Alan Viader

Winemaker, Viader Vineyards & Winery

Alan spent his childhood on his family’s vineyard estate on Howell Mountain. His early education in wine and formal schooling helped shape his respect for terroir-driven wines, organic farming, and diverse viticultural practices from around the world.

He started working in the family vineyards at the age of nine and continued to help throughout his childhood, including working as cellarhand in the caves at Viader. After high school, he pursued his passion for grape growing with a hands-on program in Sonoma where he received a degree in Viticulture Management.

In 2002, Alan officially stepped in as Vineyard Manager for Viader in 2002, while simultaneously continuing his education at UC Davis, where he learned the fundamentals in winemaking. In 2005, Alan worked a harvest at Achavel-Ferrer winery in Mendoza, Argentina, which convinced him that winemaking was his calling. Alan officially stepped in as lead winemaker for Viader in 2006. Today, he continues to oversee vineyard management operations while working in all areas of wine production together with his mother, Delia at Viader.

An avid adventurer and seasoned traveler, Alan continues to visit the world’s best wine producers and wine growing regions throughout Argentina, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Germany and France. In 2013, he went to the University of Sciences Agro to study viticulture in Bordeaux, France.

A hands-on experimentalist and eternal student of the vine, Alan has been at the forefront of trialing and adopting the right combination of organic, biodynamic and sustainable practices, not to mention new technology integrations that optimally benefit the quality of Viader wines. In the cellar, Alan has been equally fervent about delivering better quality results, experimenting with different blends, yeasts, fermentations, barreling, etc., always open to new ideas, trials and opportunities to responsibly deliver improved quality wines.

Alan is married to Mariela, his Guatemalan sweetheart and dedicated mother to their three children. He loves grilling, hiking, camping and riding Enduro motorcycles throughout the beautiful Sierra Nevada Mountains, but can sometime be found exploring dirt tracks in Baja California, Mexico. Alan is also a member of the Napa County Sheriff’s Volunteer Search & Rescue team.

As the right-hand to his mother & founder, Delia Viader, Alan oversees Viader production from start to finish. Having inherited his mother’s passion for winemaking and expressing Viader’s unique terroir, Alan is looking forward to continuing the family business for many exciting vintages and generations to come.

Country born: Argentina

Education: UC Davis Enology & Viticulture classes
University of Sciences-Agro in Bordeaux
2005 Harvest at Achaval-Ferrer in Mendoza, Argentina

Years in the wine industry: 15-20 years

Winemaking Philosophy:
Our philosophy is to allow the grapes and terroir (all factors that influence the character of grapes grown in a specific microclimate), to express themselves naturally in every glass of Viader.