Sequoia Grove Winery, one of Napa Valley’s premier producers of Cabernet Sauvignon, announced Jesse Fox as winemaker to propel the winery’s long-term vision and commitment to producing best-in-class wines expressive of Napa Valley’s terroir.
“Sequoia Grove is a historic, benchmark Napa Valley winery, which bestows on us a responsibility to simultaneously respect our past and build a promising future,” says Rick Bonitati, president of Sequoia Grove, which is comprised of 97 acres across three estate vineyards. “The appointment of Jesse Fox to winemaker is the culmination of a six-year strategy of thoughtful, significant investments and measures to ensure our future lives up to the pioneering vision that the winery was founded on in 1979. All the pieces are in place for Jesse to hit the ground running.”
Fox began his winemaking career in the cellars of Harlan Estates’ The Napa Valley Reserve, and Promontory. He also served as the assistant winemaker at Ram’s Gate in Sonoma-Carneros. “Achieving balance is the guiding principle in my winemaking,” Fox says. “It is a privilege to be a part of this historic producer’s future, and to join a team that believes in creating wines that welcome guests into the Napa Valley experience, introducing them to the diverse expressions of Cabernet Sauvignon.”
Before starting his wine career, which has taken him to the Loire Valley, Argentina, and New Zealand, Fox studied at Le Cordon Bleu and Cornell University, and worked as a chef for Thomas Keller at The French Laundry. His professional kitchen experience makes him uniquely suited to reinforce the Sequoia Grove philosophy built around tradition-defying culinary pairings that showcase Cabernet Sauvignon’s nuances.
