Our Story

Julie fell in love with Napa Valley when she and her future husband first visited not long after they graduated from UC Berkeley. When they found their Mt. Veeder Estate shortly after having their first child, they thought it was heaven on earth. An attorney and former federal prosecutor by training, Julie has used her skills to establish a growing wine brand in a heavily regulated industry. She has treasured her time on Mt. Veeder, being a nurturing steward of the land and leading Anthem Winery while also raising three children. The vines she and her husband selected and planted now produce some of the most acclaimed Cabernet and Merlot on Mt. Veeder. They are first-generation farmers and vintners, and Julie’s ultimate goals are to run Anthem Winery alongside one or more of their children, and to share her passion for wine, family, fitness and a healthy lifestyle with customers, meeting and getting to know amazing people from diverse communities and backgrounds. She looks forward to sharing not only Anthem wines, but also the natural beauty and bounty of Mt. Veeder, Napa Valley when Anthem Winery’s planned tasting room opens.

Jeff is an explosive winemaking talent from thoroughly Southern upbringing, spending most of his childhood in Memphis, and his teenage years in Mobile, Alabama. After high school, Jeff went to the University of Alabama, receiving a B.A. in History. While working on his Masters in Education at the University of Memphis, Jeff took a job at a small wine shop. Wine immediately captivated him, and he began applying for harvest positions in wineries all over Oregon and California. He got back two replies, one from Lynn Penner-Ash at Rex Hill in Oregon who immediately hired him to work harvest. Jeff came to the Napa Valley in 1999, and began learning every aspect of the wine industry from sales, at WineBid.com, to writing, while doing freelance work for Decanter Magazine. In 2001, Jeff returned to what he loved the most, winemaking, when he began working as assistant winemaker under Thomas Brown on projects including Schrader, Maybach, Outpost, and Tor. In 2003, he took over as head winemaker for Tor, where he continues to make critically acclaimed wines. Jeff brings Anthem Winery’s dream of producing the highest quality wine from impeccably farmed, environmentally sustainable vineyards to fruition by utilizing minimal interference winemaking techniques, allowing the wine to highlight the unique attributes of the land in which they are grown.

Kristen began her career in the wine industry at her family’s winery in Paso Robles, while attending California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. During this time, she developed a strong passion for connecting with people through wine and decided to pursue a career in the wine industry. After graduating with a degree in Journalism, she accepted a job with a top distributor of fine wines in Southern California. Hard work and success earned her a promotion and relocated to the beautiful Napa Valley. Seeking to broaden her expertise, she transitioned from distribution to a supplier role as a Sales Manager for a family owned portfolio of luxury wines. Equipped with distributor and supplier experience and ready for increased responsibility, she accepted the role as Anthem Winery’s Director of Sales and Marketing in 2018. She now manages all of Anthem’s wholesale, retail, and direct-to-consumer sales and marketing efforts.

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John spent much of his childhood growing up in Napa Valley vineyards learning about grape-growing first hand from his father, Tony Truchard. Tony began developing vineyard property in Carneros in 1974, and through assisting his dad in the 1980s and 1990s, John learned about vineyard management from other vintners, including Warren Winiarski, Joe Heitz, and Andre Tchelistcheff. Upon finishing his studies at UC Davis, John began a small vineyard management business in the mid 1990’s and began farming for others who were focused on small lot high quality wine growing. Today, John’s vineyard management company, FARM Napa Valley, manages numerous small, high end vineyards, and is honored to work with some of the best winemakers in the Napa Valley. An accomplished vintner in his own right, John owns and operates John Anthony Vineyards, Butter Wines, Serial Wines, and Weather Wines.

To Anthem’s vineyard team, FARM Napa Valley, FARMing is learning and improving with a focus on earth-friendly farming They strive to maintain, protect, promote the terroir and uniqueness of all the vineyards they manage. They cultivate a culture of long-term employment and continual training, because their team and people are what enable success. They wear well-worn boots and cast long shadows because nothing, absolutely nothing, replaces intimate knowledge of a vineyard. FARM Napa Valley impeccably manages Anthem Winery’s regenerative farming, water efficient irrigation, and quality-focused vineyard practices.

Located in the hillsides of Mt. Veeder, Anthem's future expansion represents a measured approach to growth that honors their commitments to preserving the land, producing ultra-premium wines, and sharing the distinctive terroir of their mountain vineyard estate. The winery's guiding principle remains focused on producing only the highest quality sustainable wines from vine to bottle. Their planned state-of-the-art, Napa Green winery and tasting room, designed by renowned Napa Valley architects Howard Backen and John Taft of Backen & Backen, will employ the most energy and water efficient equipment available, rely on solar energy, and harvest rainwater for reuse in winery process water and vineyard irrigation. For updates on the grand opening of Anthem Winery’s Tasting Room, please enter your email below.

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