Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW

The Wine Independent

Born and raised in rural Maine, Lisa Perrotti-Brown has spent more than 25 years in the wine industry, living and working in London, Tokyo, Singapore, and now Napa, California. In 2008, she became a Master of Wine and received the Madame Bollinger Medal for excellence in wine tasting. That same year, she began working for Robert M. Parker, Jr. at The Wine Advocate. In 2013, she became Editor in Chief for Robert Parker Wine Advocate and RobertParker.com, as well as the publication’s critic for Bordeaux, Napa Valley, and Sonoma County wines. Lisa’s first book, Taste Like a Wine Critic: A Guide to Understanding Wine Quality, was published in 2015. In 2021, she left Robert Parker Wine Advocate to become co-founder of The Wine Independent.

Ryan Pass

Winemaker, Farella Vineyard

Joe Wagner

Owner, Quilt Wines

Joseph is a fifth generation Napa Valley winemaker with a dedicated passion for the business. Joe’s roots in the winemaking began at an early age. His family founded Caymus Vineyards in Napa Valley.

In 2001 at age nineteen, he rolled up his sleeves and has yet to look back. His passion and natural talent for winemaking quickly became apparent after he started his own award-winning single vineyard Pinot Noir label, Belle Glos.

In January 2014, Joe formed Copper Cane Wine & Provisions, with the goal of focusing on innovations that have always captured his interest, and to find new ways to offer the highest quality products that satisfy consumers’ appetites for genuine craftsmanship.

Stephanie Putnam

Director of Winemaking, Raymond Vineyards

Stephanie Putnam is the director of winemaking at Raymond Vineyards, where she oversees all aspects of winemaking for this iconic Napa Valley winery. Before joining the Boisset Collection team, Stephanie spent eight years as winemaker at Far Niente Winery, where she contemporized their house style. Prior to that, she was part of the team at The Hess Collection Winery, where she began as a cellar worker and rapidly progressed to winemaker. Throughout her 15+ years of experience as a winemaker, over 30 of her wines have received 90+ scores from Robert Parker.

Natalie Winkler

Winemaker, Salvestrin Winery

Beth Novak Milliken

Owner & CEO, Spottswoode Estate Vineyard & Winery

In 1987, Beth Novak Milliken joined her mother, Mary Novak, becoming the first second-generation family member to become actively involved in guiding Spottswoode Estate Vineyard & Winery. In the more than three decades since, Beth has played a key role in establishing Spottswoode Estate Vineyard as one of the world's great winegrowing sites, and Spottswoode as one of Napa Valley's most iconic and respected wineries. She has also quietly built a reputation as a leader in the Napa Valley community, advocating on behalf of the wine industry, and the social and environmental causes she holds dear.

Moving to Napa Valley with her parents in 1972, Beth grew up surrounded by the vineyards. Like her four siblings, Beth's chores included tasks like suckering the vines and cleaning out the emitters. While her youth in Napa Valley may have planted the seed for her future, ironically, it was a year spent studying abroad in Europe that made her begin thinking about a career in wine. After earning a degree in economics from UCLA, Beth joined a San Francisco-based wine brokerage representing clients like Caymus, Joseph Phelps and Pine Ridge.

When Mary asked Beth to help out "a little" at the winery, it didn't take long for a few days a week to become a permanent way of life. "Back then, we were on our third release, and we were still in the red," says Beth. "Two things became imme-diately obvious to me: this was a full time position, and I absolutely loved being a part of the winery!" One of Beth's first major decisions was to acquire the historic adja-cent Kraft property to expand the estate and establish a barrel room and offices in its beautiful buildings. Since then, Beth has played an integral role in the thoughtful evolution of Spottswoode. During her tenure, Beth has overseen the replanting of the estate in response to phylloxera, the vineyard's pioneering CCOF organic certification in 1992, and the building of the Spottswoode Estate Winery in 1999.

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