Wine has always been a part of my life, most often connected to the simple enjoyment of a family meal. Grape growing and winemaking have been my professional life and love since 1980. As a young winemaker, straight out of UC Davis, I was enthralled with the rapid rate of technological advancement in the industry. I was certain that expensive French barrels, shiny stainless equipment, and the latest techniques would ensure the making of wonderful wines, vintage after vintage.

Now I realize my most valuable tools are experience and intuition. A winemaker uses all of his or her senses in perfecting the craft. But the art is in that sixth sense. Working with small batches of grapes from select vineyards, stripping down the winemaking process to the basics, staying small and simple, being the guiding hand day by day: these are the secrets of wine quality. Focused, yet relaxed and certain in my knowledge, as I toil among the vines or in the cellar, I’m always fully attuned to that sixth sense.