Notes From a Friend - Megan Bell
Margins is the brilliant brainchild of Megan Bell, a winemaker working in the Santa Cruz Mountains putting the spotlight on varieties and vineyards on the margins.
In our series Notes From a Friend, we chat with our favorite winemakers, buyers, drinkers, eaters and industry buddies to find out what’s on their mind — 5 questions at a time! First up is Megan Bell of Margins, who’s producing delicious bottles of wines made of underrepresented grapes from underutilized regions and vineyards.
Describe what you do in the wine industry?
MB: I am the winemaker and owner of Margins in Santa Cruz County, CA
What are you hopeful for/how are you trying to leave the world a little better than you found it?
MB: I hire folks who wouldn't normally have an opportunity to work one-on-one with the winemaker during harvest due to lack of experience or marginal identity. They are given the tools they need in a supportive, encouraging, and respectful environment, so that they may not only succeed in the wine production industry at large, but infiltrate their future workplaces to create positive change.
What challenges are you facing within your industry as a small biz owner/hospitality worker/part of wine and beverage?
MB: The challenges are endless. The most pressing ones right now include an inability of domestic wineries to compete with the pricing of wine from regions that are more established or more affordable, consumer preferences changing too quickly and unpredictably for us to have the desired product on the market at the ideal time, and a continually decreasing barrier to entry in wine production, which is causing the market to be totally flooded with product.
What do you wish people knew about wine/your job?
MB: I wish people knew how low the net profit margin is for a small domestic winery. I think a lot of people see a $30 bottle on a shelf and think that the vast majority of that price will go toward net profit for the winery, when it is more likely to be around $1.50, or 5%. It is shockingly low. I think if people had a greater understanding of this, they would be more inclined to support domestic producers who want to keep their prices within reason.
What are you reading/listening to/watching?
MB: I am primarily a fiction reader. I only have time to read for about 30 minutes each night, but I devour stories. So far this year I've read a story about a young French couple accidentally involved in smuggling, another about the heartbreaking challenges of young Indian immigrants in England working in horrendous conditions, and one about a Norwegian man's transition from childhood to adulthood through being left by his father. Also I finally read Kitchen Confidential!