Meet the Winemaker

Leslie Mead was born in Virginia, and growing up in a military family, she lived in various parts of the United States until the age of ten. She spent the rest of her formative years in Honolulu and worked as a SCUBA instructor before moving to the mainland to attend the University of Michigan.

After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Natural Resources with an emphasis in aquatic resource management, Leslie relocated to Oregon and spent a couple of years hooting for spotted owls in the forests of Mount Hood. In 1994 she moved to California to take a permanent position as an urban forester with PG&E. After a few years, she was ready to put her background in wet chemistry to work, and in 1999 she started her winery career as a lab technician at Ironstone Vineyards in Calaveras County. Leslie fell in love with the industry because to her it was a perfect combination of science and artistry.

Within a few years, Leslie moved to Sonoma County to be in the heart of the wine country. She held Enologist positions at Clos du Bois, Sonoma Creek Winery, and Hans Fahden Vineyards. In 2004, Leslie became Production Manager at Bonny Doon Winery in Santa Cruz.

Leslie’s next goal was to relocate to the Central Coast Pinot Noir growing area. She moved to San Luis Obispo after being hired by Talley Vineyards as Enologist in early 2005. She worked closely with the winemaking team, including Brian Talley and Consulting Winemaker Steve Rasmussen, and was later promoted to Assistant Winemaker. Her promotion to Winemaker was announced in January, 2007.

Leslie is currently the Central Coast chair for the California Enological Research Association and 2009 President of the World of Pinot Noir event. She is also a center director for the San Luis Obispo Literacy Council. Leslie feels that she has found her niche both in winemaking style and in the sense of family invoked at Talley Vineyards.