About Us
Angus Wurtele, Co-Owner
Angus Wurtele is a businessman with a sense of history and an appreciation for youthful beginnings. He envisions creating exceptional estate cabernet in his vineyards and winery in Napa Valley's Spring Mountain District. To this vision he brings his own lifetime of business acumen.
After graduating from Stanford Business School in 1961, at age 27, Wurtele was asked to lead his family's business, Minnesota, Paints, Inc. Within months of taking the helm, he had doubled the size of his company, and subsequently initiated a stock ownership plan for employees. At his retirement in 1995, the company, now called Valspar Corporation, was the fifth largest paint and coatings manufacturer in North America.
Having visited and enjoyed the Napa Valley often over the years, Wurtele and his wife, Margaret, knew it would provide the perfect place for retirement. In 1995, they bought a small hillside vineyard that had been planted in cabernet sauvignon. In 1999, they bought Yverdon Vineyard-an 80-acre parcel located three miles above their hillside vineyard on Spring Mountain.
With his new young company, Wurtele has instilled the same values of quality management that brought him success in his first business. "Our number-one goal is to make the best cabernet sauvignon. Achieving that goal can only come from an organization committed to quality management in every aspect. In our case, this is built around exceptional vineyards, state-of-the-art winery equipment, and finding and keeping the best people in the industry with the highest standards of integrity."
While he has achieved success as a business leader and entrepreneur, Wurtele's modesty is notable. "I always wanted to be part of a team-not to stand out as an executive or CEO." Today, as owner of Terra Valentine, he is finding this balance-creating a wine recognized for its superior quality from the gentle seclusion of a mountain vineyard.
Margaret Wurtele, Co-Owner
Margaret Wurtele is a woman of many talents. She has been a writer and publisher, patron of the arts, manager for a large charitable organization and full-time mother. The adventures and adversities of her life have converged to bring her with her husband, Angus Wurtele, to the Spring Mountain District of Napa Valley, where they devote their time and inspiration to creating Terra Valentine.
Having visited and enjoyed the Napa Valley often over the years, Wurtele and her husband, Angus, knew it would provide the perfect place for retirement. "I love gardening and I love the seasons," says Wurtele, who is relishing both in the splendor of Spring Mountain. "I've always been in tune with the land…Moving to the garden means losing myself in an activity that is physical but also intuitive, where the process of decision making seems to bypass the brain and flow from the heart."
As co-owner of Terra Valentine, Wurtele intends her wines to evidence the same balance, character and love of a place that she herself brings to the land.
Sam Baxter, Winemaker & General Manager
Sam Baxter is one of the first of a new generation of Napa Valley winemakers. Baxter's father, Phil Baxter, created some of the early wines that brought notoriety to Napa Valley. A young Sam benefited from hands-on experience at the side of his father and others. He went on to study at the University of California, Davis. After graduating with a degree in fermentation science in 1998, Baxter took a harvest intern position at Sterling Vineyards and worked in Australia. He began with Terra Valentine as cellarmaster in July 1999 and was appointed winemaker in April 2002.
Baxter's academic foundation places him among a new breed of high-tech winemakers. But his modern approach is tempered with strong respect for tradition.
Striking the right balance between the science and art of winemaking influences all of Baxter's efforts in producing wines that best express the unique character of the Spring Mountain appellation.
NEW RELEASE!
2005 Spring Mountain District
Cabernet Sauvignon
$38.00
2006 Russian River Valley
Pinot Noir
$38.00
2006 Russian River Valley
Viognier
$30.00