Being a vineyard manager checked all the boxes for Mary: collaboration of ideas, working with the soil, the interface of farming and nature, and the intersections of science and farming. Working over 30 years now in vineyards has been a great gift, and she has been fortunate to work with people who valued farming practices that respected the people and the soils.

Mary has been managing vineyards for Bill Harlan since 2002, and she currently oversees farming and vineyard development for Harlan and Promontory. The team there continues to work with evolving farming practices that benefit the soils and vines. Mary has found the most gratifying (and maybe unexpected) aspects of her field to be the evolution of vineyard workers, and a recognition of how their work is paramount to the quality of the wines being made in this valley.

Follow her on Instagram at @m3rrymar.

Amanda is a native Ohian who earned her B.S. in Environmental Horticulture from Clemson University and an M.S. in Horticulture & Agronomy with a focus in Viticulture and Soil Science from U.C. Davis. Before her winegrowing career, she dabbled in organic blueberry production. She has worked in various winegrowing regions including the Willamette Valley, Sonoma Valley, and the Napa Valley. She is currently Winery Relations and Viticulture Manager at Stagecoach Vineyard where she helps with the technical aspects of growing mountain fruit while selling to 70+ clients. Throughout her years in the industry, she has been an advocate for women in agriculture and feels that is her true passion, alongside farming wine grapes.

Growing up in Andover, MA, Laura Deyermond had an early interest in botany and growing plants. Laura enrolled in the University of Massachusetts, studying sustainable agriculture. But eye-opening internships at the U Mass experimental vineyard and at wineries in New York’s Long Island made her leave orchard science behind.

After graduating from U Mass in 2009, she headed to the west coast to pursue her Master’s Degree at the University of Washington. Receiving her degree in 2011, she went to work as a viticulture consultant to several small vineyards in the Columbia Valley.

In the spring of 2012, Laura’s California dream became reality as she moved to Napa Valley, becoming assistant viticulturist in a vineyard management company focused on organic farming. The following year, she joined a winery in Sonoma County as their viticulturist. In 2015, Laura became the Viticulturist for Diageo, working with estate vineyards in Napa and the Central Coast. After Treasury Wine Estates acquired Diageo’s vineyards and wineries, Laura became the regional viticulturist for Sonoma and Lake Counties, managing a small team of viticulturists and providing technical support to the vineyard and winemaking teams. In June of 2018, Laura joined Newton Vineyard as Viticulturist and Grower Manager; she was promoted to Head of Viticulture in 2021.

In August 2022, Laura was named one of Wine Enthusiast magazine’s “Future 40” of 2022. She was recognized for her vision and leadership of Newton’s journey to restore its historic Spring Mountain vineyard from the extensive damage suffered in the 2020 Glass Fire, which included the loss of all but five acres. With the now-obvious realities of climate change, drought and wildfires in mind, Deyermond is using the knowledge gained over Newton’s 40+ years of farming the estate to implement a 10-year replant plan and is consulting with experts for rootstocks and clones that have more drought tolerance.

You can follow her on Instagram at @ldeyermond.

A lifetime lover of wine, Cindy was born and raised in the FLX and continues to unearth and experience all it has to offer. The intrigue of how a single variety could make so many variations of wine, each masterful and unique, is how the whole party started for her. After a long tenure in the mortgage industry, it was grapes and wine styles that stole her heart. Finding a program in her own backyard, Finger Lakes wine country, was a dream that was meant to materialize. Science and art, two of Cindy’s favorite areas to study, paired with her love of being outdoors is how her journey goes. Graduating with a degree in Wine Technology and Viticulture gave her the foundation to secure a role within the industry. Her work began in a small vineyard on Lake Ontario, to then doing research with Finger Lakes Grape Program associated with Cornell, and now representing a Global company, E&J Gallo. Her broad experience across all components of wine from farm to farmer, vine to press, and bottling to facilitating tastings, Cindy offers a global perspective because she’s been an active contributor to each of these roles within the vast field of Wine and Viticulture. Cindy remains firmly planted within the Finger Lakes and Western NY grower base as the Grower Relations Coordinator. Visiting vineyards, creating community connection, and talking growing season is all within a day’s work. It’s true when they say, you just never know where the love of grapes will take you.

As a vineyard manager and winemaking, Elizabeth Tangney’s vision comes from a deep love for the land. Wine made through a farmer’s lens is an art which Elizabeth has honed throughout her impressive career. With her gifted palate, inspired leadership and exacting standards, Elizabeth takes a hands-on approach as she crafts her wines.While studying French in school, Elizabeth began to create a community centered around food and wine. Before joining Cornell Vineyards in 2018, Elizabeth spent her years in the varied terrains of Sonoma County, Saint-Émilion, Napa and Paso Robles. Elizabeth received her B.S. in Viticulture from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

Cathy Corison, the first woman Winemaker-Proprietor in the Napa Valley, produces three Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons, hand-crafted without compromise. Her wines are powerful and elegant at the same time, have a sense of place, and are structured to grace the table and enjoy a long, distinguished life. Cathy harvested her 35 th vintage of Corison in 2021! Academic preparation included a B.A. in Biology from Pomona College in Claremont, CA and an M.S. in Enology from U.C. Davis. Decades of winemaking for others, including Chappellet Vineyard, Staglin Family Winery, Long Meadow Ranch and York Creek Vineyards, left her eager to express her own winemaking voice. She is guided by her belief that winemaking and wine appreciation are a timeless, creative celebration of life.

Erin is a Florida native, but spent most of her life in Georgia. Growing up in a military family on the coastal border, to college in Athens at the University of Georgia, and for the longest period of her life as an urbanite in Atlanta. She began working in restaurants during high school and stayed the course will into her 30’s. In Atlanta, Erin immersed herself into an emerging food and beverage scene spending nearly a decade managing and directing beverage programs for a multi-concept restaurant group, overseeing the opening of two new restaurants in just two years. She completed her certification with the Court of Master Sommeliers in 2018 and had the good fortune to begin traveling in order to expand her studies attending Pinot Camp in Oregon, the West Sonoma Coast Farm Camp, and an importer road trip through Beaujolais, Chablis, and the Northern Rhone. Inspired by her personal travels through France and Italy with WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms), the energy building around regenerative agriculture, and lifelong anxiety over environmental issues Erin decided to make a drastic change in 2019. Leaving behind family, friends, a career, and any belongings that did not fit in her car, she left to work her first vintage and never looked back. Erin has completed two vintages with Ian Brand in Monterey County, who was SF Chronicle’s 2018 Winemaker of the Year. She has poured at the tasting rooms of Kunin Wines and A Tribute to Grace in Santa Barbara County. She worked harvest with Ann Kramer at Shake Ridge Ranch in the Sierra Foothills and spent a winter with Laura Brennan Bissell of Inconnu wines in the cellar and on her farm and vineyard in the Columbia River Gorge. Most recently, Erin completed a full season with holistic manager and vineyard director, Kelly Mulville on the Paicines Ranch—and 7600-acre property focused on regeneration and healthy ecosystem functions using organics, biological methods, and a flock of 2000 hair sheep. After finishing the 2022 vintage with the winemaking team at Tablas Creek Vineyards, Erin accepted a position with the company where she will focus on specializing in all of the regenerative practices employed there on the vineyard (and beyond). This is an exciting new learning journey for Erin that she is hopeful will result in her both supporting the program where it is and helping to evolve it into the future.

A Bay Area native studying Fruit Science at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Allison was unsure where an agriculture major would take her until she was drawn into the local wine industry and discovered viticulture. Eager to jump into the industry she joined Renteria Vineyard management in 2012 as an assistant viticulturist and since 2015 has been the Director of Vineyard Operations at Cliff Lede Vineyards where she is responsible for overseeing all farming and redevelopment of the winery’s three estate vineyards in the Stags Leap District, Carneros, and Calistoga AVAs. She works closely with the internal winemaking team to develop and implement the vineyard department’s farming protocols, while also managing all of Cliff Lede Vineyards’ external grower relations.

Katey is the Regional Viticulturist in Napa and Sonoma Counties, for Constellation Brands - Wine and Spirits Division; a bold and innovative high-end wine, and spirits company, that creates distinctive brands and products.

Katey has been a part of the Constellation Brands Grape Management Division for 15 years and has worked in the industry since 1999. She has held various roles in operations from Vineyard Manager to Director, in addition to roles in Technical Viticulture.

As part of the Viticulture Center of Excellence team, she collaborates with internal and external networks across California, fostering sustainable farming practices and organics, improving quality, and developing standard operating procedures. One of her most rewarding roles is mentoring interns and early career professionals, as well as participating in riparian restoration projects surrounding the vineyards. She is the current Chair of the Napa County Winegrape Pest and Disease Control District. She is a current fellow in Class 52 of the California Agricultural Leadership Program.

Daniela is a Napa Valley native who grew up running around some of the most prestigious vineyards alongside her father, a farmworker turned entrepreneur from Oaxaca, Mexico. After graduating from the University of San Francisco with a BA in Spanish and Latin American Studies, she earned her MA in Ethnic Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, before ultimately returning to Napa. She has worked for her family’s vineyard management business for nearly 15 years overseeing administrative duties and also helping manage day-to-day vineyard operations, grower and winery relations, professional and educational development of vineyard crew members, as well as sustainable programs including organic certifications, Fish Friendly Farming & Napa Green certifications, EQIP and Healthy Soils Incentive Program grant applications and implementation, and pollinator habitat procurement and planting. She has also worked behind the scenes to support and develop her family’s wine label, Bazán Cellars, that started in 2005 with its first vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is now featured in the Bazán Cellars Downtown Napa tasting room and includes their Cabernet Sauvignon alongside several additional varietals, all farmed by the Bazán vineyard crews. Daniela and her family are one of just a handful of Latinx wine producers in Napa Valley and are proud members of the Mexican American Vintners Association.

Since 2013 Daniela has served on the Napa Valley Farmworker Education Committee, producing educational programming and events for farmworkers including the annual Día de la familia event. In addition to collaborating on annual programming for the Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation, she also served on its COVID-19 Task Force, coordinating efforts to connect community resources and distribute information in English, Spanish, Zapoteco and Mixteco. In 2018 she earned her MS in Environmental Management with a concentration in Ecology from the University of San Francisco and continues to focus on sustainable farming practices together with empowering the local farmworker community.

Follow Bazán Cellars on Instagram @mariobazancellars.

Amielia has worked at Silverado Farming Company since March 2021, first as the Viticulture Research Manager and now as the Accounting Manager. She has worked in cellars, labs, and vineyards in Napa since 2014, including stints at Komes & Garvey Ranches, Rutherford Hill Winery, and Laird Family Estate. Amielia also spent a harvest abroad in New Zealand with Pernod Ricard Winemakers.

Prior to joining Silverado Farming, Amielia spent three years working on research projects including Pierce's disease epidemiology, Grapevine Powdery Mildew, sugar accumulation disorder (SAD), and Red Blotch disease spread and management for Dr. Monica Cooper, the Viticulture Farm Advisor, at the University of California, Cooperative Extension in Napa County.

Amielia enjoys being involved in the community through the Napa Valley Grapegrowers, Napa Valley Farmworker Foundation, and Vintner’s golf league.

Amielia studied Biochemistry and Classical Humanities at Miami University (Ohio), took classes in Viticulture & Enology at Napa Valley College and will graduate in May 2023 with her MBA from the University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business.