Growing up in St. Helena, Tony Coltrin played and worked in the vineyards. In the early 1970s, a friend’s grandfather suggested he work a harvest to learn the ins and outs of winemaking—and further suggested Robert Mondavi Winery, since Coltrin knew the family. Fast forward to today, and Coltrin is happily ensconsed as director of winemaking at Michael Mondavi Family Estate, where he makes wines for the Oberon, Emblem and Hangtime labels.Asked what’s kept him with the family through decades of change, he responds, “A climate of passion, the trust they allowed me when representing their family and the creative license I was given, whether creating and stylizing wines and wineries, or representing them in the creation and evolution of other ventures.”
Did you go to college?
I did some junior college and all of the winemaking and wine chemistry short courses at UC Davis. Initially, I intended to keep on going and had in mind to enroll in the veterinary program at UC Davis. But I was sidetracked when I started working in vineyards and had my curiosity fed by my friend’s grandfather.
What silly thing have you done in the name of love?
Sent a beautiful pastry chef in St. Helena a pair of silver and lapis earrings from Patagonia in the south of Chile. Sandra has been my wife for 15 years now and we have a wonderful son.
What’s your favorite dessert?
My wife’s carrot cake (and maybe a scoop of mint chip ice cream ). Sandra is still a pastry chef and makes a carrot cake like no other.
Are you more of a dog person or a cat person?
I would have to say dog person; dogs are very selfless. Having said that, I had a really cool Maine Coon cat for 18 years and he was the best.
What’s in your garage?
A 1998 Harley Davidson Fatboy, a Yamaha dirt bike, two stand-up paddle boards, a Pearson arrow longboard, boogie boards, four road bikes, four mountain bikes, golf clubs, two kayaks, lots of tools, about 400 or so LPs dating back to the early 1960s and a 2000 BMW M Roadster convertible.
What do you love to do outside of work?
Anything with my son. He’s a baseball player to his soul, so we practice baseball and I coach his team. We stand-up paddle (I taught him to surf two summers ago, and he’s pretty good), kayak, fish, hunt, shoot clays, archery, bicycles, we have a couple of motorcycles, hike, play a little music (he’s a really good drummer, and I’m teaching him a little guitar…). And after all these years of being with me in the vineyards and wineries during harvest, he asked if we could make wine together. Of course I said yes! How very wonderful to have him want to share winemaking with me. We have beautiful little barrel of 2014 Cabernet aging nicely right now.
What did you collect as a child?
Arrowheads. There were two Indian village sites along the Napa River that I was shown by my old neighbor when I was young. Each year, when the vineyards were tilled around these sites, I’d ride my bicycle there and hunt for arrowheads.
If you could solve one unsolved crime or mystery, what would you want to know?
Who and what was really behind the killing of JFK.
Share a magical childhood moment.
My grandmother took me to my first San Francisco Giants game when I was six years old in 1958—the year they moved to San Francisco.
What person do you admire most and why?
My mother was a single mom for most of my childhood, a schoolteacher, very artistic and creative, and somehow always found the time to take me fishing, to the beach or camping in the Sierras. She always made me feel that nothing was out of reach, that I could do anything I set my mind to. She’s 88 now, still substitute teaches, and one of the greatest gifts of all is that she spends lots of time with my son.
