After nearly five years working alone on the San Francisco Chronicle’s busy wine beat, the paper’s wine reporter is welcoming a new colleague: Lucy Hodgman.

Hodgman has already covered a broad range of wine stories since joining the Chronicle several weeks ago. Her reporting has explored barriers to vineyard events under a new California law, vineyard robots designed to combat grape disease, and Caymus Vineyards’ opposition to a contested water-conservation plan. She has also reported on new San Francisco wine bars, a Silicon Valley-area winery’s new tasting room and the growing interest in Croatian wine around the Bay Area.

A Brooklyn native, Hodgman studied English at Yale, where she led the Yale Daily News as editor-in-chief. She began her journalism career through Hearst’s fellowship program, reporting on state government at the Times Union in Albany. She joined the Chronicle in 2025 and covered climate, homelessness and breaking news, including stories about housing policy, mountain lions, severe storms and a large pipe organ in need of a new home.

That range of experience will serve her well on the wine beat, which covers more than tasting rooms. The team also reports on land-use disputes, politics, climate change and farmworker rights, while following an industry experimenting with new ways to attract younger drinkers.

Hodgman and her colleague will share coverage of breaking news, new openings and features. Based in San Francisco’s Mission District, where she lives with her cat, Juno, Hodgman is expected to focus especially on stories from the city, the East Bay and the South Bay, while continuing to make trips to Wine Country.

She will also take over the Chronicle’s wine newsletter for a week. You can read more about her work in the San Francisco Chronicle.