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Don Yannias |
Since 1991, Don Yannias has served as chairman and president of Spring Mountain Vineyard.
Don is currently also the president of Boker Investment Management Inc., a private investment management company. From 1997 to 2001 he served as the Chief Executive Officer of Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc. He currently maintains seats on the Board of Directors of both firms, numerous other private companies, and Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Illinois. Mr. Yannias received a B.S. in Business Administration in 1979 and an M.B.A. in Finance and Marketing in 1981 from The Ohio State University. He and his family reside in Chicago. |
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Jac Cole |
After graduating from the University
of California Berkeley with a degree
in Biology in 1972, Jac followed his
growing passion for winemaking to the
Masters Program in Enology at California
State University Fresno. Jac began
his professional odyssey as an intern
at Chateau St. Jean in Sonoma County,
and from there, wound his way through
Napa Valley gathering expertise and
experience with such prestigious wineries
as Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, Stags’
Leap Winery, and S. Anderson Vineyards.
Jac has had the rare fortune of acquiring
a remarkable depth of knowledge and
experience along his winemaking path,
as well as his valued friendship with
Spring Mountain Vineyard manager, Ron
Rosenbrand. Together they are
dedicated to the concept that the world’s
greatest wines are the direct result
of the work done in the vineyard.
Their focus has been on the nuance of
clone and rootstock, the balance of
canopy and fruit, and the determination
of the point of perfection for harvest.
Armed with a combination of gleaned
experience, passion and friendship,
Jac comes to Spring Mountain Vineyard
to lift wine quality to even greater
heights.
Jac lives on a picturesque two-acre
vineyard on Howell Mountain with his
wife, Ami. |
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Ron Rosenbrand |
Born and raised in Saint Helena and
into a winemaking family, Ron’s
passion for grape growing came at an early
age. His father, well known winemaker
Theo Rosenbrand - whose achievements at
Beaulieu and Sterling Vineyards are revered
by wine collectors today, knew that great
wines were made in the vineyard, not in
the winery. Certainly influenced
by this fact, Ron chose viticulture, not
winemaking; graduating from the University
of California at Davis in 1981.
After studying French viticulture in
the Jura, Ron spent 21 years growing
wine at Charles Krug, V. Sattui, and
Spring Mountain Vineyard. Before being
reunited on Spring Mountain he shared
his passion and dedication for six years
with winemaker Jac Cole at Krug. Ron
is dedicated to using his knowledge
of terroir, rootstock and clonal selection,
vine stress and canopy management to
realize the full potential of each of
Spring Mountain’s 135 vineyard
sites.
Ron resides in Napa with his wife Jacqueline
and their 5 children, Brian, Amy, Conner,
Cole, and Alexi. |
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Paul Remboldt |
Paul Remboldt has been applying state of the art accounting techniques in the wine industry for over seven years. Paul worked with Charles Krug Winery during their explosive growth through the last half of the 90’s. He now brings his expertise and enthusiasm to Spring Mountain Vineyard and works with the management team in all financial matters.
A native Napan, Paul lives in St. Helena with his wife Kelli and their two young girls, Hannah and Abigail. He graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a B.S. in Accountancy in 1991. |
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Valli Ferrell |
A native Hoosier, Valli Ferrell earned
a bachelor's degree from Indiana University
in French and English. Her love of wine
brought her to the Napa Valley over 20
years ago. She has contributed to the
sales and marketing efforts of several
wineries, including Inglenook, Geyser
Peak, William Hill, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars
and Spring Mountain Vineyard. She is the
author of Dining In Napa Valley, a cookbook
celebrating Napa Valley restaurants. Having
lived on the Spring Mountain estate for
eight years, she is intimately familiar
with the seasonal cadence of life in the
vineyard. It is her wish to share that
experience that brings her to Spring Mountain
as director of public relations.
Valli is the welcoming face that visitors
see at Spring Mountain. She delivers
a historic walk through the past and
a fresh taste of the future through
the visitor experience. Sharing her
talents for hospitality, she brings
to life all that is gracious about wine
country living.
Valli lives at the base of Spring Mountain
with her husband, Tom, and their son,
Scott. |
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Brian Bostwick |
Brian joined Spring Mountain Vineyard in Spring 2005. For over two decades he has been involved in the wine industry. During that time he has had the opportunity to work for several successful domestic wineries and distributors. His background includes hands on experience in sales, sales management, and marketing. He has worked the domestic market on a national level and has been fortunate to have worked and lived overseas while establishing California wines in the European market. He is excited about conveying the magic of Spring Mountain Vineyard to all tiers of the industry – distributors, retailers, restaurateurs, and fine wine consumers. |
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Leah Smith |
Leah was born and raised in Los Altos, California. She received her Bachelors degree from Oregon State University and spent the next 10 years living in the Oregon wine country. Having caught the “wine bug,” Leah, her husband Michael, and 2 young daughters, Taylor and Ashley, relocated to St. Helena to pursue their passion and immerse themselves in the wine industry. Leah brings with her to Spring Mountain over 10 years experience in customer service, public relations and management. Her professionalism, coupled with her sunny personality enable her to meet the customers needs extremely well. In her free time, Leah enjoys traveling, volunteering in the local schools, biking, gardening and coaching soccer.
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Leigh Meyering |
Leigh has over ten years of winemaking experience. She earned her BS in Engineering from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. After working in the semiconductor industry for four years she yearned for a chance to blend her science background with a more creative expression and started in the wine industry at Charles Krug in St. Helena. A Master’s Degree in Enology from UC Davis—one of America’s top winemaking universities—opened cellar doors for her at Mac Rostie in Carneros and overseas in France. She ventured to Bordeaux’s St. Emilion region to work at Clos Des Jacobins and Chateau La Commanderie. Her time in Bordeaux only increased her passion for fine wines and put her on a course to bring her combined education and hands-on experience back to Napa Valley. In 2003, after returning from Bordeaux, she came to Spring Mountain District and joined Spring Mountain Vineyard where she works alongside Winemaker Jac Cole to create some of Napa Valley’s finest wines.
A Bay Area native, Leigh now lives in Napa with her husband, Mark, and their two children—Annika and Zachary—and brews her own delectable beer as a hobby. |
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Ted Davidson |
Raised in Sonoma County, Ted Davidson began his career as a professional opera singer, a vocation that afforded him the opportunity to travel throughout Europe and enjoy the finest old-world wines. After deciding against an operatic lifestyle, he turned his attentions to wine and studied to become a professional sommelier.
Two years ago Ted moved back to Northern California after having spent fifteen years working in some of the finest restaurants in San Francisco and on the east coast. In New York he spent time at Oceana as well as Maritime. More recently he was the sommelier of the celebrated Aujourd’hui at the Four Seasons Hotel Boston. He has also made frequent appearances on television and radio as a food and wine educator.
Before joining the Spring Mountain Vineyard Team, Ted worked at Harlan Estate. He now enjoys the position of Wine Club Manager, especially when he gets to spend time giving vineyard tours and barrel tasting with club members. In addition, he is finishing up a Roman à Clef recalling his days as a sommelier entitled Master of my Domaines. In his spare time he gives an occasional song recital of German Lieder. |
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