One of the truly unique wineries of the Pacific Northwest, Smak Wines focuses on a range of Rose wines based on the time of year. Founder and winemaker Fiona Mak is a graduate of Syracuse University’s hospitality management program. Originally from Hong Kong, Mak had a formidable career in the restaurant industry, making a host of great spots like Morimoto in Philadelphia, Haru Sushi in New York, and Quality Meats, in Manhattan. Mak is also a certified sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers. In 2013 she traveled across country to begin her wine education at the Walla Walla Community College Enology and Viticulture program. Fiona is so incredibly talented and it has been such a pleasure getting to know her over the years. I think you will really enjoy hearing her story in wine. Here is my exclusive interview with Fiona Mak, founder and winemaker at Smak Wines.
OB: How did you decide to become a winemaker?
FM: I was a restaurant manager and sommelier in New York City for a steakhouse before fully entering into the wine industry. Being in the NYC restaurant scene has taught me a lot about the world of wine. I was lucky enough to have the support of my company to study for Sommelier certification exams, and the exposure of fine wines definitely accelerated and solidified my path towards wine. At one point I felt a little stuck, as I was a double minority (Asian, Woman) working in a white male dominated field. My friend Maryam Ahmed told me she was coming to Walla Walla and enrolled in the local Community College Enology & Viticulture program, I decided to go together with her as it would be a great way to round out my wine education by fully immersing myself in wine production. I came to Walla Walla 10 years ago and have never looked back.
OB: What are some of the challenges Asian-Americans face culturally with not only being in the wine industry but becoming a winemaker and having their own wine business?
FM: I was fortunate that my father loved wine when I was growing up and loved to share his knowledge and thoughts about them since I was very young. Wine was pretty much an intrinsic part of my lifestyle but it wasn't true for everyone. Most of my friends back in Hong Kong actually don't drink, and their parents didn't have a habit of drinking either. Wine in general isn't an innate part of a typical Asian lifestyle as a lot of Asian countries produce their own alcoholic beverages - Baiju (Chinese white wine), Japanese Sake, Korean Soju etc. Beer is also very common in the culture as it is more affordable and relates to a lot of social events and goes well with Asian cuisines. Growing up in Hong Kong I was raised in a unique position where there are a lot of expats, and a blend of many East and West cultures. People were slowly introduced to wine, from appreciation to the collective value of cellaring fine wine. I think it's rather hard to imagine yourself as a winemaker when you grow up in Asia, as it's such a foreign concept. However for Asian-Americans born and raised here in the United States, it may not be that far out of reach, but still uncommon. You will have to have some kind of wine background or interest first. My parents, like a lot of Asian parents, had hoped that I would either follow their footsteps and work in finance, or hold a "stable" job like a doctor or a lawyer. In the beginning they really didn't like me stepping outside of the "cookie mold" of college degree > climbing the corporate ladder > married with kids. The challenge is to receive support for stepping outside the stereotype and starting your own business, in a field they may not understand but I guess that's true to any young business owner in any field. The challenge that I have faced was not for my race but for my gender. I think there are many challenges women still face in the wine industry, as women are constantly undermined, belittled and overlooked. The journey to starting a winery was long and hard and you'll have to do a lot of the work yourself but whenever I was stuck I had a lot of mentors to turn to - JF Pellet (Pepperbridge), John Abbott (Devona) , Ali Mayfield (Milbrandt) and JJ Menozzi (Aluvé) are just some of the great support I have received when I was starting the paperwork for the winery. I am blessed to be among such supportive comrades who are not afraid of sharing what and who they know to make sure you're successful.
OB: Talk about the spirit of Smak Wines, wines that I have now enjoyed for many years. What is the motivation behind your brand?
FM: The motivation of SMAK was born in France where I spent a lot of time with my family. I saw first hand the French mentality of associating sunshine with Rosé. It didn’t matter whether it was hot or cold, at the beach or in the snow. I think the US marketing on Rosé, reducing an entire category of wine to one season is to limit creativity and consumer choices. It's like the restaurant industry telling people to only eat beef in Spring. It's absurd.
We are a Rosé exclusive winery from the beginning, for several reasons:
Walla Walla summers are hot with many 100F+ days, which make people crave something light, refreshing and cold to drink.
Rosé are extremely versatile, they can be made from any red skinned grape, which WA state grows a variety of in very high quality
Coming from a food and wine background, Rosé are great food wines as they often have high natural acidity
I wanted to bring the French Rosé mentality into our lifestyle, and make wine drinking a lifestyle.
I also wanted to bring the fun factor of wine back, to remind people to not over complicate the enjoyment of wine.
With all of these reasons in mind, coupled with our Seasonal lifestyle in Walla Walla, I have created seasonal Rosé named after the seasons where the wines themselves emulate the season. I am further developing a new Abstract series, an experimental series of Rosé, so that I can keep exploring and produce more Rosé from the various varieties of grapes we grow in the WA state.
OB: There are so few Asian-American women winemakers not only in the Pacific Northwest but the world of wine. What can we do to help this issue evolve and improve?
FM: I think we have to address the discrepancy for women holding executive positions in our industry in regard to race. Our state has the majority of small boutique wineries that are often owned by one person, a husband and wife team or family. Mid to large size wineries in our state often have no internal structure to promote within. To suggest some solutions to this problem first we need to demand equal pay for men and women in our industry. We need to question - are we supporting the diversity in wine, and the people who are doing something different? Are we doing our best to boost those around us, highlighting other women or minority owned businesses in or relating to our industry? Are we fostering the successes and career development of women? Are we advocating for groups like Diversity in Wine Leadership Forum and the Alliance of Women in Washington Wine (many people think this group is just for women but what they need are support and advocates from all genders)? We need stronger industry-wide DEI programs from our State Wine Commission, regional wine alliances and corporations. At the regional and local level we need better workforce training programs for existing employees such as wine appreciation, AVA history, WSET certifications. I strongly believe in investing in one’s employee through personal enrichment and fair compensation. Lastly, can we change our perspective to make wine more approachable through our language - can we translate our tasting notes? Can we write different tasting notes for the same wine for different cultures? Can we give our consumers the confidence to buy wine over other alcoholic beverages through effective marketing, appropriate pricing, and consumer education?