Experts
Akiko & Ken Freeman
Freeman Vineyard & Winery
Alex Ryan
President & Chief Executive Officer
Duckhorn Wine Company
Antoine Favero
Winemaker
Mazzocco Winery
Barry Waitte
Founder, Tamber Bey Vineyards
Bart & Barb O'Brien
Owners, O'Brien Estate Winery
Bill & Dawn Williamson
Owners, Williamson Wines
Bill Murphy
Owner, Clos LaChance Winery
Bob Biale
Founding Partner
Robert Biale Vineyards
Bob Williamson,
Ideology Cellars
Brooks Painter
Director of Winemaking
V.Sattui Winery
Bryan Toy
Director of Hospitality, Caldwell Vineyard
Christopher Carpenter
Winemaker
Mt. Brave & La Jota Vineyard Co.
Clay Mauritson
Owner/Winemaker
Mauritson
Cleo Pahlmeyer
President, Pahlmeyer
Dan Tudor
Winemaker & Owner, Tudor Wines
Dane Campbell
Brand Ambassador, Zaca Mesa
Darioush Khaledi
Proprietor
Dave Guffy
Director of Winemaking
The Hess Collectioin
Dave Pramuk
Founding Partner
Robert Biale Vineyards
David Amadia
President, Ridge Vineyards
David Gates
Vice President of Vineyards Operations
Ridge Vineyards
Dianne Wilson
Winemaker
Wilson & Matrix wineries
Dick Dore
Founder & Co-Owner, General & Sales Manager
FOXEN Vineyard & WInery
Dominic Foppoli
Co-Owner & CEO, Christopher Creek Winery
Don Hartford
President, Hartford Family Winery
Don LaBorde
Winemaker - Paraduxx
Dr. Faith Frankel
Owner, Sculpterra Winery & Sculpture Garden
Ed Kurtzman
August West Wine
Elizabeth Pressler
President Elizabeth Spencer Winery
Elizabeth Vianna
Winemaker and General Manager
Chimney Rock Winery
Eric Mohseni
Winemaker, Zaca Mesa
Florencia Palmaz
Cofounder and Partner
Palmaz Vineyards
Gabrielle Leonhard O'Connell
Vintner, O'Connell Family Wines
Gary Sitton
Director of Winemaking, Ravenswood
Guy Davis
Founder, Farmer, Winemaker
Davis Family Wine
Hailey Jackson Hartford Murray
Certified Wine Specialist
Heather Patz
Founder, Patz & Hall
Ivo Jeramaz
Vice President of Vineyards & Production
Grgich Hills Estate
Jacques Pepin
Culinary Director, Oceania Cruises
Jason Haas
Partner and General Manager
Tablas Creek Vineyard
Jayson Pahlmeyer
Founder, Pahlmeyer
Jenny Williamson-Dore
Marketing and Sales
FOXEN Vineyard & Winery
Joanne Dunham
Founder, Managing Partner
Dunham Cellars
Joel Peterson
SVP & Founder, Ravenswood Winery
John Olney
Ridge Vineyards' Lytton Springs COO & Winemaker
Kelly McAuliffe
Sommelier and French Wine Expert
Liam McCormick
Co-Owner & Head of Sales, Christopher Creek
Lloyd Davis
Owner, Corner 103
Mark McWilliams
Arista Winery
Mark Vernon
CEO, Ridge Vineyards
Martin Mackenzie
Winemaker, Petroni Vineyards
Miro Tcholakov
Trentadue Vice President & Direct of Winemaking Operations
Mitch Cosentino
Winemaker, pureCru Napa Valley
Neil Collins
Executive Winemaker & Vineyard Manager
Tablas Creek Vineyard
Papapietro Perry Owners
Bruce & Renae Perry AND Yolanda & Ben Papapietro
Paul Gregutt
Waitsburg Cellars
Randle G. Johnson
Winemaker & Co-Owner
Artezin Wines
Randy & Robin Peters
Grower, Papapietro Perry
Reagan Blackwood
Sales & Marketing Support Manager
Rombauer Vineyards
Renee Ary
Winemaker, Duckhorn Wine Company
Rich Parducci
Winemaker
McNab Ridge Vineyards
Ryan Beauregard
Winemaker, Beauregard Vineyards
Scott & Melanie Klann
Owners and Winemaker, Newsome Harlow Wines
Spencer Graham
Director of Winemaking, Elizabeth Spencer Winery
Steve Falk
Chief Executive Officer, Sonoma Media Investments
Thibaud Mandet
Winemaker, WillaKenzie Estate
Todd Anderson
Anderson's Conn Valley Vineyards
Tom Davies
President, V. Sattui Winery
Tom Gamble
Owner, Gamble Family Vineyards
Trey Busch
Partner and Winemaker
Sleight of Hand Cellars
Truman Prewitt
Sculpterra Winery & Sculpture Garden
Freeman Vineyard & Winery

President & Chief Executive Officer
Duckhorn Wine Company

Winemaker
Mazzocco Winery

While attending the University of California at Davis, Antoine discovered enology and quickly developed a passion for the art and science of creating exceptional wines. He further honed his winemaking skills by working at several premier wineries, specializing in Bordeaux and Rhone varietals and Zinfandel. Over the last five years Antoine has made Mazzocco literally the talk of the town for his flavorful and unique Zinfandels.
As a winemaker, Antoine believes wines are “nurtured” rather than “produced.” His wines express the unique varietal and terroir characteristics of each vineyard site. There is no one more in tune with his Zinfandels, his wines than Antoine. Each is a unique piece of work and tribute to the vineyard and grapes used to make the wine.
Barry Waitte
Founder, Tamber Bey Vineyards

A native Northern Californian, developed his love of the wine country during visits and vacations to Napa Valley with his parents. Barry moved to Napa in 1999, and began making wine in 2001 under the Tamber Bey Vineyards label.
Throughout his life, Barry has maintained a passion for sports. In the late 1990s, he started to compete in an Endurance Horse Racing, which is 50-100 mile single-day cross-county horse races on one horse. Barry has competed all over the world, and won the Gold Medal at the North American Championship in 2004, and won the 100 Mile National Championship in 2005 in Montana. The name “Tamber Bey” is derived from his first two Arabian horses, Tamborina and Bayamo.
Barry is a graduate of Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo and UC Berkeley (MBA), and later completed continued studies in viticulture and enology atUC Davis when entering the wine business.
Bart & Barb O'Brien
Owners, O'Brien Estate Winery

Owners, Williamson Wines

This dream has taken over twenty-five years of planting grapes and producing highly acclaimed wines. Today Williamson Wines oversees growing of 14 varieties of grapes across 28 vineyards from which they make 45 different wines with total production of about 15,000 cases.
Their decision that the wines would only be sold direct-to-the-consumer has succeeded beyond expectation. With dozens of industry awards, the wines are sought after by knowledgeable wine lovers, receiving limited quantities via wine club membership.
Dawn’s continuing love of wine country lifestyle is demonstrated in the development of a U.S. wide distribution of small producer cheese and spice products. Working with her staff chefs, Dawn continually develops food and wine pairings as well as hundreds of new, easy-to-make recipes each paired with one of their wines.
Bill oversees the vineyard grape production and winemaking. A master at blending wines he has produced Californian wines which many believe to be amongst the finest examples of Bordeaux and Rhone style wines.
In addition Bill serves on the board of a two million case wine logistics company and is CEO of GrapeGears, a wine sales and marketing software company.
The couple travel extensively to wine regions around the globe hosting an Australian wine and food trip in March each year and a European trip in September.
Dawn and Bill live on their home ranch vineyard in Dry Creek Valley. They have three children and six grandchildren so Williamson Wines has a fine team of young talent to take it on into the future.
Bill Murphy
Owner, Clos LaChance Winery

Bob Biale
Founding Partner
Robert Biale Vineyards

Ideology Cellars

Born in Ohio where his family had been farmers, Bob moved to California at the age of five. He grew up on the San Francisco Peninsula and spent 16 years in the aeronautics industry with United Air Lines. For the next 20 years Bob turned to designing and building custom homes. Meanwhile he always felt an affinity to his farming heritage and along the way discovered his love for wonderful wines.
As Bob recalls, “I’m not sure exactly how or when it happened… whether it could be defined by a precise moment in time, or whether it was a gradual revelation - but it happened. My wife Joni and I fell in love with the beauty of the Napa Valley, the warmth of the people, the lifestyle and the unforgettable experiences at small family wineries we sought out. We were hooked.”
From a second home in Napa Valley … to a 16 acre vineyard … taking classes in viticulture … to purchasing a winery and turning it into a multi-winery facility dubbed by Wine Spectator as “a hidden gem in the Napa Valley”, Bob and Joni’s love of wine seems to have driven them to their destiny.
Today, Bob concentrates his efforts on his Ideology Estate. His second vintage received 95 points and was rewarded #57 in Wine Enthusiasts Top 100 Wines of the World. Joining forces with their 100-point winemaker, Gustavo Gonzalez, the Williamsons move forward with excitement and anticipation of what is to come.
The limited production, primarily single-vineyard wines reflect Bob’s ideology: The world’s most spectacular wines are an expression of the land in which they grow. Now that the Ideology Vineyard has proven it can produce award winning wine, he moves forward on the design of a new winery – one specifically designed for Ideology Cellars – to house and showcase his vineyard and highly sought-after boutique wines.
“I am proud to have made the transition from custom homebuilder to Napa Valley vintner. Creating world-class wines and living in Napa Valley is my dream come true.”
Brooks Painter
Director of Winemaking
V.Sattui Winery

Brooks Painter has been the Director of Winemaking at V. Sattui Winery since 2005 and is responsible for the winery’s portfolio of 45 different wines as well for viticultural and grape growing operations, supervising 230 acres of estate vineyards as well as contracts/grower relations with outside growers. He is responsible for growing or sourcing ultra-premium varietal wines from throughout California, and the winery’s steady stream of accolades substantiates his expertise.
Born in San Francisco, Brooks Painter grew up in northern California. He graduated from University of California, Santa Cruz with a double major in Chemistry and Biology. He went on to complete additional coursework and seminars in viticulture and winemaking.
Brooks has been called ‘the winemaker’s winemaker,’ because of his extensive expertise and prominence as a wine industry leader among his peers. He has been a winemaker at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars and Robert Mondavi Winery in Napa, Leeward Winery in Ventura, CA and Felton-Empire Vineyards in Felton, CA. Brooks has served as President and Board Member for the Napa Valley Wine Technical Group and has been a technical reviewer for enology research proposals submitted to the American Vineyard Foundation, a non-profit organization funded by the wine industry to provide grant money for research and development projects. His research on biochemistry and sensory evaluation of wine has been published in The American Journal of Viticulture and Enology, Biochemistry, Practical Winery & Vineyard and Wines & Vines. Brooks is a member of the American Society of Enology and Viticulture and a former chair of the Microbiology Committee for C.E.R.A. (California Enological Research Association). He has taught adult-education classes on wine and grape growing for the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco.
Brooks and his wife Beth have lived in Napa for the past fifteen years. Their two grown children, Miles and Emily, are now enjoying the wine tasting and winery visits that used to bore them to tears! Brooks and Beth are involved in charitable organizations in Napa Valley as well as being active in local community and public planning issues. As a family, they enjoy traveling, skiing/snowboarding, sailing, hiking and cooking.
Bryan Toy
Director of Hospitality, Caldwell Vineyard

Winemaker
Mt. Brave & La Jota Vineyard Co.

Chris grew up outside Chicago and developed a thirst for knowledge. With an intellect geared for science and a physique built for athletics, he earned an undergraduate degree in biology at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, while playing Big Ten football. He went on to receive his MBA at the University of Illinois, Chicago, while selling medical products and bartending at an Irish Pub and later a music club. At the club, he was surrounded by musicians and artists, and together, they started exploring and discovering the great food and wine scene in Chicago.
During a visit to Napa Valley in 1993, Chris discovered a lifestyle that could challenge him both intellectually and creatively, while combining his love of science with his growing passion for culinary and wine pursuits. Soon after, he started studying at UC Davis, where he earned a master’s degree in both viticulture and enology. He studied further in Italy at the Tenute Antinori, Santa Cristina Estate, now known as Tignanello. There, he worked in the cellar and vineyard and was also hands-on in the lab. Chris credits his time in Italy with teaching him how wine, food and culture are all intertwined.
In 1998, Chris ultimately found himself back in Napa Valley at the Cardinale Estate. In 2000, he was appointed winemaker for Lokoya, where he crafted stellar wines from the finest mountain fruit. He quickly went on to assume the same role for Cardinale a year later, and was named winemaker for La Jota in 2005 and for Mt. Brave in 2007 with the purchase of the vineyard properties on Howell Mountain and Mt. Veeder. In 2012, Chris commenced a new project, Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard, in McLaren Vale with co-winemaker Charlie Seppelt.
The passions that Chris developed in his twenties and thirties continue to shape his personal and professional life. Chris and his wife, Tina, founded the Napa Valley chapter of Slow Food, and he served as chair for Slow Food USA, an organization dedicated to preserving regional foods and supporting small food purveyors, and to celebrating local farmers and chefs. He is the chair of the board of the Napa Valley Youth Symphony and is an avid concert-goer, and he occasionally plays the trombone. Chris continues his love affair with the restaurant business by bartending every Friday night at the Rutherford Grill where he “learns more about human nature and about life in general, behind the plank.”
Clay Mauritson
Owner/Winemaker
Mauritson

President, Pahlmeyer

With Napa’s exceptional cuisine and world-class wines in her DNA, Cleo comes by her love of wine and the wine industry naturally. In 2008 Cleo joined the family business in sales and customer service, and with characteristic Pahlmeyer exuberance infused the winery with new energy. She moved on to manage direct to consumer sales and marketing, and later directed the company’s communications and public relations. Cleo was instrumental in the development and launch in 2014 of the Wayfarer Pinot Noirs and Chardonnay from their estate vineyard in the Fort Ross-Seaview appellation, planted in 2000. In 2017, Cleo was appointed President.
“My father’s vision and passion have driven our success for more than thirty years,” said Cleo Pahlmeyer. “With the support of an incredibly talented and dedicated team, I am honored to continue Pahlmeyer’s legacy of iconic wines and be a steward to our exceptional estate vineyards.”
A mother of two, Cleo is devoted to her family. And when she has time, she is also an avid cook. Cleo and her husband Jamie Watson love to entertain friends and family and spread the Pahlmeyer story all over the world. “I meet people everywhere who share wonderful experiences they have had with our wines, and often hilarious stories about my dad,” she says. “It has been an incredible journey so far but what really excites me is the future of Pahlmeyer."
Dan Tudor
Winemaker & Owner, Tudor Wines

Dan Tudor first made wine in 1982 while working for cousin Louie Lucas, the founding and managing partner of Tepuesquet Vineyards in the Santa Maria valley. There were 1700 acres of high quality Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Chenin Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Merlot and Riesling to choose from. The 1982 and 1983 wines along with a 1983 sparkling wine all won 1st and 2nd place awards at the Santa Barbara County Fair and later at the Santa Cruz County Fair amateur wine competitions. Dan, inspired and encourages, began his lifelong goal to start a winery and make world-class wine.
In 1997, Dan begin his quest and discovered Monterey County's potential as top-flight winegrowing region. Its vast micro-climates and terroir allow for over 40 different grape varieties but it was Pinot Noir that Dan pursued. Dan's first cousin Christian Tudor, committed to preserving the family tradition, teamed up with Dan to start Tudor Wines and create handcrafted wines.
Dane Campbell
Brand Ambassador, Zaca Mesa

Proprietor

Darioush emigrated to the US seeking opportunity, reinventing his career by building what became at one point the largest family-owned grocery business in California through determination, experimentation and a commitment to pursue opportunities others overlook. Together with his wife Shahpar, he founded Darioush in 1997, and set out to produce wines that celebrate individualism and craftsmanship. The winery is Darioush’s realization of his American dream.Dave Guffy
Director of Winemaking
The Hess Collectioin

Founding Partner
Robert Biale Vineyards

President, Ridge Vineyards

David has lived his entire 26-year professional career in the wine business and recently celebrated his 11th anniversary with Ridge Vineyards. David oversees all of Ridge Vineyards’ sales and marketing efforts including International, Direct-to-Consumer sales, and the U.S. market. He also manages the company’s Finance, IT, and Logistics functions. A graduate of the University of California at Davis with a B.S. in Agricultural Economics, he went on to earn his MBA at The American Graduate School of International Management (Thunderbird) in Arizona.
Prior to coming to Ridge in 2005, David worked for 6 years, 1995-2001, with Southcorp Wines as their Vice President in charge of Canada and Latin America. With Southcorp he was able to work with top winemakers John Duval and Peter Gago, and with celebrated wines like Penfold's Grange Hermitage and Wynn's John Riddoch.
He then went on to work for 4 years with Randall Grahm, from 2001-2005, as the Vice President of Sales and Marketing. While at Bonny Doon he guided the winery's transition to Screw-Cap closures, helped to start the trend towards blended red wines with Big House Red, and helped to begin the winery's transition to Biodynamic farming.David Gates
Vice President of Vineyards Operations
Ridge Vineyards

ZAP 2017 Croatia Winery Host - Read MoreDianne Wilson
Winemaker
Wilson & Matrix wineries

As a winemaker, Diane spends time honing her craft, learning from other esteemed winemakers, and researching methods to keep her au courant with the newest cellaring and winemaking practices. With next year’s vintages still in the barrel, and already tasting like gold medal winners, one can only guess what amazing wines this next release will bring.
Our vineyard locations range from the loamy valley floor of the Dry Creek Valley to the more rugged and remote hilltop elevations around 2400 feet. Diane and Ken have named their vineyards after family members based on the characteristics of each vineyard. Each harvest brings something new for the small-lot, single-vineyard designate winemaker at Wilson Winery.
Known in the area for her amazing Zinfandels, Diane Wilson has branched out into different varietals for the new boutique wineries that she and husband Ken have purchased in the past several years. More than a home for Wilson wines, Wilson Winery is the homestead for their growing family of wineries they nurture and are proud to call Wilson Artisan Wineries. Besides Wilson and Matrix wineries it also includes Mazzocco Sonoma, deLorimier, Jaxon Keys, Pezzi King & St. Anne’s Crossing.
Local to the North Bay, Diane is an avid runner, and accompanied by companion Molly, her Border Collie, she runs the local trails and paths of beauty in Sonoma County. She enjoys her garden, using what she grows for her savory family meals. Diane loves to discover how food flavors pair with wine, and is often found assessing flavors for varietal pairings, or creating recipes to serve at winery events.
One thing is for sure; Diane will continue to add to her ever-growing wine accolades portfolio and produce some of the best wines coming out of Sonoma County, California.
Dick Dore
Founder & Co-Owner, General & Sales Manager
FOXEN Vineyard & WInery

Co-Owner & CEO, Christopher Creek Winery

President, Hartford Family Winery

Winemaker - Paraduxx

Though born and raised in Louisiana, Don gained an international perspective on winemaking by earning his wine science degree from Australia's Charles Sturt University - one of the world's most respected viticulture and enology schools. At Charles Sturt, Don was selected for the prestigious assistant research winemaker position at Australia's National Wine and Grape Industry Center, where he honed his skills with multiple grape varieties.
Don's experience working across the varietal spectrum continued at Napa Valley's Trefethen Family Vineyards, where Don was the enologist. At Trefethen, Don worked with all five red Bordeaux grapes, as well as Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Working with Trefethen's Bordeaux varieties, Don developed a barrel-by-barrel approach to blending. Don further refined his approach to blending when he became the assistant winemaker at Francis Coppola Winery, in 2008, where he supervised winemaking activities at multiple facilities. "Like Duckhorn Wine Company, Coppola offered the rare opportunity to work alongside several great winemakers," said Don, "I gained invaluable experience that allowed me to fine-tune a small-lot approach to achieving small-lot quality."
Don joined Duckhorn Wine Company in 2011 as the asssociate winemake for Sonoma County, overseeing Decoy. Recognized for his exceptional palate and his phenomenal ability to work with an array of varieties, Don was soon named the winemaker for Decoy, where he played a key role in establishing it as one of the modern wine industry's great success stories.
In 2014, in recognition of his skill as a winemaker, and his masterful blending ability, Don was named winemaker for Paraduxx. "Paraduxx is a winemaker's dream." said Don. Working with legendary Napa Valley growers and our own phenomenal Estate Vineyards, I get to work with the finest fruit in the world, and make wines that are not limited to specific grape varieties, or varietal percentages. We create our own benchmarks at Paraduxx. This gives us remarkable freedom to create iconic and compelling blends that capture the rich diversity of Napa Valley.
Dr. Faith Frankel
Owner, Sculpterra Winery & Sculpture Garden
Faith joined her father on many a long walks around the vineyard, listening to his vision of a art and wine paradise in picturesque Paso Robles and talking about his day at his medical practice. She followed in her father's footsteps attending medical school in Israel and completing residency at University of Southern California. She then opened a medical practice in Paso Robles and yet still finds time to work in the winery. She loves to spend her time traveling and has well developed culinary skills with a talent for pairing wine and food.Ed Kurtzman
August West Wine

President Elizabeth Spencer Winery

Elizabeth worked in a restaurant as a waiter, hostess and sommelier, earning tuition for Post College on Long Island, where she majored in English and minored in art history. Back in Philadelphia, she first sold ad space, then worked in public relations, promoting first-run foreign cinema, regional art theater, dance, major department store special events and even launching a cosmetics company. Her father’s daughter, she soon hung out her own shingle.
She devoted free time to reading about wine, pairing wines with meals cooked for her friends and taking wine appreciation classes. In 1978, she drove cross country to the Napa Valley to work as a tour guide at Joseph Phelps Winery.
Soon she was managing hospitality and working beside Joe in the kitchen along with culinary luminaries like Madeline Kammen and Alice Waters, and meeting others like the “astounding” Elizabeth David. She also assisted Bruce Neyers with marketing, writing collateral materials, meeting with journalists and distributors, selling on the road.
Next she served as director of marketing for four years at Chalk Hill Winery, repackaging and repositioning the brand. Four more years as Hess Collection’s first director of marketing and public relations were spent setting up distribution and developing the new facility to showcase wine, food and art. Elizabeth relished designing the visual aspects and scripting a film exploration of the vineyards for the winery’s theater. “I was thrilled to work from scratch on an energetic, creative team with the resources for a high-end project.”
In 1991, once again she put out her shingle, offering marketing for the wine industry and specializing in launching new luxury brands. Napa Valley had become her home and her business grew by word of mouth. Elizabeth had lived on the celebrated Eisele Vineyard for nearly 15 years, getting to know the original owners and hiking every inch of the land. “I came back there to work with the Araujos when they bought it. I respect them as good stewards. They kept what was good and improved where they could.”
She realized her craft was to identify and express what is unique and authentic about her clients. “The best positioning comes out of being true to yourself,” she says. “I’ve had the great fortune to work with wineries that have gone on to become renowned. Their reputations are deserved because of the thoughtfulness and honesty with which they’ve put together their brands.”
Through working with Araujo, Dalla Valle, Etude, Franciscan, Harlan, Kamen, Seavey, Soter, Spottswoode, Viader and others, Elizabeth arrived at an almost inevitable point in her career. “Partnering with Spencer to make our own wines seemed such a natural evolution after selling and marketing so many others.”
First food, then wine careers put her and her husband on parallel paths, Elizabeth explains, and they entered the wine business precisely as California blossomed and gained acceptance. “We both grew along with the industry,” she says. “We did not make our fortune in another walk of life and come here to fulfill our dream. This always was our life, and we’ve been blessed to live our dream.”
Elizabeth Vianna
Winemaker and General Manager
Chimney Rock Winery

Elizabeth Vianna attributes her career in winemaking to a glass of 1985 Sociando Mallet, which she enjoyed at a pre-auction tasting at Christie’s in New York. A biology major at Vassar College, Elizabeth was originally on the pre-medical school track. She fell in love with wine as a consumer while living in New York City, working as a clinical toxicologist at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center. Her strong science background and sudden infatuation with wine propelled her to apply to the University of California – Davis, and its renowned winemaking program instead of medical school.
Vianna first became familiar with the Chimney Rock winemaking program in 1999, working as a harvest intern while completing her Master’s degree in enology at U.C. Davis. Upon graduation, she became an enologist at Napa Wine Company and was soon named assistant winemaker there, where she worked directly with many of region’s top winemakers. Vianna was named to the position of assistant winemaker at Chimney Rock in 2002, and advanced to the position of winemaker in 2005. In 2009 Vianna was honored by the University of California-Davis School of Graduate Studies when she was invited by the Dean of Graduate Studies to deliver the commencement speech. She was promoted to General Manager of Chimney Rock Winery in 2011 while continuing in her role as head winemaker at the Stags Leap District estate winery. During her tenure she has consistently produced wines that have been highly rated among critics and highly valued among consumers.
Eric MohseniWinemaker, Zaca Mesa

Cofounder and Partner
Palmaz Vineyards

Vintner, O'Connell Family Wines

Ms Leonhard O’Connell is active in the wine industry including: a board member of Women for WineSense where she served as National Board President; a judge at the Mendocino Fair Wine Competition and at the first National Women’s Wine Competition; honored as a leader in Sustainable Farming by Napa Valley Grape Growers.
She established the family estate CCOF Certified Organic vineyard and gardens to create a diverse eco-system to ensure overall vineyard health- one of only a few Napa Valley estate that is 100% organic. Gabrielle believes this complex environment sustains healthy organisms that maintain a naturally robust vineyard, which creates beautifully complex wines. The olive grove, orchard, lavender field, herb & vegetable garden produce culinary and lifestyle enhancing products, that embody the natural luxury of wine country living. These and innovative food & wine pairings will be featured for all to enjoy at their Napa downtown Tasting Boutique.
Gabrielle has another passion: Olive Oil. She has completed the certification curriculum at UC Davis to be an Olive Oil Taster; is founder of the Olive Oil Culinary Guild- a training program for chefs on olive oil sensory evaluation & quality; and of MOPREP- an organization to preserve the historic olive trees in California. She is currently authoring a The Ultimate Guide of American Olive Oil and grows historic Mission olives to produce GC Napa Valley Certified Organic Estate Extra Virgin Oil.
Gary Sitton
Director of Winemaking, Ravenswood

The rest is history. 15 years before returning to Ravenswood as Director of Winemaking, Gary was promoted to Assistant Winemaker and soon advanced to become Associate Winemaker in 2003. After 8 years - "the most exciting years of my career." according to Gary - he was offered the chance to become Director of Winemaking and General Manager of Blackston Sonoma at Kenwood Vineyards. Most recently, Gary served in the same position for Clos du Bois.
Gary believes that the best winemaking begins with the vineyards, where he frequently spends hands-on time, and growers, with whom he is committed to forgoing strong relationships. By selecting grapes that truly express the unique character of specific appellations, employing minimum winemaking, such native yeasts, small open top fermenters and aging in small oak casks, Gary crafts wines which capture the unique expressions of Sonoma County's terroirs.
Gary credits his deep understanding of Sonoma winemaking with his early experience under Joel Peterson and beside Ravenswood's winemaking team, whose uncompromising standard for excellence inspire Gary's work to this day. "I love and believe in Joel's vision for what wine should be: that it is about place, about history, and forRavenswood, that it is deeply about Sonoma itself," he says. "It is an honor to be back home, continuing Joel's 40-year legacy of expressive, high quality Sonoma wines. I look forward to contributing to Ravenswood and its standing amount the icons of California winemaking."Guy Davis
Founder, Farmer, Winemaker
Davis Family Wine

In 1988, he created an opportunity to work on some winery finance projects and by 1989 had moved to Sonoma County and started working as the wine buyer for a small mail order wine company specializing in wine from small, boutique wineries. Along the way, Guy's work brought him in contact with creative, artisan wine makers, many of whom possessed the passion of great artists. These small-production, hands-on winemakers became a real inspiration. Davis, determined to learn and master the craft of making wine himself, signed on to work the 1989 harvest at Sky Vineyards, a little winery atop Mount Veeder in Napa Valley. On the weekends, Davis labored and learned his craft, whether it was bottling, labeling, pruning or harvesting. He took every Viticulture and Enology class offered at Santa Rosa Junior College and pursued night and weekend courses in the winemaking program at the University of California, Davis.
It was after a stint as director of marketing at Kendall-Jackson that in 1994 he started Passport Wine Club: a mail order company that connected tiny wineries from all over the United States to consumers seeking rare, small-production wines. In 1995, Davis produced his first commercial vintage: 250 cases of old vine Zinfandel from the Russian River Valley. In 1996, he bought his own vineyard in Russian River Valley comprised of 100-year-old Zinfandel vines, and in 1997, crushed his first vintage under the Davis Family Vineyards label.Hailey Jackson Hartford Murray
Certified Wine Specialist

Hailey grew up with a small 8 acre, 100 year old Zinfandel Vineyard in her back yard. Some of her fondest memories are of playing hide and seek amongst the old vines as a child. As an adult, Hailey has worked harvests at Wineries on four Continents: in California, Bordeaux, France, Chile, and in Australia. She has a biology degree from Scripps College. Prior to starting at Scripps, Hailey took a year off to work her first harvests in France and Chile, but always thought that she would attend Veterinary school after graduation. Instead, after graduation, Hailey, quickly fell in love with Wine and her future husband Max Murray while working a harvest at Hartford Family Winery in the Russian River Valley.
Bitten by the Wine bug, Hailey and Max have since traveled to McClaren Vale in South Australia to work the 2015 harvest. Different varietals in Australia and a totally new terroir proved fascinating to both Hailey and Max. Since then, Hailey has become a Certified Wine Specialist, and she and Max rounded out their oenological experiences with a second incredible harvest in Bordeaux, France. Excited to see what lies ahead, Hailey is now focusing on learning more about wine sales & marketing.
Heather Patz
Founder, Patz & Hall

Vice President of Vineyards & Production
Grgich Hills Estate

ZAP 2017 Croatia Winery Host - Read MoreJacques Pepin
Culinary Director, Oceania Cruises

Jacques Pépin is one of America's best-known chefs, food columnists, cookbook authors, and cooking teachers. He has been the chef for three Presidents of France, as well as for some of the country's most prestigious hotels, and he has written more than 20 books. He is well known for his acclaimed French-cooking show and his many appearances with Julia Child.
Pépin was born in Bourg-en-Bresse, near Lyon. His first exposure to cooking was as a child in his parents' restaurant, Le Pelican. At age thirteen, he began his formal apprenticeship at the distinguished Grand Hotel de L’Europe in his hometown. He subsequently worked in Paris, training under Lucien Diat at the Plaza Athénée. From 1956 to 1958, Pépin was the personal chef to three French heads of state, including Charles de Gaulle.
Moving to the United States in 1959, Pépin worked first at New York's historic Le Pavillon restaurant, then served for ten years as director of research and new development for the Howard Johnson Company, a position that taught him about mass production, marketing, food chemistry, and American food tastes. He studied at Columbia University during this period, ultimately earning an M.A. degree in 18th-century French literature in 1972. In 1997, on the 50th anniversary of the creation of the School of General Studies at Columbia, Pépin was honored with four other distinguished alumni of the School, each representing a different decade in its history.
Pépin shared the spotlight with Julia Child in an early PBS-TV series that still is shown occasionally on public television stations. This twenty-two show series, entitled "Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home," was the winner of The James Beard Foundation’s Award for Best National Cooking Show—2001, and the duo received a 2001 Daytime Emmy Award from The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. There is a companion cookbook to the series he did with Child and also to two earlier public television series he co-hosted with his daughter: Jacques Pépin’s Kitchen: Encore with Claudine (1998) and Jacques Pépin’s Kitchen: Cooking with Claudine (1998).
A former columnist for The New York Times, Pépin writes a quarterly column for Food & Wine. He also participates regularly in that magazine’s prestigious Food & Wine Classic in Aspen and at other culinary festivals and fund-raising events worldwide. In addition, he is a popular guest programs such as The Late Show with David Letterman, The Today Show, and Good Morning America.
Pépin is the recipient of two of the French government’s highest honors: he is a Chevalier de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (1997) and a Chevalier de L’Ordre du Mérite Agricole (1992). The Dean of Special Programs at The French Culinary Institute (New York), he also is an adjunct faculty member at Boston University. He is a founder of The American Institute of Wine and Food, a member of the International Association of Cooking Professionals, and is on the board of trustees of James Beard Foundation. He and his wife, Gloria, live in Madison, Connecticut.
Jason HaasPartner and General Manager
Tablas Creek Vineyard

Founder, Pahlmeyer

Marketing and Sales
FOXEN Vineyard & Winery

Founder, Managing Partner
Dunham Cellars

SVP & Founder, Ravenswood Winery

Joel Peterson is one of the wine industry's best-known figures — and also, one of its most popular. Joel studied biochemistry and microbiology at Oregon State University and became a wine writer and consultant while supporting himself as both a Research Immunologist and Medical Laboratory Scientist. After apprenticing in the art of Old World winemaking with the late Joseph Swan (one of California’s outstanding craftsmen of fine Zinfandel), he founded Ravenswood in 1976. Since then, Joel has shepherded the Sonoma-based winery from a one-man garage operation to the #1 producer of Zinfandel worldwide. Joel is a passionate and friendly Zinfandel ambassador and was inducted into the Vintners Hall of Fame in 2011.
ZAP Croatia 2017 Winery Host - Read More
Ridge Vineyards' Lytton Springs COO & Winemaker

John Olney is Chief Operating Officer and Winemaker at Lytton Springs in Sonoma County. John began traveling to Europe at an early age where he was introduced to the culture of wine in France and Italy. He frequently visited the south of France where he spent time with his uncle, Richard Olney, the celebrated food and wine writer. Through his uncle’s relationships, John learned first hand many of the great European winemaking methods and traditions. Later, while attending a language exchange program in Provence, he chose to pursue wine as a career and, in 1994, enrolled in enological studies at the Lycée Viticole in Burgundy to learn the craft of winemaking in greater depth. Before coming to Ridge Vineyards, John worked at Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant as well as with several European winemakers including Gerard Chave in the Rhone, Lucien Peyraud at Domaine Tempier and Aubert de Villaine of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti.
In 1996, John began work at Ridge’s Monte Bello Winery in the Santa Cruz Mountains. In 1999, he was put in charge of the Lytton Springs Winery where he oversaw the construction of the innovative 17,000 sq. ft. straw bale winery.
Kelly McAuliffeSommelier and French Wine Expert

Co-Owner & Head of Sales, Christopher Creek

Owner, Corner 103

Corner 103 is all about creating a unique educational experience where wine is explored and discussed in a friendly, seated, relaxed and fun environment. During the tasting experience, guests will explore seven wines from different American Viticulture Area’s (AVA’s) in Sonoma County. Guests will learn about that AVA and what varietals grow best there. Corner 103 wines highlight the best of each AVA. In addition, guests will learn how to taste wine, what glass it should be serve in, the correct temperature in which it should be served and how wine and food work together to bring out distinct flavor characteristics.
Lloyd is committed to making Corner 103 a “must visit” for all wine lovers, whether expert or novice, coming to Sonoma Valley. When you finish this tasting experience, you will become a “fan” and be able to impress your friends with the depth of your wine knowledge!
Mark McWilliams
Arista Winery

After graduating from the University of Texas - Austin with a degree in Corporate Communications, Mark took his first job out of college working for Kendall Jackson Wine Estates. What started as a temporary summer job developed into a passion as Mark enrolled in UC Davis Wine and Viticulture courses, tasting groups, and annoyed his winemaker friends with endless questions. During his time with Kendall Jackson, Mark held various positions encompassing vineyard operations, harvest logistics, and cellar work. Following his time at Kendall-Jackson, Mark continued his passion for wine and pursuit of industry knowledge by working as a wine consultant for a wine and spirits distributor based in Dallas, Texas.
In the fall of 2003 Mark married Jennifer Habecker, a native of Dallas. Shortly thereafter, Mark and Jennifer returned to Healdsburg, California to be fully involved with Arista. Mark manages the day to day operations at the winery. Mark and Jennifer live in Healdsburg, California with their sons Jake and Pierce and their daughters Macie and Maggie and their Maltese "Lucy".
Mark Vernon
CEO, Ridge Vineyards

Prior to joining Ridge, Mark was CEO of two successful silicon Valley software companies. A native Carlifornian, Mark grew up in Palo Alto and became passionate about fine wine as a young adult. He ill always remember his first trip up Monte Bello road to taste wine at Ridge and enjoy a picnic lunch there with friends on a beautiful summer afternoon.Martin Mackenzie
Winemaker, Petroni Vineyards

In his ten years at Stonyridge, Martin carved a reputation of consistent excellence producing world-renowned Bordeaux blends, most notably Stonyridge Larose, as well as some of the country's best Syrah and Malbec. The 2008 vintage, Martins last a Stonyridge, resulted in a 95 point wine in Wine Advocate, a stunning result for a New Zealand Cabernet.
While at Sonyridge, Martin met his future wife, a California sweetheart who proved to be the catalyst for their move to California. Martin had long considered California to be the most exciting red wine region in the world. Having now completed three vintages at Petroni Vineyards, his passion and commitment to quality are ideally suited to the continued production and improvement of the outstanding red wines of Petroni Vineyards.Miro Tcholakov
Trentadue Vice President & Direct of Winemaking Operations

Born and raised in northern Bulgaria, a region with many millennia of winemaking history, he was exposed to wine and winemaking at a very early age. At his grandfather's side, he learned how to make wine in the traditioin of the generations that came before him. The combination of Miro's early exposure to winemaking, years of study and experience, and passion for the art makes him a vital part of our winery family.
"Making wine has been a lifelong dream of mine. After completing my studies in 1990 at the higher Institute of Agriculture in Bulgaria in Agronomy/Viticulture, I traveled to California on an Exchange program in wine business. I continued my education by attending Santa Rosa Junior College and UC Davis, focusing on specific courses in Winemaking and management. My internship started at Dry Creek Vineyards in the summer of 1990 and in nine years of employment, I transition through the ranks of Cell Master and Assistant Winemaker. It was during this time that I fell in love with two distinctively California varietals, Zinfandel and especially Petite Sirah.
I decided to move on and start my career as a head winemaker, accepting an offer from Trentadue Winery in 1999 to take over their winemaking operation. That new opportunity added to my excitement about ZInfandel and Petite Sirah, which have been two long standing staple varietals of Trentadue".Mitch Cosentino
Winemaker, pureCru Napa Valley

Mitch Cosentino began making wine in small lots in Modesto, California in 1980. Ten years later he moved the Cosentino Winery operation to the Napa Valley, where he continued to make many award-winning varietal and blended wines.
Cosentino has a gift for identifying fruit sources and is highly skilled and artistic in determining blends. He's a big believer in the hands-on, old world use of punched cap fermentation, a labor-intensive, hand-crafted method of winemaking. When it comes to the small lots Cosentino puts into his pureCru blends, this "micro" approach to winemaking allows him to better control the delicate process from the vineyard to the bottle.
Mitch is one of the longest term winemakers in Napa Valley and in addition to his own brands, has continued to assist in starting numerous other wineries. Today he continues to consult with others.
Executive Winemaker & Vineyard Manager
Tablas Creek Vineyard

Before the year was finished, Neil was offered the winemaker position at Tablas Creek, and he has overseen both the organic vineyard and the winery since 1998. His philosophy is that great wines can only come from great grapes, and that the art of winemaking is founded on starting out with the very best grapes and bringing their juice through fermentation as naturally as possible.
Papapietro Perry Owners
Bruce & Renae Perry AND Yolanda & Ben Papapietro

Ben and Bruce had both made wine with their grandfathers, and like them, they had a talent for it. After retiring from their day jobs, they succumbed to the appeals from family and friends to start a winery. Renae and Yolanda joined and made it a family affair. Renae runs Winery Operations and Yolanda handles our distributors.
Waitsburg Cellars

Winemaker & Co-Owner
Artezin Wines

Randy & Robin Peters
Grower, Papapietro Perry

Randy grew up on Pauline’s Vineyard, named after his late mother, in the heart of Dry Creek. The vineyards Randy farms include Peters, Timber Crest, and Pauline's Vineyard. Timber Crest Vineyard has been farmed by Randy for 40 years and is the home of our winery on Dry Creek Road. Farming fruit in three different appellations, Randy's expertise in the vineyard is the perfect complement to our award winning wines.
Reagan Blackwood
Sales & Marketing Support Manager
Rombauer Vineyards

Winemaker, Duckhorn Wine Company

Born and raised on the East Coast, Renee moved to California to attend Saint Mary’s College, where she earned a degree in chemistry and art. Fascinated by the intersection between science and an art, winemaking quickly became Renee’s passion, career and way of life. She started in the laboratory of Robert Mondavi Winery in Oakville, where she spent four years working closely with winemaking luminaries Genevieve Janssens, Steve Leveque and Richard Sowalsky. While Renee gained this invaluable hands-on experience, she augmented her scholarly understanding of winemaking and viticulture with classes at UC Davis and Napa Valley College.
Winemaker
McNab Ridge Vineyards

ZAP 2017 Croatia Winery Host - Read MoreRyan Beauregard
Winemaker, Beauregard Vineyards

I discovered a love for making wine at a very young age. I grew up at the Beauregard Ranch (the original vineyard purchased by my great-grandfather in 1949) and played as a child among the vines. Different places in the vineyards have different soil types and different smells-sandy loam topsoils with underlaying limestone surrounded by redwood tress on one end and chaparral at the other-and those smells are ingrained into my earliest memories. To this day I can smell a wine in the cellar and know specifically where it came from on the home ranch. Later in life, I had opportunities to travel to Europe and see how the French make wine. I was instantly ready to put modern style winemaking by the wayside and employ old world techniques in my own cellar practices.
My first emphasis in winemaking is to produce wines that show the flavor of the land, which the French call Terroir. Secondly I choose to make wines that show Typicity, wines that are varietally correct in character ie; how much a Pinot Noir tastes like a Pinot Noir. The combination of these two philosophies is the backbone for Beauregard wines.
My technique to accomplish this valued combination starts with the absence of chemical manipulation from the crush pad to the bottling line. Instead of using commercially manufactured yeasts that my impart flavors from other areas of the world, I use yeasts that are present in our vineyard and cellar. All wines are aged sur lees, creating vintages of notable minerality, expressive of our coastal mountain terroir.
Scott & Melanie KlannOwners and Winemaker, Newsome Harlow Wines

Together, the couple’s talents come together in a sensual, symbiotic pairing that embodies Bacchanalian hedonism at its finest — the kind that brings together wine, food, friends and copious amounts of laughter. In this spirit, the pair began their own label, Newsome Harlow, in 2000 with a couple of partners and a small batch of wines crafted from premium Calaveras County grapes. The name Newsome Harlow is the combination of the maiden names of Scott and his original partner, Mark Skenfield, a long time Calaveras resident and vineyard manager. Their first vintage — a mere 150 cases — was sold exclusively to those on the winery’s mailing list. Nearly 20 years later, Newsome Harlow is recognized as having some of the best wines in Calaveras, and produces over 5,000 cases of Syrah, Petite Sirah, Sauvignon Blanc and five signature Zinfandels that sell out each year.
Scott’s Story
His reputation as a Rock Star in both wine making, merry making and music is immediately apparent upon meeting him. Always ready with a quick wit, an obscure song lyric and intimate details about the wines he is pouring and often drinking, Scott is a zeitgeist in the Sierra Foothills wine world. Scott’s dedication to sustainable agricultural practices and viticultural excellence is reflected in the artisan wines he produces Newsome Harlow.
Melanie’s Story
“Local,” “organic,” and “sustainable” may be buzz words to some, but they’ve always been a part of Melanie Klann’s vocabulary. Melanie brings a raw and luscious earthiness into her kitchen while imbuing her creations with her love of eastern cultures and her southern heritage. After starting her career on the service side of the food industry, Melanie worked her way to the back of the house, where she discovered her passion for creating exquisite creations in the kitchen. For years, Melanie has employed a “slow food” philosophy at Dragonlady Catering, Alchemy gourmet market and wine bar, and as owner of Biga Murphys, the first fresh bread bakery to open in Murphys in nearly 100 years. Widely recognized as one of the most creative chefs in the Calaveras region, you’ll often find her in the NH Tasting Room and heads up the food program, designing pairing dinners that incorporate fresh, local ingredients to highlight her husband’s artisan wines.
Spencer Graham
Director of Winemaking, Elizabeth Spencer Winery

He worked as a waiter and sommelier in a “serious” restaurant for three years. “No one realized what was on our wine list,” he recalls. “We had 1969 Echézeaux and Romanée-Conti for $18 and $45 and 1962 Chateau d’Yquem for $25. I tasted a lot of great wine.” Intrigued by food, in 1977 he decided to investigate the vanguard restaurants of France and learn to cook. “I wanted to see if they were all they were cracked up to be. I was soon convinced.”While riding a horse on a family vacation in the state of Rio Grande del Sul, Spencer came upon a catch of unfermented grape juice cooling in a mountain stream. The memory of that taste stayed with him. After his parents were posted stateside in 1965, Spencer attended Bethesda-Chevy Chase (Maryland) High School and won a basketball scholarship to the University of Virginia, where he earned a degree in religious studies.
Spencer returned to his former restaurant, this time as its chef de cuisine, until 1982 when he invested a small inheritance in his own wine wholesale and import business. Eventually Spencer added five salespeople, expanded into D.C. and West Virginia, and specialized in great artisanal producers from California, France, Italy and Spain. Asked once how he could possibly sell so much Ojai wine, Spencer replied, “Either it’s good or it’s not. If it’s good, it pretty well sells itself.”
Early in 1993, during a visit to Viader Vineyards & Winery, he met the winery’s marketing consultant, Elizabeth Pressler. Later, she would recommend the wines of several of her Napa Valley clients to Spencer. As a result, he was the first Mid-Atlantic distributor of so-called cult wine producers like Araujo and Harlan Estate.
In July, 1994, he met with Elizabeth on business, and then accompanied her to dinner at the newly re-opened French Laundry. “We had a great time and afterwards ended up just sitting in her backyard on lawn chairs, talking and watching shooting stars.” Spencer returned home, but a three-year long-distance romance had begun. In 1997, the couple married.
Spencer had sold his business in 1996, but agreed to stay on as a consultant. So Elizabeth moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, commuting to Napa Valley every other month to meet with her clientele. One day just over a year later, Spencer declared that they should move to California, and Elizabeth agreed.
They settled in St. Helena and Spencer began his new trade as a winemaker. “He has an excellent palate,” Elizabeth says, “no doubt enhanced by his cooking experience. His palate memory is terrific, and his blending ability seems to be innate.”
As Spencer began establishing relationships with top-notch grapegrowers, Elizabeth was visualizing their winery concept and describing the label she would soon design. Elizabeth Spencer released its first wines from the 1998 vintage.
Steve Falk
Chief Executive Officer, Sonoma Media Investments

Winemaker, WillaKenzie Estate

Anderson's Conn Valley Vineyards

President, V. Sattui Winery

A native of Palm Springs, California, Tom Davies graduated from Chico State University in 1979 with a degree in Business Management. He was so committed to getting into the wine business, he slept in a tent at the State Park in the Napa Valley to save money while searching for work. Impressed with his attitude and enthusiasm, Dario Sattui hired him in the summer of 1980 at $5 an hour to work in V. Sattui Winery’s tasting room and cellar. Tom was among the first 10 employees hired at V. Sattui. His great business sense and knowledge of the wine industry propelled him to the top at V. Sattui. Tom is President and Part-Owner of V. Sattui Winery.
During Tom’s 30-year tenure at V. Sattui, the winery pioneered the direct-to-consumer wine business model. V. Sattui started the second wine club in the Napa Valley and was one of the first wineries in the nation to ship wine directly to consumer’s homes and to host wine club events, dinners and weddings. V. Sattui has also been highly recognized for their wines, winning the most Gold Medals in a year in national and international wine competitions, and has won “Winery of the Year” at the California State Fair three times in the last 10 years, along with numerous high scores and ratings from the Wine Spectator, Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wines and The Wine Enthusiast. Today, Tom is utilizing social media to expand consumer awareness of V. Sattui Wines and is the star of V. Sattui’s Wine Guys, an on-line video feature. Recently the winery released the very first iphone App for a Napa Valley winery.
Tom has been married to his wife, Cara for the past 28 years. They have a daughter Michaela who is attending her senior year of high school at St. George’s School in Newport, Rhode Island. Tom and Cara have traveled extensively in Europe, and have made Italy their favorite home away from the Napa Valley, spending time there every summer since the early eighties.
Owner, Gamble Family Vineyards

Napa native Tom Gamble is a farmer first. "My most lasting memory of childhood is dirt. Playing in dirt. Walking in dust behind the tractor. Wearing out our jean seats sliding down shale hillsides. Wandering aimlessly on foot, horseback and mini-bike all summer long, enjoying everything the dirt and our climate gives to life." His boyhood days often began before sunrise herding cattle, working irrigation lines and emulating older ranchers and farmers.
Tom has always held fast to his Napa roots, where the Gamble family arrived, four generations ago. Tom continued the family farming legacy, planting his first vineyard in 1981 and continues to farm to this day. Gamble Family Vineyards is an opportunity to share with future generations, the hard work of generations past.
Tom Gamble is a farmer first, which is fitting. Good wine begins on the vine.Trey Busch
Partner and Winemaker
Sleight of Hand Cellars

Working in Atlanta as clothing buyer at Nordstrom and having no training or education in winemaking, Trey Busch life took a drastic change in direction when he was offered the opportunity to move to Walla Walla and apprentice under winemaker Eric Dunham of Dunham Cellars. He continued his wine education working independently at another Washington winery, Basel Cellars. Then in 2002 he met Jerry Solomon at the Sun Valley Wine Auction's trade tasting, who shared his passion for outstanding wine, rock and roll, and fun. Trey, Jerry, and the winery's third partner, Sandy Solomon, started doing annual wine dinners in Sun Valley until in 2006 when Trey finally convinced Sandy and Jerry to come to Walla Walla for a visit.
That visit proved to be another life-changing moment for Trey. In less than 24 hours after their arrival, the Solomons had not only fallen in love with Walla Walla and its unique charm, but a deal had been struck to start the winery. In June of 2007 the winery officially opened its doors with a small storefront tasting room in Downtown Walla Walla, while renting space at another winery for production purposes.
Today, Trey’s wine acumen is well-documented by some of the industry’s top wine writers and publications, including Steven Tanzer, Robert Parker, The Rhone Report, Wine Spectator, and virtually every other wine critic who’s had the pleasure of tasting the wines of Sleight of Hand A cursory examination of those four sites produces 20 90+ wines already in the very brief history of the winery, topping out with the 95 points that Wine Spectator bestowed upon his ’08 “Illusionist” Cabernet.
Truman Prewitt
Sculpterra Winery & Sculpture Garden
A Chicago transplant who first learned about wine for business dinners and quickly grew to find the hidden treasures that wine has to offer. Truman Prewitt is co-founder of Maxima PR and Social Media where he uses over 17 yeras experience in branding, market research and analysis, business development, product management, sales, market positioning and strategic planning, and communications to assist with creating strategic programs designed for maximum returns for clients. When he is not thinking about work he can be found sailing, surfing, playing Rugby, or traveling to the many wine areas of California.