Our Story

Vinstinct arose from two like-minded women who were wine enthusiasts, scientists, and aspiring entrepreneurs. Chelsea and Taylor met in graduate school at Cornell University in 2018 and instantly gravitated towards each other. They were both biomedical engineers who had a palate for wine and a curiosity for entrepreneurship. In fact, their favorite after-school activity was to work on class assignments and learn about business over a glass of wine at the local bars and restaurants in downtown Ithaca. They referred to this as their “wine and work” sessions.

Although they came from very different backgrounds, Chelsea and Taylor shared 3 simple pleasures in life – science, wine, and entrepreneurship. These recurrent meet-ups allowed them to forge a true bond and eventually a sisterhood over “wine and work”. However, when Chelsea and Taylor tried to recreate these experiences with other friends, it was not the same. While many of their friends enjoyed drinking wine, they often felt intimidated and othered in wine spaces because of the disconnect between traditional wine culture and Black culture.

Many of their friends believed that in order to truly understand wine and feel included in wine culture, one had to come from a particular background that neither aligned with their social and cultural interests nor represented their lived experiences. These sociocultural disparities in wine made it inaccessible and unrelatable, preventing their friends from learning and exploring new wines, expanding their palate, and enjoying wine experiences. Ultimately, this insight uncovered a clear need to make wine more accessible and relatable to Black wine lovers, which inspired Chelsea and Taylor to form Vinstinct.