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Katja Newman
Chapter President

Katja Newman, Ph.D., is Managing Partner of La Cienega Vineyard, located off Chalk Hill Road in Sonoma’s renowned Alexander Valley. Family-owned and woman-led, La Cienega is certified sustainable, producing premium Cabernet Sauvignon grapes on 16 acres of ideal hillside terrain. Katja directed the move from selling grapes to producing their vineyard-designate, award-winning label in 2018. She serves on the DEI Committee of the Alexander Valley Winegrowers Association. A political scientist specializing in democratization, electoral law, executive power, and constitutional change in Latin America, she began her career supporting civic development and political party-building in the Western Hemisphere.

Jessica Courter
Events Director

Jessica Courter has been an event producer and wine lover for most of her adult life and brings her naturally ebullient spirit to every event she executes. It was through her international travels where her enjoyment for wine turned into a love affair. ‘I’ve always found one of the best ways to understand a place is to spend time with a glass of wine with the locals!’ When COVID forced her to stay put, she decided to take her wine knowledge to a new level and began studying with the WSET program.  Her dream is to one day own a wine cafe where she can create a gathering place for people to come together to share a glass of wine and connect. She loves to say Montrachet almost as much as she loves to drink it and loves the challenge of changing a ‘non chardonnay drinkers’ mind! When asked to share some words of wisdom ‘My mother would tell you to, “always invite a Libra to a party”. I say ‘better yet, always invite this Libra to curate your party!”
Brianne Cohen
Secretary and Membership Co-Director

Brianne Cohen is a Los Angeles based event producer, certified sommelier, wine educator, and wine writer. During the pandemic, Brianne educated and entertained over 7,000 people through her “Virtual Vino” online wine classes, regularly highlighting diverse (i.e. Black, BIPOC, female, and LGBT) owned wineries. She now offers both in-person (and virtual) wine tasting experiences for her corporate clients. Brianne regularly judges at international wine competitions, including the International Wine Challenge (IWC) in London and holds the WSET Diploma certificate.

She writes on her own blog and for outlets such as Decanter, Monarch Wine, Matador, SommTV, Edible, Wine Tourism, and Wine365. She also holds a Master of Business Administration from Loyola Marymount University. 

Brianne Cohen Wine & Events is a certified woman-owned business with WBENC.

Keyonna Kidd-Goins
Communications Director

Keyonna Kidd-Goins is a two time alumni of California State University Dominguez Hills, where she earned both her BS and MBA Degrees in Business Administration. She has extensive work experience which includes community outreach and civic engagement through over 20 years of service in recreation, public works, proprietary departments, finance and treasury, city clerk and city council with multiple government agencies. She is a serial entrepreneur owning a triplex of businesses including Corks & Keys LLC a wine education and wine event hosting company, Collab Dance Studio & Creative Space LLC a facility where small businesses and entrepreneurs can collaborate to thrive in their various business functions within a supportive community that offers free and low cost programming to Carson residents and surrounding cities, and last but not least Generational Wealth Wines LLC®️ a black woman owned wine brand created to increase gender and racial diversity in the wine industry and breakdown barriers for the next generation of aspiring minority female winemakers. The wine company has enabled her to make her dreams become a reality while putting her city South Central Los Angeles on the map, and building a legacy that will create generational wealth for her family.
Sandra Gomes
Past President

Sandra’s love for wine started with the bitterness of beer. Wanting something fruiter and more sophisticated, she took a deep dive into wine, asking herself what was in her glass and how it got there. Her curiosity led her to Wine Education classes at UCLA Extension, followed by a Certified Specialist of Wine accreditation, and culminating with an Executive Wine MBA degree from Sonoma State University. Being Portuguese, and convinced that Portugal had better wine than the home-made vinegar her uncle served at Thanksgiving, Sandra launched Diniz Cellars, a Portuguese wine import and distribution company alongside her fiancé Rick. When she is not busy drink-laughing off the cliffs of Malibu, or trying to convince the American wine drinker that there are better versions of Vinho Verde to be had, Sandra works in movie marketing at a major Hollywood studio. After all, the best movie date is one that is accompanied by a glass of wine.

P.O. Box 19448
Austin, TX 78760
info@womenforwinesense.org
Phone: (831) 332-1727