Lisa Warner

Winemaker, Leto Cellars

Lisa was born in San Francisco and raised in Sonoma County next to a dairy that has long since disappeared to make way for tract homes. Growing up in a working-class family, wine did not appear on the family dinner table. However, the experience of picking up fresh eggs from Cader Farms, piling in the family 1964 Dodge Dart to purchase milk in glass bottles at the Redwood Drive-In Dairy and having a freezer full of lamb that her father and uncle would butcher each year, must have set the stage for her future.

As a young adult, she started watching cooking shows on public television, purchasing cook books and reading recipes. The act of creating a meal and sharing it with family and friends left her satisfied and joyful in such a complete way, that she thought she would pursue a career as a chef. As she investigated the possibilities, even attending orientation at the Culinary Academy in San Francisco, she was unsure if it would allow her to raise a family.

Instead, she set her sights on working in the wine industry. She found her perfect home at Robert Mondavi Winery in the late 80's and remained there for almost nine years. Everything at RMW was about food and wine or wine and food. It was there that she embraced wine as the "temperate, civilized, sacred, romantic mealtime beverage" that Robert Mondavi spoke of.

In 2008, her husband, winemaker Brad Warner, suggested she make her own wine. After twenty years of being involved with several different wineries in production planning, procurement, winery design, sales and marketing, the time had come for her to take the leap and do what almost everyone in the wine industry only dreams of.

Country born: United States

Education: Generous mentors and hands-on experience

Years in the wine industry: 15-20 years

Winemaking Philosophy:
With a philosophy to embrace what each vintage has to offer, our commitment is to make wine that underscores the varietal characteristics and purchase our grapes from small, family-owned vineyards.