Our Journey to Create World Class Wines
David Lucas - Owner & Winemaker:
“My goal is to create wines which reflect their environment, that represent the place they come from. I used to make what I call “terrifying” wines, high alcohol, jammy, port like, and un-age-able. While I was employed by a world- class winery for 16 years, responsible for the vineyards, research, and grape supply, I had the opportunity to visit some of the world's great vineyards, to stand in those vineyards, and to taste the grapes and wines they produced. I discovered that the wines I was making were nothing at all like those wonderful, balanced, and elegantly structured wines. So, I started on a long journey. Years of research and experimentation led to the completion of the new winery in 2000. Our goal is to create wines that will develop with time in the bottle, for that is where the Genie, the bouquet, lives.”
Heather Pyle Lucas - Owner & Winemaker:
“After making wines for 16 years at the Robert Mondavi Winery where I was responsible for their Cabernet Reserve and Opus wines, I began to apply my vast experience to help start-up wineries in Napa and throughout California. I found that my winemaking heart and soul belongs to the farming of grapes. I personally spend more time in the vineyard than I do in the winery. I am a traditionalist and my own vineyard and winegrowing reflects this with organically grown grapes. My mantra is to make seamless wines that are distinctive and age-worthy. I love discovering a vineyard through its wines and how to fine tune the vines and hence the wines they produce. Best of all, however, is getting up in the middle of the night in my pajamas and checking on how the fermentations are doing …”
Mitra Lucas Grant:
Mitra grew up as the youngest of the Lucas children (and the only girl). Being raised with two other brothers, Mitra learned to "keep up" and work as hard as her older siblings did. Now living and working in NYC, she remembers the values her farming childhood taught her. She and her husband, Tim, love to travel and, of course, returning to Lodi and the vineyards.
Tim Grant:
Tim had his introduction to wine at an early age. His grandparents lived in Bordeaux and Chateau Haut Brion was on the other side of the back garden fence. Tim grew to love wine and then grew to love Mitra. Now a bona fide part of the family and of the winery, Tim brings business acumen from a decade working on Wall Street.