Events

Dawnine Sample Dyer is an acclaimed American winemaker who pioneered the use of French Champagne production methods (methode champenoise) in California’s fledgling sparkling wine industry in the 1970s. She is also recognized for creating Bordeaux-style single vineyard blends using Cabernet Sauvignon grapes grown in the Napa Valley.

Dawnine, a California native with a degree in biology from the University of California at Santa Cruz, began her wine career in 1974 at the Robert Mondavi Winery in Oakville, the heart of the Napa Valley grape-growing region. In 1976, she joined the Napa Valley start-up Domaine Chandon, the first American, French-owned sparkling winery. Dawnine was paired with a French winemaking team from Domaine Chandon’s parent company, Moët & Chandon, which included veteran winemaker Edmond Maudiere. As Maudiere’s protégé, Dawnine oversaw a series of groundbreaking winemaking trials aimed at creating a naturally fermented sparkling wine based on both Old and New World styles and techniques, including France’s methode champenoise. At the time, only a half dozen sparking wine producers existed in the United States, among them Korbel and Schramsburg. The effort resulted in California’s first sparkling wine made using Pinot Meunier, a black grape typically used in French Champagne for additional depth and maturity. Dawnine also vinified a Pinot Meunier still wine.

During her 25 years at Domaine Chandon, Dawnine was eventually named vice president and principal winemaker. She oversaw all winemaking at the 400,000-case winery and also worked with its parent company in France. In 1986 she helped found Domaine Chandon’s sister winery in Australia’s Yarra Valley and also oversaw export products for the company’s winery facility in Argentina. She also joined other winemakers and grape growers in calling for the creation of Geographic Indications and Appellations of Origin for America’s wine growing regions.

While at Domaine Chandon, Dawnine and husband Bill planted a 2.5-acre Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in the prestigious Diamond Mountain American Viticultural Area (AVA) of the Napa Valley, and began making 400 cases a year of Dyer Vineyard Bordeaux-style wines. In 2000, she left Domaine Chandon to devote more time to the hillside estate. Noted Wine Spectator columnist and author Matt Kramer credits the Dyers with creating “great Cabernets” of “superb quality.”

In 2005 Dawnine and Bill partnered with former America Online Inc. chairman and chief executive Barry Schuler and his wife Tracy to create a Cabernet Sauvignon blend called Meteor Vineyard, made from grapes grown on the Schuler’s 22-acre vineyard in the Napa Valley’s historic Coombsville region. The hilltop vineyard, also sells grapes to acclaimed Napa Valley labels including Arietta, Etude and Vineyard 29, released its first vintage in April? 2008. U.K. wine authority Steven Spurrier commended the Meteor team for its 2005 vintage after sampling the wine at a barrel auction. In a Decanter article he described the blend as having “smooth, spicy fruit” and “plush tannins.”

Dawnine has served as president of the Napa Valley Vintners Association (NVV) and of Napa Valley Wine Technical Group and was a member of the founding board of Women for WineSense. Through her work with the NVV, she has been invited to speak internationally on the importance of Geographic Indications and Appellations of Origin to the Napa Valley. She lectures for the annual Wine Industry Executive program at the University of California at Davis Graduate School of Business and elsewhere. She is also a judge for several professional wine competitions, including the U.S.-based National Women’s Wine Competition.

After studying Viticulture and Enology at Lincoln University in New Zealand, Jason commenced his practical education with some of the great minds and sites of Bordeaux Varietals internationally: Steve Smith MW at Craggy Range Winery, Mark Blake of Blake Family Vineyard in New Zealand, Larry Cherubino in Margaret River, Australia, Stephane Derenoncourt in St. Emillion and David Abreu of Abreu Vineyard in Napa Valley. While working with David Abreu, Jason met Mark Aubert, who hired him to assist in the winemaking at Futo Wines. In 2009, after a couple of years working under Mark, full winemaking responsibilities were handed to Jason.

Peterson grew up in Monterey immersed in the culture and business of wine.  Peterson’s father was a winemaker by trade who began his business growing grapes throughout California for Beringer Vineyards.  While studying enology at UC Davis, Peterson financed his education by making and selling his own wine.  After graduation he traveled to France where he worked with influential Bordeaux-based oenologist, Michel Rolland at his vineyard, Château Le Bon Pasteur in Pomerol.  During the off seasons at Ovid, Peterson continued his passion for traveling and visited wine regions in South Africa, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand to help with the harvests and further his winemaking education.

Stephen D. Tanzer is editor and publisher of the critically acclaimed International Wine Cellar, an independent on-line journal read by wine professionals and other wine lovers in all 50 states and 34 countries. Each bimonthly issue features tasting notes on more than 1,500 recommended new wines and more than 100,000 words of wine criticism. The IWC was the first American wine publication to be translated into French and Japanese editions.

Tanzer has also served as Senior Editor and wine columnist for Food & Wine magazine and wrote Food & Wine's Official Wine Guide in 1998 and 1999. He was also the wine columnist for Forbes FYI during the first five years of that publication's existence.

His WineAccess Buyer’s Guide (Sterling Publishing), a comprehensive guide to the best wines from around the world, was published in 2006.

Tanzer also frequently conducts wine tastings and tasting seminars. In the course of his annual tasting cycle, Tanzer samples well over 10,000 wines annually, spending several months each year tasting and discussing wines with their makers, both in the U.S. and abroad.

Appearing at other events:

Burgundy's Future: The Wines of Domaine Dujac (Saturday)In a country that is slow to innovate, Burgundy is notoriously slow even among the French. Yet it's the bourguignon reverence for tradition and terroir that sets its wines apart from generic international wines with little to no unique character. For our Fifth Anniversary at Pebble Beach Food & Wine, we are particularly pleased to be showcasing the wines from Domaine Dujac, one of the most exciting Burgundy producers to watch in the new millenium.

Celia was born and raised in Medford, Oregon as the daughter of parents who loved wine, home winemaking, gardening and great food, and pursued wine studies at UC Davis, graduating with a degree in Fermentation Science in 1982.

In 1992 Celia began a small consulting practice and realized the joy in working with small, single-vineyard estate properties and the passionate visionaries who own them. She currently consults for a limited selection of  Napa Valley clients, primarily with their own estate vineyards,  producing ultra-premium Cabernets and other varietals for them and for her own brand, Corra.

Celia was honored with Food & Wine’s Winemaker of the Year 2008, and in 2009 was nominated for a James Beard Award.    Forbes.com honored her as one of America’s Top Ten Tastemakers in 2005. Women for Winesense awarded her their 1999 “Hall of Fame Award”, and she received The Rising Star Award from the same organization.   She is a professional member of the ASEV, and a past co-chair of the Napa Valley Wine Technical Group.

.