Who Gretchen Glasscock is and Why You Should Read Her Book(s)
More Reviews: Texas Wine Pioneers - https://www.advancingtexaswine.com/texas-wine-pioneers-free-review-copy/
In the early seventies, when America began to awaken to locally sourced food and wine, Gretchen Glasscock, returned to Texas from the East with a degree from Columbia University and a penchant for research. Taking over management of the family’s 20,000 acres of ranch land and seeking to diversify their interests, she upended a Texas A&M Study asserting that all Texas was a hot and humid climate suitable for growing only jug wines. She identified the region around Blue Mountain in Fort Davis, as cool and crisp, like Napa or parts of France. Before planning and planting her vineyard, Glasscock proceeded to bring in renowned viticultural and enology experts to guide her and others in developing what has become a multi-billion dollar Texas agribusiness.
Wine Pioneers provides new details recorded by a Texas wine pioneer, advocate, activist and entrepreneur who lived it. Her groundbreaking research and hard fought wine legislation laid the foundation and enabled the development of an award winning Texas wine industry.
This is a tale of epic battles and larger-than-life personalities, including iconic global winemakers, titans of the wine industry, newcomers who wanted to create this groundbreaking new industry and Texas legislators who either caved or fiercely fought the well-financed liquor lobby that had one goal: to kill change.
It explores the future of the Texas wine industry, particularly in this present moment of a pandemic that has forced wine-tasting rooms and wine festivals to shut down. Glasscock’s solution is to establish an online wine sales platform for all Texas wineries to be able to market their wine online and deliver it to a wine lover’s door, in a way that will create a new prosperity for the Texas wine industry. AdvancingTexasWine.com
Bio
After graduating from Columbia University in New York City, Glasscock returned home to manage her family's South Texas ranchland and minerals. She sought to diversify their interests by exploring grape production and wine making in Texas. Glasscock challenged the first definitions of Texas grape-growing regions, planted the first commercial vinifera grape vineyard in Texas, helped form the now Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association and passed the historic landmark legislation, the Farm Winery Act, HB 2229, which laid the foundation and enabled the development of a multibillion-dollar Texas wine industry.
She moved on from the wine industry to pioneer on the Internet. Gretchen Glasscock was founding web publisher at AdvancingWomen.com, is a past member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO-San Antonio). She co-founded Advancing Women in Leadership Journal, first on-line professional, refereed journal for women in leadership. Glasscock has developed, executed and advised the strategic direction for websites for professional and business organizations, universities and software developers in the U.S. and Europe. Glasscock’s websites have numerous awards including Dow Jones Award and Beatrice-Yahoo Top Site, and been featured in Elle, Self, & Fast Company magazines, among others.
Glasscock is all about building community and making work faster and easier by using less money, more brain power, automation, smart outsourcing and powerful alliances.
