Doug Fletcher - Vice President of Winemaking, Terlato Wine Group
Doug Fletcher is a rarity among winemakers, a true winegrower who is as comfortable in the vineyard as he is in the cellar. He has worked with Stags Leap District fruit for three decades and in the process has become an acknowledged leader in growing and crafting wines from the District. A University of Oregon graduate in biology, Fletcher began his career at Martin Ray in the mid-1970s and later helped Steltzner Vineyards launch a small winery in the Stags Leap District. He came to Chimney Rock in 1987 and oversaw the replanting of the original estate vineyard, as well as new plantings done under the Terlato family's leadership.
In 2006, Fletcher was appointed Vice President of Winemaking for the Terlato Wine Group. In that position, he oversees all aspects of winemaking at the other Terlato properties – including Rutherford Hill in Napa Valley, Terlato Family Vineyards in Napa and Sonoma, Alderbrook in Sonoma and Sanford in Santa Barbara County. Doug also serves as a senior consultant in the Terlato Family’s joint ventures throughout the world.
Elizabeth Vianna - Winemaker, Chimney Rock Winery
Elizabeth Vianna attributes her career in winemaking to a glass of 1985 Sociando Mallet, which she enjoyed at a pre-auction tasting at Christie’s in New York. A biology major at Vassar College, Elizabeth was originally on the pre-medical school track. She fell in love with wine as a consumer while living in New York City, working as a clinical toxicologist at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center. Her strong science background and sudden infatuation with wine propelled her to apply to the University of California – Davis, and its renowned winemaking program instead of medical school. Friends and family attempted an intervention, but without success.
Vianna first became familiar with the Chimney Rock winemaking program in 1999, working as a harvest intern while completing her Master’s degree in enology at U.C. Davis. Upon graduation, she first became an enologist at Napa Wine Company and was soon named assistant winemaker there, where she worked directly with many of region’s top winemakers. Vianna was named to the position of assistant winemaker at Chimney Rock in February 2002, and advanced to the position of winemaker in April 2005.
Josh Widaman - Assistant Winemaker, Chimney Rock Winery
Overseas family trips taught Josh Widaman to appreciate the European lifestyle. And if not for life’s serendipitous events, he could have been knee deep in math equations instead of in grapes! Growing up in Southern California, Widaman enrolled at the University of California – San Diego, to pursue a degree in mathematics, but ended up studying enology at UC Davis. Having gained an appreciation of fine wine from his father, Josh was enthralled by introductory courses in grape growing and winemaking. In 1999, while working a harvest at Stags’ Leap Winery, he fell in love with the Stags Leap District.
Josh dabbled in sparkling winemaking at Gloria Ferrer as a harvest intern in 2001. After graduation Josh came to Chimney Rock as a harvest intern. His talent and enthusiasm propelled him to the position of enologist in January 2003. In the spring of 2005, in recognition of a job well done, Josh was able to take part in a winemaking exchange program with Viña Tarapacá, in the Maipo Valley of Chile. Upon his return to Napa in April 2005, Widaman was promoted to the position of assistant winemaker at Chimney Rock.
