Michaela Rodeno and Julie Williams were mothers of young children and busy wine professionals in Napa Valley in the early 1990s. When their kids started coming home from school with anti-drug pamphlets equating wine with heroin, they knew something had to be done.

“This caused considerable confusion in households where wine on the dinner table was customary,” recalled Rodeno, who at the time was CEO of St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery in Rutherford. Her children wondered, “Why are you making drugs?”

“They were curious,” she said. “In our household, we simply replied, ‘We’re not making drugs,’ and they were satisfied.”

But there was a neo-Prohibitionist movement afoot, and the anti-alcohol furor landed hard on women, particularly when it came to pregnancy, Rodeno said. It bothered her, and she soon found a kindred spirit in Williams (now Johnson), then co-owner of Frog’s Leap Winery in Rutherford. Both believed there was nothing wrong with wine consumption in moderation, and they wanted to work to counter the anti-wine hysteria of the times.

They founded Women for WineSense for that purpose, and 25 years later, the organization will celebrate its silver anniversary at its national conference April 30-May 2 in Napa.

“We were dreaming about what if one of us was to sit down and tell it like it really is?” Johnson said. “Could any of us sit down and hold our own in a discussion against the specific attack against women, against wine, against women with a family? And the answer was yes, and that’s what we proceeded to do.”

Margrit Mondavi hosted the first gathering of like-minded wine women on Aug. 7, 1990, at Robert Mondavi Winery in Oakville. Among those in attendance were such prominent winemakers and wine industry leaders as Rosemary Cakebread, Suzanne Chambers, Beth (Novak) Milliken, Nancy Andrus, Dawnine Dyer, Paula Kornell, Mary Novak, Cathy Corison and Margaret Duckhorn. They called themselves Women for WineSense.

Their collective energy now focused, the group devoted itself to a “mantra of moderation,” as Rodeno would call it, dedicated to spreading the word on wine’s health benefits, using solid but then little-publicized scientific research as backing.

Hundreds of pages of studies were copied (pre-Internet) for distribution, while letter-writing campaigns and visits to Washington, D.C., promoted the message that healthy wine consumption was possible.

“The public debate at the time was one of extremes,” Rodeno said. “Laissez-faire libertarians battled with media-savvy anti-alcohol forces, with no one speaking up on behalf of the moderate middle.”

The efforts led to a 1991 cover story in the trade magazine Vineyard & Winery Management, which drummed up more support and a $10,000 donation from Marvin Shanken of Wine Spectator magazine. It was such a generous offer that when Shanken told Rodeno of it, she said she almost fell off a bench.

A Portland, Ore., chapter launched in 1992, followed soon by groups in New York City, Seattle and Rochester, N.Y. Then, in 2001, Morley Safer interviewed French researcher Dr. Serge Renaud for a segment of the “60 Minutes” TV show and unveiled the principles of what would become known as the “French Paradox.” Fundamentally, Renaud’s research had shown that the French people’s ability to enjoy rich and some would say unhealthy foods, and live longer on average than Americans, was thanks to their moderate consumption of red wine.

The neo-Prohibitionist wave quickly collapsed.

“Overnight, red wine with meals became part of our lifestyle,” Rodeno said.

With that, Women for WineSense began to shift its focus away from battling legislation meant to scare people away from wine and evolve into what it is today: a way for people (men are welcome, too) interested in wine to learn more about it and to find others who share their enthusiasm.

Chapters continue to open across the country, with the founding Napa/Sonoma chapter robust at 300-plus members, many of whom work in the wine industry. In 2004, the organization launched what are now popular professional roundtables.

It continues to draw new faces. A few years ago, Jonjie Lockman moved to Sonoma from Atlanta for a wine marketing job and started looking for professional organizations to help her make new friends and learn more about wine. She happened across a Women for WineSense poster in her office and was intrigued.

“I made a bold decision to attend the next upcoming event, alone,” she remembered. “Despite my dread of making small talk with strangers, I made friends right away. I love what it’s all about, connecting people who share a passion so they can learn from one another, support one another and thrive.”

The experience was so positive that Lockman is now the national president of Women for WineSense, a volunteer position.

The group’s mission statement stems from a belief that wine enhances and enriches everyday life. It also promotes the appreciation and responsible enjoyment of wine, as well as supporting the success and professional development of women in wine and associated
industries.

New chapters have recently launched in San Francisco, Texas Hill Country (in and around Austin), central Florida and Pittsburgh, Pa. In 2013, the national organization hosted “Girls Gone Willamette,” a tour of Oregon’s Willamette Valley wine region.

Women for WineSense’s 2015 Grand Event and 25th Anniversary Celebration includes visits to wineries and vineyards, educational sessions about food and wine at the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, and keynote speeches by Rodeno and Johnson.

For Laura Hagar Rush, Qu’est-ce Que C’est is the name she gave her Sonoma Aperitif brand beverages in response to U.S. regulations that prevent her from calling them aperitifs.

One of the region’s newest delicacies, Hagar’s ethereal blends of wine and vodka infused with fruits, herbs and flowers are aromatic and refreshing, meant to be sipped before a meal to whet the appetite and awaken the senses. But the federal definition of an aperitif allows only the addition of herbs and spices to wine and spirits, not fruit. When Hager learned this, she came up with Qu’est-ce Que C’est (kes-kuh-say) as a fanciful name for her beverages.

Hagar produces her elixirs at her new winery, Sonoma Aperitif, in Penngrove, in the former tasting room of Eagle Ridge Winery on the old Denman Creamery property. Her inspiration came in a singular moment in Berkeley, where a friend was making aperitifs in a garage and offered her some.

“When I tasted one made with bergamot,” she said, “I thought, ‘Why have I never tasted this before? Why doesn’t this exist?’”

Hagar, a graphic artist and writer, set out to create it, first by immersing herself in the story of aperitifs and then experimenting with batch after batch in her own garage in Forestville.

Fruit aperitifs have a history that goes back centuries in Western Europe, where they have long been made throughout the French countryside and in Spain and Italy. Their ancestors include fruit ratafias, vins maison and vins de grand-mére, delicate drinks typically made at home with family recipes passed down through generations. In recent times, French feminists, eager to shine a light on the creativity of their female predecessors, have generated new interest.

With history and those few tastes in Berkeley to guide her, Hagar realized that it was essential for her to find the right wine to infuse. “A wine needs to be lively and have plenty of acid,” she explained, adding that Sauvignon Blanc, the classic choice, and Pinot Grigio both work. Chardonnay doesn’t, as infused flavors turn flat when mixed with Sonoma’s signature white wine.

While classic aperitifs such as Campari (very bitter and best with soda or in cocktails), Lillet (white and red blends of wine and fruit liqueurs) and licorice-flavored Pernod are produced to exacting (and secret) recipes to have consistent aromas and flavors, Hagar’s aperitifs are seasonal, relying on whatever is fresh at any given time of year.

The Grapefruit Qu’est-ce Que C’est, for example, is light on the palate, a little bit bitter, a little bit sweet and a whole lot refreshing. More substantial is the Vin de Noix, made from green walnuts, vanilla, nutmeg and other spices infused into Syrah wine.

For fruit, she gleans from farmers markets, friends’ trees and those of strangers. Unharvested fruit signaled to her that some rare varieties (she used yuzu, a hard-to-find citrus, from a tree in Sunnyvale for her first batch) might be hers for the picking.

Now Hagar’s citrus comes primarily from a test orchard established 20 years ago in Forestville by UC Davis. After more than a dozen varieties of citrus were planted to see what might grow this far north, the trees were given just minimal care, with no special protection during freezing temperatures. The only variety to truly thrive is the Japanese tangerine, but some of the other trees, though struggling, still produce delicious fruit and the farmer invites neighbors to pick whatever they can use.

Hagar keeps her eyes and ears open, watching for trees laden with fruit and listening to recommendations from friends. Last fall, she found black figs and an unidentified variety of pear in Penngrove, not far from her winery. Before long, it was one of her newest creations, a beguiling drink with the perfume of fig in the aroma, a hint of pear on the first sip, and a rich fig flavor throughout. Adding sparkling wine, a traditional way of enjoying these aperitifs, makes an irresistible cocktail.

The aging room at Sonoma Aperitif is filled with dozens of 5-gallon carboys, glass jugs filled with wine and sliced or crushed fruit. Some will sit for two or three weeks, others longer, before they are siphoned off, cold-stabilized overnight, and in some cases, strained through cheesecloth, bottled and labeled by hand with Hagar’s beautiful drawings.

Sonoma Aperitif was bonded in the spring of 2014 and made its first sale, of Grapefruit Qu’est-ce Que C’est, in mid-November, after the long approval process that led to the unusual moniker. The goal is to produce about 600 cases a year.

The Grapefruit aperitif is available year-round, with a second signature release each season. Small-batch bottlings are produced when Hagar is inspired by found fruit.

And she is at work on additional products. Aperitif jams, made from a blend of macerated fruit from the infusions and fresh fruit, await legal approval. Soon there will be shrubs (blends of macerated fruit and vinegar), and Hagar is experimenting with making her own vinegar to create these refreshing, nonalcoholic beverages.

With spring looming on the calendar, this is an ideal time to segue from bigger, denser red wines to whites, rosés and lighter reds, though depending on the weather, there are still plenty of excuses to indulge in the heavier stuff, too. The occasions vary in importance, from the frivolity of St. Patrick’s Day (a good time to also consider tippling a whiskey) to Earth Day, a fine kickoff to the planting season and stocking up on earthy Pinot Noir.

PINOT NOIR FOR ST. PATRICK’S DAY

If you like:
Siduri 2012 Van der Kamp Vineyard Sonoma Mountain Pinot Noir ($48)
From the wilds of Sonoma Mountain, as green in springtime as an Irish meadow, the Van der Kamp Vineyard produces a compellingly intense wine. This Pinot is a mix of black tea and spicy pomegranate wrapped in smooth, velvety tannins, with excellent structure and length.

Then try:
Fritz 2012 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir ($30)
Oaky and full-bodied, this quick-footed welterweight Pinot Noir provides big-boned layers of spice and herb around a core of dense blackberry and black cherry. Like March, it comes in like a lion and out like a lamb.

RED BLENDS FOR DAYLIGHT SAVINGS

If you like:
Francis Ford Coppola 2012 Sonoma County Director’s Cut Cinema ($39)
As day blurs into night, enjoy this blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel with touches of Petite Sirah and Syrah that’s aged in a combination of French and American oak. Soft in cola spice, with medium acidity and medium weight, it’ll help you through the transition from wintry foods to lighter fare.

Then try:
Gundlach-Bundschu 2012 Sonoma County Mountain Cuvée ($20)
Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot find companionship in this approachably smoky, leathery mix of black and red fruit that’ll please many palates and pocketbooks. On the finish, expect bittersweet coffee and chocolate, accents worth pairing with a roast or grilled, red-sauced pizza.

VIOGNIER FOR EASTER BRUNCH

If you like:
Thumbprint Cellars 2013 J & B Schmidt Vineyard Dry Creek Valley Viognier ($36)
Enjoyed before or after the Ramos gin fizzes, this fragrant Viognier will complement the wide range of eggy foods on the table. It offers jasmine and beeswax aromas and a full-bodied frame of fleshy apricot, peach and honeydew melon — other pairing considerations.

Then try:
Anaba 2012 Landa Vineyard Sonoma Valley Viognier ($28)
A consistently solid and pretty wine from a single vineyard, this Viognier dances in highlights of wet stone and apricot, swirling fancifully on the tongue in acidity. Its lack of flash is more than made up for by its sophistication and subtlety, and it finishes forcefully in spice.

RHONE-STYLE REDS FOR EARTH DAY

If you like:
Palmeri 2011 Sonoma County Dark & Brooding Wine ($54)
Mountain-grown grapes from the Dry Creek and Alexander valleys contribute to this dark, dense wine that fits its name. It’s brooding, indeed, with blackberry, currant and gamy meat character and firm tannins that soften on the finish. Sublime seasonings of toasted oak, black pepper, dark chocolate and vanilla bean creep slowly onto the palate.

Then try:
Preston of Dry Creek 2012 Dry Creek Valley L. Preston Red ($36)
A complex blend of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre, Carignane and Cinsault, the wine has refreshing acidity and layers of wild raspberry and licorice flavors. Not overly oaked, it’s instead on the floral, velvety side. It has plenty of structure to match with food, or sip it on its own.