Reception celebrates oenophiles’ success

Two alumni who credit wine as the inspiration for their work were honored by the Department of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management in April.

Deborah Brenner, AS ’88, is the owner of Women of the Vine Cellars winery and author of the book Women of the Vine, and Thomas Stiltz, AS ’69, ’72M, is a painter, art director and photographer who is renowned for his paintings of wine bottles and glasses.

Stiltz began a career as a commercial photographer, but after a few years, he realized he wanted to earn his living by painting. One day, a woman in California asked him to put one of her wines in a painting, and today, his work hangs in galleries across the nation. See his work at [www.sohoeditions.com/artist.php?artist=stiltz].

At the reception, he unveiled a painting, which is the second work he has donated to UD. They hang in the Darden Bistro and in Vita Nova, the student-run gourmet restaurant.

Brenner told the group gathered at the book signing that her writing and the winery itself are celebrations of women winemakers and of the art of wine making. “As Tom uses oil paint and canvas, winemakers use dirt and grape,” she said.

Brenner created Women of the Vine Cellars to be the first wine importing and marketing company to unite award-winning women winemakers under one label, she said.

The Women of the Vine Cellars label now appears on four limited production wines that can be seen at [www.womenofthevine.com].