Appellations Cellar was founded by Ivonne Zhu in 2016. She was born in Guangdong Province (formerly Canton) in China and immigrated to the U.S. in 2002 by herself. She remembers arriving into the U.S. with merely one backpack and one larger piece of luggage. She made this transcontinental move to study at the American University in Washington DC. She later … [Read more...]

Empress Wines was founded by Margaret Wong with the first vintage produced in 2019. In 2018 Margaret purchased what was called Castrucci Vineyard and also the Castrucci wine brand from the founders of Castrucci, David and Dawn Castrucci (who moved to the east coast). The nearly 11-acre property has since been renamed to Empress Court Vineyard. The property … [Read more...]

Fess Parker Family Portfolio, Napa Tasting Room is located in the heart of downtown Napa. While there are a number of Napa Valley based wineries with a presence on California's central coast, it is rare for a central coast based winery to have a presence in Napa Valley. Fess Parker Winery (died in 2010) was founded in Los Olivos, Santa Barbara County by … [Read more...]

Annulus Cellars is a wine brand strongly rooted in family and community. It was founded by Luke Evnin, Deann Wright and their two daughters Alexandra and Elena, all of whom are actively involved in promoting their wines. After 15 years of living in San Francisco, Luke and Deann were becoming tired of the San Francisco summers. In case you need a reminder … [Read more...]

JennaMarise Wines was founded by twin sisters Jenna and Mara York with their inaugural vintage in 2019. They are not the only twin sisters in Napa Valley producing wines; reference Brie and Bella of Bonita Bonita Wines. Jenna and Mara's passion for wine is tied into cultural heritage as it often is for Italian families. Their family on their mothers side was … [Read more...]

Cardano Estate Wines. When your heritage is so deeply rooted in Napa Valley, including a part of its agricultural story, one must start with family. The founder of Cardano Estate Wines, Edward Snider's grandfather Martin Garzoli on his mothers side of the family immigrated to the U.S. from Cardano Al Campo Italy (about a 10 minute drive from the Milan … [Read more...]

Aubert Wines was founded by Mark and Teresa Aubert with the first vintage in 2000 focusing exclusively on Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The first single vineyard wine bottled under Aubert was a 2000 Chardonnay from the now iconic Ritchie Vineyard in Sonoma County. While not the first to vineyard designate a Chardonnay from this vineyard, (that honor goes to … [Read more...]

Mowe Napa Valley was founded in 2022 by Dustin and Renee Mowe. Both were born and raised in Shasta County, Dustin in the tiny community of Burney and Renee in Redding. After college Dustin moved to Napa Valley in the late 1990s. He met someone who sold corks for a living for a startup French company. When Dustin asked him about his career, he responded by … [Read more...]

Bonita Bonita Wine was founded in 2019 by former professional wrestling twins, Brianna (Brie) and Nicole (Nikki) Bella (maiden name, Garcia). In 2016, they founded the wine label, Bella Ridiccio, meaning 'beautiful roots in Italian' and paid homage to their Italian mother's side of the family. This label was in partnership with Napa Valley vintner Ryan Hill … [Read more...]

Impensata (pronounced em-pen-sah-tuh). Mike Laipple is the Managing Director of Impensata and Louis Ciminelli (pronounced as simonelli) owns the Cimenelli Vineyard on Howell Mountain. The innaugural vintage of Impensata was produced in 2017. Honoring Louis's Italian heritage, he choose the name Impensata which in Italian means something not yet thought of or … [Read more...]