Growing up on her family’s vineyard in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Jessica Solanki (OEVI ’21) learned early on about the important work that went into caring for the land.

Though she was well versed in traditional farming practices, it wasn’t until she grew older that she came to understand how much else is involved in helping crops to thrive.

And that is where she found her passion.

The science of agriculture sparked drive in the Brock University graduate, who is now a Niagara grape grower and winemaker in her own right.

Jessica Solanki (OEVI ’21) is managing her family’s Niagara vineyard and recently launching her own winery with her sister.

Solanki, 31, launched Liebling Wines in 2023, which she co-owns alongside her sister Alison Oppenlaender. She also co-manages the family’s Huebel Grapes Estates with her brother Aaron Oppenlaender.

As Chair of the Grape Growers of Ontario’s Next Gen Committee, Solanki hopes to inspire girls and women to pursue careers in the male-dominated field of agriculture, specifically around the science of the grape and wine industry.

“I like getting into classrooms, talking to young people and showing them that there is a spot for them in agriculture; there is a spot for women,” she says.

After all, Solanki knows how important role models can be.

She says her mentors were instrumental in her decision to join the family business after university, and to eventually venture out with her own winemaking career.

Among those inspiring her path was Debbie Inglis, Brock Professor of Biological Studies and Director of the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI).

Inglis, a former grape grower herself, is one of only three women to ever be named Grape King by the Grape Growers of Ontario, taking the honour in 2010.

“She really showed me the other side of agriculture, the science side, which I just love,” says Solanki.

She also took inspiration from women like Emma Garner (OEVI ’02), a Brock graduate who is now Ontario Director of Winemaking for Andrew Peller, ltd., Canada’s largest premium wine producer with wineries in British Columbia and Ontario and partnerships around the globe.

“When we would have events at Brock, people like Emma would be there. They would be these powerhouse women that were just so knowledgeable,” says Solanki. “I was like, ‘I want to do that. I want to be you.’”

Garner built her career from the ground up as an artisan winemaker, making small batches while honing her craft.

A recent Brock University Oenology and Viticulture graduate, Nirvana ChanChow (OEVI ’24) is breaking into the grape and wine industry with big hopes for a long career.

“But that started to grow,” she says.

As she gained more experience with the Peller team, she began to “help strategize where the company should focus from a production standpoint and an overarching brand standpoint.”

“It’s been a fun progression,” she adds.

Garner’s words of advice for the next generation of women and girls entering the field: “never settle.”

“Stay open,” she says, “and don’t think the position you are in today is where you will stay. Continue to push for what it is you want.”

Nirvana ChanChow (OEVI ’24) knows all too well the importance of striving for a dream.

The Brock alumna from Trinidad and Tobago found her passion for the wine industry during her time at the University.

She is now a Winery Technician at Cave Springs Vineyard in the small Niagara community of Jordan, proudly bringing her knowledge to the table in the male-dominated field.

Working primarily around men, she credits her coworkers for being supportive allies in the fight for equality and inclusion in the industry.

After one year immersed in the field, ChanChow is certain she made the right career choice.

“No day is the same. I do a little bit of everything from cellar work, to being in the vineyard, bottling and also in the lab. I love it,” she says, adding she looks forward to seeing where her journey takes her from here.