Winemaking is still in its infancy in Thailand, but already we’re challenging stereotypes. You may not realize that the profession is quite unequal gender-wise, but we will soon have Thailand’s first female vintner. The daughter of GranMonte Vineyards founder Visooth Lohitnavy, 20-year-old Nikki is studying the art and science of winemaking in Australia’s University of Adelaide and Hickenbotham Roseworthy Winery. After graduation, she plans to return to Khao Yai, where the seeds of her love for wine were planted.

When I was young, I wanted to be a botanist. We had a house in Khao Yai. I went there quite often, growing plants and living among the trees.

I want to make wines that have less taste and smell of oak, because I want drinkers to feel the real taste of grapes. The climate here is hot, so our grapes are flavorful. There are so many kinds of wine I want to make. I want to experiment with them all: red, white, sparkling.

People still believe that French wine is better than Australian. But I think they’re just not used to the new tastes. Many visitors at our vineyard try Thai wine and like it. And many foreigners, when they eat Thai food at a place that has Thai wines, choose Thai wine.

All that matters is whether you like it or not. I drink what I like depending on what mood I’m in: sometimes I want to drink red wine, sometimes white.

I think the quality of Thai wines meets international standards. We are behind other countries in term of the technology, though. Australia has been making wine for a couple hundred years, but we’ve only had our vineyards for around 15 years. 

It’s true that most of the winemakers are male. But women nowadays can do what men do, and making wine is not about moving oak barrels anymore. So I think we have as much competence as men.

In fact, some even say women can perceive flavors better. And there are many talented female vintners in Australia.     

Winemaking is both an art and a science. To make a good wine, you need the help of technology, but to tell the quality of the wine, you’ve got to taste it.

Creativity is also necessary to make wine. That’s the human element where technology cannot help.

I’m lucky that we have our own vineyard, as I’ve been able to get firsthand experience there. At the university, on the other hand, the focus is more on the lab and winery.

It’s said that there are four kinds of wine drinkers. The first kind drinks to get drunk. The second drinks because other people drink but doesn’t really know how or why. The third has some knowledge about wine and what is the current trend. The fourth drinks wines that they know are good and that they like.

The third type are those who prefer expensive wines. For me, I drink what I like.

In 10 years, I want to see GranMonte produce great quality wine and be known worldwide.

I think our strong point is being a family winery. We produce our own wine with grapes from our own vineyards. We are small, but we focus on the quality.

Wine is a healthy drink—if you don’t drink too much. For me, I like to drink for socializing, but not excessively.