Elena Rodriguez: Oral History Interview

This interview is with Elena Rodriguez of Alumbra. In this interview, Elena answers the question “why grapes,” as she details how she grew up and now took over the vineyard for her father. She then goes on to talk about the challenges in managing her vineyard, developing a love for farming grapes, how she goes about finding buyers for them, and what she currently and will plant. Elena then goes on to discuss her decision to make her own wine, how her heritage represents her wine label, and the challenges in making the wine. Towards the end of the interview, Elena discusses what it’s been like selling her wine and her focus on selling it to the Latino community, future plans for Alumbra, and offers advice for someone looking to enter the wine industry.This interview was conducted by Rich Schmidt at Elena’s family farm in Dayton on August 12, 2019.