Winemaking Team
Senior Winemaker Andy Smith
Andy came to Larkmead in April 1999. Since becoming obsessed with wine in the late Eighties in his native Scotland, Andy has worked with a number of the World's leading producers. These include, most notably Dry River in Martinborough New Zealand; Yalumba in the Barossa Valley, Australia; Littorai and Paul Hobbs in California.
Since 1999 he has been winemaker with the highly regarded DuMol in California's Russian River Valley and brings a Pinot sensitivity to his winemaking for Larkmead. Between 1999 and 2004 he was also winemaker for Napa Valley's Gemstone Vineyard.
Variously described by Robert Parker as "the talented Scotsman" and "a superstar", Andy particularly enjoys the diversity of soils, varieties and clones at Larkmead, which enable him to craft stylish, complex wines reflective of this historic site. He is particularly excited about our new winery and the certainty that our wines will rise to the next level in the years ahead.
- In the September 2008 issue of Food & Wine magazine, Robert Parker listed Andy Smith as one of the "World's Most Influential Wine Consultants."
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Winemaker Daniel Petroski
Winemaker Dan Petroski came to Northern California from New York via Italy where he spent a year living and working with the family that owns the Sicilian winery Valle dell'Acate. Dan first set foot in the Larkmead vineyard in 2006 as an intern while assisting our winemaker Andy Smith with the harvest that year. Dan is responsible for the daily management of Larkmead winemaking and his old-world sensibility is very much in harmony with Andy's palate and winemaking philosophy.
