Quick Conversations In Wine – Amber Pratt from Moraine Winery

The Vancouver International Wine Festival is on and we’ve interviewed a few of the attendees that you can meet at the 2024 Festival. Here’s our Q +A with Moraine Winery’s Amber Pratt from Moraine Winery on the Naramata Bench in the Okanagan Valley. More on the Wine Festival here.

A background in Horticulture led Amber to the Okanagan to join the wine industry more than 10 years ago. A quick learner, she rose through the ranks with vintages at Road 13 and Black Hills wineries in the South Okanagan.  As Winemaker she garnered several prestigious awards with CC Jentsch Cellars for her work with Syrah, Malbec, and Bordeaux varietals. Amber is excited to now be at Moraine Estate Winery, working with Pinot Noir, and becoming a part of the ongoing legacy of the Naramata Bench wine community.

 When and how did you know the wine industry was where you belonged?

Just after my first vintage here, in 2009, when I was offered a full-time cellar hand position. I was thrilled by the fast pace and variety of tasks both inside and outside of the winery, and the wide variety of people and inspiring ideas swirling throughout the industry.

Who inspired you to be in wine? Do you have a mentor?

I did not have anyone who inspired me to be in wine when I discovered that it was even a viable career path, I was dismayed that I didn’t discover it earlier. I’d always loved the sciences, but when I looked at my acquaintances employed in those fields, I never saw it as an exciting end game to pursue when I was younger.

What is your favourite food & wine pairing?

So, so many. But at this very moment, Moraine rosé and tempura ebi chili.

Do you have a favourite style of wine?

I love mouthwatering, high-acid whites like Riesling, Champagne and Sauv Blanc, and ethereal cool-climate Syrah.

When you are not in the vineyard/winery, what are you doing?

Driving my kids around to their millions of activities.

Where did you study/learn to make wine?

Okanagan College is where I learned the specific technical aspects, but on the job is where the true knowledge lies.

Any advice for people wanting to follow in your footsteps?

Just do it – apply for winery or vineyard jobs, work harder than anyone else and be open to learning new skills. Use your eyes and ears, and ask intelligent questions. Be useful. Show up on time. Dress for the weather. Educate yourself. Working in a winery and vineyard requires versatility, the more you can do, the better.

Are you part of an organization for women in wine?

No, but I’m not opposed to it!

Do you have a favourite wine region aside from where you are working/living?

I love them all. Each has unique aspects of terroir, but equally passionate and hard-working people.

What do you love about your current winery/role/job?

The wide variety of tasks throughout the year. Right now, in Winter, it’s all bottling, pruning, and paperwork, but soon it will be barrel-racking and shoot thinning (hopefully, if any shoots grow!).  Just when you begin to get weary of certain jobs, new phases of the year come around again.

I love the blending of science and art, and being a creator of something that makes people happy.

If wine wasn’t your career, what would you be doing?

Another field of creation like perfumery or pâtisserie.