Julia Bandy: Oral History Interview

The Oregon Wine History Archive Podcast

This interview is with Julia Bandy of Soter Vineyards. In this interview, Julia describes how she made her way from culinary school and restaurant management to the world of wine. She speaks about how her skills in leadership, hospitality, and food helped her dive into the wine industry. Julia also discusses the Oregon Wine community and how it thrives on connection. She talks about women in the industry and what changes can be made to improve where the industry is lacking - specifically in the tasting room. She goes on to describe the new generation of winemakers and how she thinks they may impact the wine world. Later she describes working at Soter Vineyards as their Director of Consumer Sales and Marketing. She talks about how they have built their reputation and how their strategies may change in the coming years. She also speaks about their values and says that every decision they make thinks about the environment and people first. She describes it as a company who can stand behind their values. She finishes by describing what she hopes to see in the future of the Oregon Wine Industry, and what she thinks her role in that will be. This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Linfield University Library on February 23, 2021.