The US is the largest wine market in the world. Americans consume more wine than any other country (311 million cases of wine in 2011) in the world. France, Italy and Germany came very close, with each market accounting for around 300 million cases of wine per year.
Whereas France and Italy have a high (and declining) per capita consumption, as does Germany, although a bit lower, the US consumes very little per capita (only a bit more than 10 liters), but there are a large number of American consumers. In addition, American wine consumption per capita is growing.
Here is a list of the 100 most influential winemakers in the USA, compiled by IntoWine.
(See also for a similar list: Top 100 Most Influential People in the U.S. Wine Industry– The 2012 IntoWine.com List)
100-Helen Keplinger
99-Hardy Wallace
98-Bryan Ulbrich
97-Craig Kritzer
96-Abe Schroner
95-Ron Bitner
94-Garrit Stoltz
93-Paul Sloan
92-Steve Doerner
91-Jared and Tracey Brandt with their Donkey and Goat Winery in downtown Berkeley; they are proponents of natural wine making, i.e. minimal intervention.
Picture: Christian G.E. Schiller and Jared Brandt in BerkeleySee also:
Visiting Jared Brandt and his Donkey & Goat Winery– Natural Wines Made in Berkeley, California
The Natural Wines of the Donkey and Goat Winery in Berkeley, California
90-Daniel Daou
89-Tony Kooyumjian of Augusta Winery in Missouri had a major role in having Augusta declared the very first AVA in 1980.
Picture: Christian G.E.Schiller with Tony Kooyumjian at Montelle WinerySee also:
In the Oldest AVA - American Viticultural Area - Augusta in Missouri
French American Hybrid Grapes - Vidal Blanc, Seyval Blanc and Others
Visiting Tony Kooyumjian at Montelle Winery in Missouri
88-Kris Kane
87-John Charito
86-Dan Lee
85-Hank Beckmeyer
84-Thomas Rivers Brown
83-Morgan Twain-Peterson
82-Clay Shannon
81-Johnathan Lachs
80-Joe Hart
79-Jordan Harris is winemaker and general manager of Tarara Winery in Leesburg, Virginia. While many of Virginia’s vintners are concentrating their efforts on the sure sellers like Bordeaux-style blends and Chardonnay (which frankly don’t show well here) Harris champions varieties that are often overlooked. Pushing the boundaries of his various blends, Harris is blazing trails in the state with bottlings like his blends of Tannat, Petit Verdot and Pinotage; and a white wine mix of Viognier, Roussanne, and Petit Manseng.
See also:
An Afternoon with Jordan Harris, Winemaker of Tarara, Virginia, USA
Vineyard Walk, Wine Tasting in the Vineyard and Lunch in the Tarara Tank Cellar with Wine Maker Jordan Harris, Tarara Winery, USA
Winemaker Jordan Harris from Tarara Winery in Virginia: One of “40 American Tastemakers under 40” (Wine Enthusiast), USA
78-Jeff Emery
77-Manfred Krankl of Sine Qua Non in Santa Barbara makes cult wine for wine nerds.
76-Caleb Foster
75-Charles Smith. A decade ago, Smith, a California native, was managing a rock band in Copenhagen when he made a career shift: Smith taught himself how to make wine by creating tiny lots of Syrah for his own K brand. Now his wines are some of Washington’s most sought-after. And Smith’s The Magnificent Wine Company wines (House Wine Red and White) and “modernist” Charles Smith Wines (The Velvet Devil Merlot, Kung Fu Girl Riesling and more) are among the best values anywhere.
74-Ian Brand
73-Ben Smith
72-Marco Capelli
71-Stephen Bernard is the winemaker for Keswick Vineyards in Virginia.
70-Maggie Harrison
69-Joe Davis
68-Wes Hagen
67-Jon McPhearson
66-Alan Phillips
65- Lee Lutes
64-Andrew Meggitt
63-Adam LaZarre
62-Duncan Arnot Meyers and Nathan Roberts
61-Steve MacRostie
60-Andrew Quady
59-Jim Bernau
58-Kenneth Volk
57-Bob Betz
56-Steven Mirassou
55-Dan Petroski
54-Wendy Stuckey. Born and raised in Australia, Stuckey left the Barossa Valley to join Chateau Ste. Michelle as its white winemaker. Today her commitment to Riesling is as strong as ever, making eight iterations of American Riesling.
53-Christian Roguenant
52-Fred Frank manages Dr. Konstantin Frank in the Finger Lakes region in New York, and studied winemaking in Germany. As Konstantin's grandson, Fred Frank, has expanded the business tenfold, working closely with winemaker Peter Weis, and Dr. Frank wines are now distributed in 36 states and internationally.
See also:
German Wine Makers in the World: Dr. Konstantin Frank (USA)
51-Jeff Meier
50-Dave Ramey
49-Greg Harrington
48-Cameron Hughes is a wine négociant. He does not own a vineyard or a winery but outsources all the labor that goes into making a bottle of wine; growing the grapes, crushing and fermenting them.
47-Ehren Jordan
46-Tony Soter
45-Neil Collins of Tablas Creek Paso Robles legally imported Rhône grape varieties from France, propagating them in a nursery at the winery after they were released from quarantine. The availability of this new vine material helped raise the quality of Rhône grapes in the U.S., and wineries all over the country are growing the so-called Tablas Creek Vineyard Selections in their vineyards.
See also:
Tablas Creek Wines from Paso Robles and Belgian Food at Brasserie Beck with Tablas Greek GM Jason Haas and Chef Robert Wiedmaier in Washington DC, USA
44-Milla Handley
43-Gary Eberle has earned the title, the “grandfather of Paso Robles wine.”
42-Elias Fernandez
41-Daryl Groom
40-Lynne Penner
39-Richard Sanford
38-Celia Welch
37-Steve Matthiasson
36-Aaron Pott
35-John Williams
34-Mike Benziger leads one of the most prominent and one of the last in-tact families in the wine industry. Based in Sonoma, the 30-year old Benziger Family Winery is widely known for their pioneering exploration and practice of biodynamic, organic and sustainable agriculture and grape growing.
See also:
Benziger Wines Served at the 2010 “Green” Annual White House Correspondents Dinner
33-Chris Camarda
32-Bob Cabral
31-Gary Farrell
30-Kris Curran
29-Rick Small
28-Mark Aubert
27-Stephane Derenoncourt is a self-taught winemaker who continues to spread his wings as a consultant, with projects in Italy, Spain, Chile, China, India, Turkey, Lebanon and Bordeaux. He consults for Francis Ford Coppola’s Rubicon in California and now makes a cool-climate, high-altitude Napa range of wines under his own name.
See also:
Bordeaux Meets Virginia: Tasting Through Recent Vintages at Boxwood Winery in Virginia: With Anne Cuvelier from Chateau Leoville - Poyferre, Annette Schiller from Wine Tours by Ombiasy and Boxwood Winery General Manager Rachel Martin, USA
Boxwood Winery in Virginia: Lunch with Wine Makers Rachel Martin and Adam McTaggert in the Chai between the Tanks – TasteCamp 2012 East Kick-Off, USA
26-Karl Wente
25-Genevieve Janssens
24-Dan Karlsen
23-Bob Lindquist
22-Jim Clenenden of Au Bon Climat in Santa Barbara has cultivated an international reputation for Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Gris. Clenenden was on Robert Parker's short list of Best Wineries in the World, and he was selected by Oz Clark in as one of 50 worldwide creators of Modern Classic Wines.
21-Bob Levy
20-Kim McPhearson
19-Justin Smith
18-Paul Dolan
17-Joel Peterson
16-Sean Thackery
15-Greg LaFollette
14-Carol Shelton
13-Peter Mondavi, Jr. along with patriarch Peter Mondavi, Sr., heads up the flourishing Charles Krug Winery and CK Mondavi Family Vineyards. Amidst corporate buy-outs up and down the Napa Valley, Mondavi has been determined to keep Charles Krug in the family, and to preserve the 850 estate vineyards, farming them sustainably. Additionally he has helped preserve the historical legacy of wine in the Napa Valley by refurbishing the original buildings on the property, thus maintaining one of the oldest wineries in California, all the while maintaining an incredible level of quality.
See also:
Morton’s Steakhouse Presented Peter Mondavi Jr. at a Charles Krug Winemaker Dinner
12-Cathy Corison
11-Randall Grahm planned to make the first great American Pinot Noir. Instead he introduced American consumers wine other than Cabernet and Chardonnay. His Le Cigare Volant proved it was possible to craft and sell great Rhône wine blends from California before anyone really knew what they were. His marketing antics still defies and at times defines the pretentious approach, such as when he held a funeral for the Cork in 2002. Grahm, a longtime proponent of biodynamic viticulture, downsized his production in 2006 to focus on small estate wines.
See also:
Bumping into Randall Grahm in San Francisco, Owner of famed Bonny Doon Vineyard in Santa Cruz in California, USA
10-Mia Klein
9-Robert Foley
8-Heley Turley.
7-Gina Gallo: With over 24 wine brands, and over 70 millions cases of wine produced and tens of thousands of acres of grapes, E. & J. Gallo Winery is the world's largest family-owned winery and the largest exporter of California wine. Gina Gallo is winemaker, spokesperson and all around wine supporter.
6-Heidi Barrett
5-Paul Hobbs is owner and winemaker for Paul Hobbs Winery, CrossBarn Winery and Vina Cobos in Mendoza. Paul is a pioneer in this industry, from having a hand in the discovery of Malbec’s potential in Argentina, to venturing into regions such as Hungary, Armenia, Uruguay and Cahors.
4-Robert Trinchero
3-Paul Draper
2-Merry Edwards
1-Phillipe Melka
See also:
Allan Shoup’s and Gilles Nicault’s Long Shadow Wines from Washington State, USA
schiller-wine: Related Postings
Morton’s Steakhouse Presented Peter Mondavi Jr. at a Charles Krug Winemaker Dinner
Allan Shoup’s and Gilles Nicault’s Long Shadow Wines from Washington State, USA
Bordeaux Meets Virginia: Tasting Through Recent Vintages at Boxwood Winery in Virginia: With Anne Cuvelier from Chateau Leoville - Poyferre, Annette Schiller from Wine Tours by Ombiasy and Boxwood Winery General Manager Rachel Martin, USA
Boxwood Winery in Virginia: Lunch with Wine Makers Rachel Martin and Adam McTaggert in the Chai between the Tanks – TasteCamp 2012 East Kick-Off, USA
Bumping into Randall Grahm in San Francisco, Owner of famed Bonny Doon Vineyard in Santa Cruz in California, USA
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Visiting Jared Brandt and his Donkey & Goat Winery– Natural Wines Made in Berkeley, California
The Natural Wines of the Donkey and Goat Winery in Berkeley, California
In the Oldest AVA - American Viticultural Area - Augusta in Missouri
French American Hybrid Grapes - Vidal Blanc, Seyval Blanc and Others
Visiting Tony Kooyumjian at Montelle Winery in Missouri
Winemaker Jordan Harris from Tarara Winery in Virginia: One of “40 American Tastemakers under 40” (Wine Enthusiast), USA
An Afternoon with Jordan Harris, Winemaker of Tarara, Virginia, USA
Vineyard Walk, Wine Tasting in the Vineyard and Lunch in the Tarara Tank Cellar with Wine Maker Jordan Harris, Tarara Winery, USA
Tablas Creek Wines from Paso Robles and Belgian Food at Brasserie Beck with Tablas Greek GM Jason Haas and Chef Robert Wiedmaier in Washington DC, USA
German Wine Makers in the World: Dr. Konstantin Frank (USA)