Jason Alexander
Jason brings over a decade of wine knowledge and experience to the Meteor team. As both a sommelier and
wine director at two of the Bay Areas most highly regarded restaurants and as Vice President of Vintrust Wine
Management, he has traveled extensively in the world’s classic wine regions buying, tasting and studying. Jason
possesses invaluable insight into the business of fine and rare wine.
Jason received his bachelor’s degree at the University of California at Santa Barbara, and went on to study poetry
at San Francisco State University. During this time he worked with famed chef Paul Bertolli at Oliveto restaurant
in Oakland, and discovered his true calling. Jason notes, “ Studying wine offered a way to fuse all of my interests:
history and geology, language and human creativity.”
Jason began his career as sommelier at Restaurant Gary Danko in San Francisco. Considered one of the world’s
finest restaurants, Gary Danko has been extensively featured in food and wine magazines around the world. In
concert with esteemed sommelier Christie Dufault, he helped create one of the most extensive wine programs in
the world. The wine list was acclaimed for its depth in Italy, Burgundy and Bordeaux, with First Growth Chateau
represented to the late 1800’s. It was awarded the Wine Spectator Grand Award in 2001.
Jason continued his wine career as the opening wine director at Cyrus Restaurant in Healdsburg, CA, one of just
five restaurants to receive a four-star rating by San Francisco Chronicle food critic Michael Bauer and recognized
by Michelin with a prestigious two star rating. Cyrus’ opening list included a diverse and broad collection of the
worlds rarest and most sought after wines, in addition to one of the greatest collections of artisinal selections
from Sonoma County. Jason’s program was featured in many publications, including the New York Times, the
San Francisco Chronicle, Food and Wine, and Wine and Spirits. Michael Bauer noted in his review that “few
sommeliers have Alexander’s talent.”
In 2006, Jason returned to Restaurant Gary Danko as the Wine Director, enhancing the already prestigious wine
program by continuing to develop unique relationships with small wineries, developing a program for long-term
cellar investments in highly collectible wines and boosting international recognition through his involvement in
food and wine events around the world.
In late 2007 Jason accepted an offer to become the Vice President of Wine Acquisitions at Vintrust Wine
Managment. There he oversaw the development of the ecommerce retail program, sourcing wines from private
clients, wineries, auctions and traditional distribution networks to build a robust and diverse portfolio. Jason
developed and implemented Vintrust’s operations in France, establishing a Negotiant house in Bordeaux, and
developed the foundation for an online auction platform. Despite the U.S. falling into a recession, Jason expanded
sales revenues 40% in 2008.
In March 2009, Jason resigned from his position at Vintrust and accepted an offer from Meteor Vineyard as their
General Manager. We are happy to have his expertise.
Jason is an avid fan of the arts and is often found in the evenings at the theater. He notes that his perfect day is
“surfing as the sun rises, driving to Sugar Bowl for an afternoon of spring skiing, rushing back to San Francisco for
an evening at the opera and then enjoying late night roast chicken and a great bottle of wine at NOPA.”
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Tracy Strong Schuler
Tracy Strong Schuler grew up in Philadelphia, PA, where she was a student in the city’s innovative Parkway
Program (a high school without walls). She also attended Bard College at Simon’s Rock in Great Barrington, MA,
as well as business classes at several other institutions.
Tracy’s positions in the technology industry’s marketing and management sectors include Marketing Director
for Cricket Software (the first Macintosh graphics software company). Along with her husband Barry M. Schuler
and David Goldman, she co-founded Medior, Inc., an interactive company, where she was Vice President of
Communications and Production. When Medior, Inc. was sold to America Online, Inc. Tracy assumed a Vice
President of Production/AOL Studios position there before leaving to start a family.
She is a partner, with husband Barry, and Bill and Dawnine Dyer, in Meteor Vineyard, and manages Meteor Growers
(the group that sells Meteor vineyard fruit to various wineries) as well as other family businesses and holdings.
Tracy is a co-founder of the Blue Oak School (www.BlueOakSchool.org), an independent, not-for-profit entity for
students from kindergarten through eighth grade.
As a mother, she is actively involved in a number of community and philanthropic activities, particularly those
with an educational focus, including the local initiative to transform Napa schools, the 21st Century Classroom
initiative.
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Dawnine Sample Dyer
Dawnine Sample Dyer is an acclaimed American winemaker who pioneered the use of French Champagne production methods
(methode champenoise) in California’s fledgling sparkling wine industry in the 1970s. She is also recognized for creating
Bordeaux-style single vineyard blends using Cabernet Sauvignon grapes grown in the Napa Valley.
Dawnine, a California native with a degree in biology from the University of California at Santa Cruz, began her wine career in
1974 at the Robert Mondavi Winery in Oakville, the heart of the Napa Valley grape-growing region. In 1976, she joined the
Napa Valley start-up Domaine Chandon, the first American, French-owned sparkling winery. Dawnine was paired with a French
winemaking team from Domaine Chandon’s parent company, Moët & Chandon, which included veteran winemaker Edmond
Maudiere. As Maudiere’s protégé, Dawnine oversaw a series of groundbreaking winemaking trials aimed at creating a naturally
fermented sparkling wine based on both Old and New World styles and techniques, including France’s methode champenoise.
At the time, only a half dozen sparking wine producers existed in the United States, among them Korbel and Schramsburg. The
effort resulted in California’s first sparkling wine made using Pinot Meunier, a black grape typically used in French Champagne
for additional depth and maturity. Dawnine also vinified a Pinot Meunier still wine.
During her 25 years at Domaine Chandon, Dawnine was eventually named vice president and principal winemaker. She oversaw
all winemaking at the 400,000-case winery and also worked with its parent company in France. In 1986 she helped found
Domaine Chandon’s sister winery in Australia’s Yarra Valley and also oversaw export products for the company’s winery facility
in Argentina. She also joined other winemakers and grape growers in calling for the creation of Geographic Indications and
Appellations of Origin for America’s wine growing regions.
While at Domaine Chandon, Dawnine and husband Bill planted a 2.5-acre Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in the prestigious
Diamond Mountain American Viticultural Area (AVA) of the Napa Valley, and began making 400 cases a year of Dyer Vineyard
Bordeaux-style wines. In 2000, she left Domaine Chandon to devote more time to the hillside estate. Noted Wine Spectator
columnist and author Matt Kramer credits the Dyers with creating “great Cabernets” of “superb quality.”
In 2005 Dawnine and Bill partnered with former America Online Inc. chairman and chief executive Barry Schuler and his wife
Tracy to create a Cabernet Sauvignon blend called Meteor Vineyard, made from grapes grown on the Schuler’s 22-acre vineyard
in the Napa Valley’s historic Coombsville region. The hilltop vineyard, also sells grapes to acclaimed Napa Valley labels including
Arietta, Etude and Vineyard 29, released its first vintage in April? 2008. U.K. wine authority Steven Spurrier commended the
Meteor team for its 2005 vintage after sampling the wine at a barrel auction. In a Decanter article he described the blend as
having “smooth, spicy fruit” and “plush tannins.”
Dawnine has served as president of the Napa Valley Vintners Association (NVV) and of Napa Valley Wine Technical Group and
was a member of the founding board of Women for WineSense. Through her work with the NVV, she has been invited to speak
internationally on the importance of Geographic Indications and Appellations of Origin to the Napa Valley. She lectures for the
annual Wine Industry Executive program at the University of California at Davis Graduate School of Business and elsewhere. She
is also a judge for several professional wine competitions, including the U.S.-based National Women’s Wine Competition.
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Michael Wolf
Mike Wolf has been involved with developing and managing California vineyards for 30 years. His vineyard services company has
over 30 clients, including many of Napa Valley’s leading independent growers, and premium and ultra-premium wineries. The
scope of his company’s work extends to all phases of the vineyard development process, including maintenance of well-established
vineyards.
Mike was raised just outside of New York City, and received a B.A. degree in history from New York’s Alfred University. He was first
exposed to agriculture after moving to California’s Mendocino County in 1972, where he helped a friend raise pears, prunes, and
grapes on a family farm in Ukiah. Mike discovered his agricultural vocation here. Working with old farmers informed his philosophy
about farming: that it is a process, not an event.
His first winery experience was with Mendocino Vineyards Company in Ukiah, owned by the Beckstoffer family, from 1976 thru
1981. He then moved to Napa and was a vineyard supervisor of a large agricultural development company in Pope Valley for 12
years, managing all vineyard development and production. In 1994 Mike accepted a position overseeing 500 acres of vineyards
in Napa Valley for Beckstoffer Vineyards. This position provided not only the chance to farm some exceptional vineyards but also
introduced him to many of Napa Valley’s top winemakers.
These early experiences formed Mike’s conviction that farmers and viticulturists who set out to conquer nature lose, and that wine
is affected by every person who had a hand in its making. Both the growing area of Coombsville and Meteor Vineyard perfectly
exemplify these beliefs. Mike now manages 100 acres in Coombsville, which he considers an area on the southern fringe of
Cabernet production. What is interesting about it to him is also what makes it a challenging growing area: variable soils not as
forgiving as northerly parts of Napa, climactic conditions that require more effort to successfully manage and that result in a longer
growing season. This later ripening, he finds, develops depth and intense flavors without excess sugar and alcohol.
Meteor Vineyard, with its native hard ground and rocks, was particularly challenging when first planted with vines, and successful
vine development took several years. When the vines finally grew deep enough roots the vineyard’s stability, and character, became
apparent. Throughout, the Schulers supported Mike’s farming philosophy. Client and viticulturist shared the same goal: working
with the site to understand its individual and best potential and make the best Coombsville Cabernet of which it was capable.
Michael Wolf Vineyard Services was founded in 1997, and provides a full range of vineyard management services. The company
represents over 825 acres of vineyards in Napa Valley.
Since 1987 Mike has been a board trustee of the California Grower Foundation, where he also served as board chairman from
1994–1998. He was director of the Napa County Farm Bureau from 1986–1998, its president from 1990–1992, and vice
president from 1988–1989. He is a professional member of the American Society of Enology and Viticulture and served on the
Napa Valley Viticultural Technical Group’s Executive Committee from 1995–1996.
Mike still experiences his sense of wonder about farming, especially when enjoying wines from the vineyards he farms while
hanging out at his Howell Mountain home.
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Bill Dyer
Bill Dyer has been a California winemaker of note for over 30 years. During that time his considerable talents and
experience have been applied to crafting award-winning Napa Valley Cabernets as well as consulting on the development
of wines and wineries both domestically and internationally.
Bill was born in Berkeley, CA and holds a degree in Philosophy from the University of California at Santa Cruz and
a Master’s degree in Enology from University of California at Davis. In 1976 Bill started as Cellarmaster at Sterling
Vineyards – where he worked until 1996 -- moving up to Winemaker in 1985 and VP Winemaking in 1989. Recognizing
the importance of the vineyards to premium quality wines, he was responsible for developing their single vineyard
wines, including a Cabernet Sauvignon from Diamond Mountain that received generous attention and praise in the early
1980s.
Since 1996 Bill has consulted for Frog’s Leap and Spring Mountain wineries in Napa Valley, and Burrowing Owl
Vineyards in British Columbia. He was drawn to the Okanagan Valley in BC in 1998, fascinated by the dynamic growth
and massive replanting that was occurring there. Working with the start-up Burrowing Owl, Bill made some of BC’s most
successful vinifera wines. Currently he is working with the Marimar Estate in Sonoma’s Russian River Valley (where he
helped select and develop a Pinot Noir vineyard in Freestone), the Sodaro Estate Winery in Napa Valley, and Church &
State Wines in Victoria, B.C.
In 1993 Bill and his wife Dawnine, an acclaimed winemaker in her own right, planted a small Cabernet vineyard in the
prestigious Diamond Mountain district of the Napa Valley and began making wine from their estate vineyard in 1996.
Now in its ninth release with the 2004 vintage, about 400 cases of Dyer Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon are produced
each year. Bill hand selected the plant material, focusing on clones and rootstock to best match the site, and continues
to oversee all vineyard activities.
He and Dawnine are also partners in Meteor Vineyard. In 2005 they teamed up with former America Online Inc.
chairman and chief executive Barry Schuler and his wife Tracy to create a Cabernet Sauvignon blend called Meteor
Vineyard, made from grapes grown on the Schuler’s 22-acre vineyard in the Napa Valley’s historic Coombsville region.
The hilltop vineyard, which sells its grapes to acclaimed Napa Valley labels including Dyer, Arietta, Etude and Vineyard
29, released its first vintage in 2008. U.K. wine authority Steven Spurrier commended the Meteor team for its 2005
vintage after sampling the wine at a barrel auction. In a Decanter article he described the blend as having “smooth,
spicy fruit” and “plush tannins.”
Bill has served on the Board of Directors of Napa Valley Wine Technical Group, which provides an open forum for Napa
Valley winemakers to share technical information. He has also been a board member of the Napa Valley Wine Library,
an organization formed by James Beard and MFK Fisher in 1963.
An amateur mycologist, Bill can frequently be found in the woods of Napa & Sonoma during the mushroom season.
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