SANTA ROSA, Calif. (July 10, 2017) – Mike Sullivan, winemaker and co-owner of Benovia Winery, a small production, family-owned winery in the heart of the Russian River Valley, is pleased to announce that Adolfo Hernandez has been named Assistant Winemaker. A trained chemist with a decade of experience in the wine industry, Hernandez will help oversee production of Benovia’s renowned estate-produced Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, as well as its other offerings.
“We are thrilled to appoint Adolfo Hernandez as our Assistant Winemaker,” said Benovia’s winemaker and co-owner, Mike Sullivan. “His background in chemistry and his passion for small production wine are a perfect fit, as we use innovative methods to continue producing the highest quality Russian River Valley Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.”
Hernandez brings extensive technical expertise, a background with small, family-owned wineries, and a distinct passion and curiosity for Pinot Noir to Benovia Winery. He comes to Benovia most recently from Pahlmeyer Winery in St. Helena, where he served as a Harvest Enologist. Prior to that, he served as Assistant Winemaker at Checkerboard Vineyards in Calistoga. There, he oversaw all of the winemaking activities for Checkerboard as well as the Levy & McClellan brands.
As an enologist at the popular Araujo Estate Winery for four years, Hernandez was involved in overseeing the lab procedures, winemaking, the vineyard and the cellar, ensuring quality throughout the process from field to bottle. He started his career in wine as a Laboratory Technician at Clos du Bois, where he supervised the lab to ensure productivity and efficiency.
Hernandez grew up in Saudi Arabia, where the expat community made alcohol, including his father, which sparked Hernandez’s interest in wine production. Hernandez pursued his passion for creation and chemistry at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, where he obtained a BS in Biological Sciences, followed by an MBA at Sonoma State University. After school, Hernandez worked in a lab in Bakersfield, CA making organic pesticides, and later applied this knowledge to his following role as senior lab technician at Clos du Bois winery in Geyserville. He is fluent in Spanish and English, and, when he’s not making wine, he is a master pianist.
Located just east of the famed Russian River, Benovia produces some of the region’s most expressive Pinot Noir – grown on 72 acres of estate vineyards, owned and sustainably-farmed by the Benovia team. Benovia is popular with savvy, adventurous Pinot Noir enthusiasts who vie for its limited production single vineyard wines.
For more information please visit www.BenoviaWinery.com
About Benovia Winery
Benovia Winery is a special, small production, family-owned winery in the heart of the Russian River Valley that specializes in sustainably farmed, single-vineyard Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Founded by husband and wife team Mary Dewane and Joe Anderson, Benovia was named after Mary and Joe’s fathers, Ben Dewane and Novian Anderson. Similarly, the family’s Martaella vineyard is a tribute to Dewane and Anderson’s mothers, Martha and Eleanor. Benovia owns and farms three distinctly different vineyards so as to present several nuanced wines in its portfolio. The wines are allocated directly to customers and distributed to select restaurants across the country.
