are able to come together, driven by the women of the business," Miriam said.

"For us," she added, "to have a sparkling wine represents friendship, it represents everyday celebrations and now going out of the pandemic there is always going to be a celebration."