Amy Bess Cook
Amy Bess Cook has been a working writer for more than 16 years. For half that time, she managed a boutique winery in Sonoma. With a zeal for creative entrepreneurship and a passion for the vine, Amy Bess now works as a writer and brand consultant within the wine industry.
August 13, 2015
Harvesting Goodwill: A Napa Entrepreneur Feasts It Forward
Can hedonism save the world? According to businesswoman Katie Hamilton Shaffer, it’s a fine start.
January 23, 2015
This Year, Find Beauty in Unlikely Places
This year, I vowed to rediscover beauty — to polish my lens, widen my eyes, and look for more good in the world, in my wine glass and far beyond. But how?December 22, 2014
Believe! Wine, Myth, and Legend
'Tis the season to tell far-fetched stories. Especially in the world of wine, where myths and legends pervade.December 1, 2014
Communion: Come Together, Right Now, Over Wine
All this talk of what to serve could very well be ruining our understanding of why we serve it.November 10, 2014
Size Matters: Finding Room for Creativity and Invention
What makes for ideal size is highly variable. Those with less might learn to work better, while those with more seem to have greater impact.November 4, 2014
Vardo in the Vineyard: Romance, Uncertainty, and the Simple Life
Certainly for me — and for many of my winemaking neighbors — a little romance has opened up a lot of possibilities. Embracing uncertainty has allowed me to celebrate unpredictability. Perhaps similarly, growers anticipate the weather each season.October 29, 2014
Living, and Loving, Among Works in Progress
In the midst of this extensive process, how does a winemaker cultivate appreciation for each stage, which inevitably includes the awkward and unexpected? What can we learn from their art?September 22, 2014
Vardo in the Vineyard: O! Pioneers, or the Spirit of Winemaking
I finally get it — some risks are just worth taking. I now revere pioneers; and the wine industry is an ideal place to witness pioneering efforts.September 8, 2014
Vardo in the Vineyard: Reed and Oak, or Flexibility in the Face of a Shakeup
We were all lucky — not just to have survived without greater injury or destruction, but to begin recovering so quickly. Could winemaking have taught our community a little something about coping with the unexpected, long before this disaster struck?August 25, 2014
Vardo in the Vineyard: Dreams and Sacrifice, or “Making It” In Wine Country
The cost of living in Sonoma is impossibly high. Many of my friends and colleagues, approach this problem by commuting, getting roommates, or beating a hasty path to the altar. My lifestyle solution was to live alone in an RV trailer, beholden to no one.August 11, 2014
Vardo In The Vineyard: Disaster Proof Living, or Insights from a Master Grower
Brown thumbs are downright shameful for someone working in the wine business: I sample the fruit, help crush it into must, and peddle the wine. So why can’t I seem to grow the stuff?July 28, 2014
Vardo In The Vineyard: Roots & Wings, or Finding Your Personal Terroir
My airport/vineyard/winery mashup, with its passionate pilots, tinkering mechanics, and creative commotion, is a different sort of place. Somehow, it’s been a fitting (if unlikely) home.
