Laely Heron on Sexto, Balance, Wanderlust & the Evolution of a Cult Winemaker

Laely Heron's life reads like that of a character in a James Bond flick. Raised by adventure seeking parents, Laely spent her childhood moving from one exciting place to another -Algeria one year, Singapore the next- with over a dozen different places of residence by the time she graduated high school. College found Laely at the University of Colorado but wanderlust soon took her to Bordeaux to study oenology. The end result was a young woman with a nose for the unique customs, flavors, and scents that differentiate cultures. Not surprisingly, a wine career ensued. Adventurous, entrepreneurial, talented, ambitious and, let’s face it, stunningly beautiful, the only thing missing is a secret identity and a pistol in her boot and Laely Heron could very well be a Bond girl.

Action flicks aside, today Laely Heron is pushing the envelope in the wine industry as she endeavors to reshape the image of the “cult“ winemaker as one who makes high quality, ambitious, and affordable wines. Thanks to Laely for chatting with IntoWine.

What prompted you to pursue winemaking as a career?

Here's the short story:
I fell in love with wine when I studied and lived in Bordeaux, during my University days. Almost every job after that was in different areas of the wine business, all over the world, and my curiosity led me to begin studies for the Master of Wine. In the early 90's, when I was broke and looking for a job, a friend told me to start my own business. We figured out the humble beginnings of Heron Wines on a napkin! My passion just evolved into winemaking, it was never planned.

Now here's the long story:
Fortunately, I was raised by very unconventional, young parents (they were only 17 years old when I was born). My dad was a mining engineer and we moved around, all my childhood. We lived in about 10 different places before I was 8. At one stage he got the bright idea that we should move to Algeria so he could do a mining project there. We lived in Algeria for years, and the exposure to different flavors, smells, and new interesting things made an impression on me. Not going to school all those years was another plus- I never learned to do things "by the book". My parents were very open minded and adventurous, so after awhile they got another bright idea... that we should travel around the world until their money ran out. So, we were a family of 4, we each had only a backpack, and we traveled until I was a teenager. Again, this was great exposure to the world, and exotic smells and tastes fed my hedonistic curiosity.