The Moshin Vineyards Team

Rick Moshin

Owner & Winemaker

In the late 1970s, while teaching math at San Jose State University and working a side hustle at a home‑brewing supply store, Rick was encouraged to try his hand at winemaking and fell deeply, madly in love. His hunger for grapes soon inspired him to become a grape broker, earning access to extra fruit while forging relationships with vineyard owners throughout Northern California. This gig put him in the right place when a certain Pinot Noir vineyard, the first parcel of our estate, went up for sale in 1989.

A self‑taught farmer who (along with friends and family) built our gravity‑flow winery by hand, Rick enjoys experimenting with different varietals and winemaking methods. His heart will always belong to Pinot Noir, but as a passionate viticulturist and vintner, he remains ever curious about the whole world of wine.

GW Lussier

Assistant Winemaker

A native of St. Helena in the Napa Valley, GW grew up helping out in small vineyards and cellars, rarely imagining life outside California wine country. Then 9/11 happened, inspiring the then-17-year-old to head east to military college, after which he was commissioned into the U.S. Army. He served as an infantry officer, Airborne paratrooper, and Ranger before becoming a rifle platoon leader during his first tour in Iraq. While stationed in Germany in 2011, he traveled to the Champagne region of France, where he saw local farmers and winemakers hard at work and rediscovered his love for wine.

He soon took a harvest internship at Pahlmeyer, went on to Williams Selyem as a winery operations trainee and cellar worker, and then joined our cellar team in spring 2019. GW lives on a Knights Valley ranch with his wife, daughter, and their Vizsla, Krieger. He also makes Anderson Valley Pinot Noir under his own label, Lussier Wine Co.

Ryne Wheeler

Cellar Assistant

Ryne got his start in the wine industry through a simple introduction: his stepfather grew up with Rick Moshin. Ryne worked his first harvest at Moshin in 2012 and was so hooked on the process that he returned for five more, all while keeping his regular gig at a health club in Sebastopol. He became our full‑time cellar assistant in 2017 and loves that the work keeps him active all day long and ends with wine in the glass.

Amber Moshin

Marketing Director

Amber used to tend bar at beloved local spots like The Altamont in Occidental, the lobby bar at Hotel Healdsburg, and Underwood Bistro in Graton, but it was a tasting room gig at Rochioli Vineyards that ignited her passion for wine. And speaking of passion: in 2003, a wine shop owner discreetly introduced her to Rick Moshin, whom she married soon afterward. When our Westside Road winery opened in 2005, she began marketing Moshin Vineyards wines exclusively, and she has been doing so ever since. An artist in multiple media, Amber has also designed several of our specialty wine labels.

Janet Moshin

Administration & Human Resources

Growing up, Janet and her brother Rick never had wine around the house, but when he moved to Sonoma County in 1989 to pursue a winemaking career, she soon learned to love it. Throughout the 1990s, she sold Moshin wines across Sonoma County; she has since become responsible for everything from minding the money to minding the people. A huge fan of our Calliope Vineyard Pinot Noir, she has never missed a Moshin harvest and loves helping the family business grow and succeed.

Stacey Combs

Hospitality Director

On the day Stacey moved to Sonoma County from Los Angeles, her first glass of wine in her new home was a Moshin Vineyards wine. When the opportunity to work for Moshin came along, she jumped at the chance. A chef by training with a focus on food and wine pairing, Stacey cooked at notable wineries including St. Francis Winery and Ram’s Gate Winery, where she served as culinary director. Today, as our Hospitality Director, she brings that background together with her love of wine to create memorable experiences for our guests.

Nhi Haas

Wine Club Manager

Nhi first gained experience in the winemaking world after graduating from Washington State University, when she worked a harvest season with her husband, Ben, at Kim Crawford Winery in New Zealand. Her enthusiasm for Pinot Noir revealed itself while she was working as a cellar hand at Alexana Winery in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. There she found the joy of working directly with the grapes on a harvest team, which sealed her passion for the wine industry. After moving to California, she shifted gears and worked as a medical assistant in holistic health. Now Nhi is happy to be back in the wine world as our Wine Club Manager at Moshin Vineyards. She and Ben have since welcomed a beautiful baby boy, Hugo.

Sheree Johnson

Marketing Manager

Sheree’s love of wine began with her name, which comes from the French word chérie. It sparked a curiosity about French culture, and that curiosity led her to wine. After moving from Seattle to Napa, she brought her marketing skills to the wine industry and has since spent more than a decade in Napa Valley’s creative scene, producing events and leading marketing for wine and hospitality brands. Sheree also gives back locally, running marketing and social media for the Napa State Hospital Volunteer Community Advisory Board. Now she is thrilled to bring her creativity and passion for wine to Moshin Vineyards as our Marketing Manager.

Tina Bayles

Social Media Specialist

A native of Texas, Tina worked as a copywriter at large and small advertising agencies across the state before relocating to Northern California. Once here, she found herself captivated by the storied winemaking traditions of the Russian River Valley. She spent a year in our tasting room and now focuses her skills on spreading the word about Moshin Vineyards through our social media channels.

Robin Froman

Legendary Tasting Room Host

With a background in academia, science, and health care, Robin has been tasting wine in Sonoma, Napa, and Europe for more than 50 years. She has worked at many of Sonoma’s small family wineries in the Alexander, Dry Creek, and Russian River Valleys. That scientific background comes through when she talks with guests, especially in her explanations of clones and how DNA interacts with environmental influences to shape a wine.

Jasper

Winery Dog and “Finder of Lost Corks”

Born in 2015, Jasper is known more for his fuzzy eyebrows and his skill at tug of war than for what kind of dog he actually is. Sweet, playful, and devoted to his mom, Janet, he brightens the winery offices on weekdays with face licks and tail wags.

Check out Jasper’s bio on Wine Spectator!