Klein elected chairman of major wine industry advocacy group

Friday, June 11, 2010, 5:14 pm

Tom Klein

HEALDSBURG — San Francisco-based Wine Institute today announced that Tom Klein, owner of Rodney Strong Vineyards, has been elected chairman by the board of the 1,000-plus-member public policy advocacy group.

Mr. Klein, whose family acquired the Russian River Valley winery in 1989, has been a voice for promotion of California as a wine and food destination as well as for environmentally sensitive winemaking and grapegrowing.

He backed the institute’s California First campaign to communicate the cultural and economic value of the state’s wines.

Mr. Klein is a member of the California Travel & Tourism Commission board and in that role helped forge a partnership between commission and the institute on wine and food offerings that attract the state’s 20 million visitors to its wine regions.

Rodney Strong Vineyards installed a large solar array, is certified by Fish-Friendly Farming and last year became a carbon-neutral facility.

New board directors from the North Coast

District	Director	Alternate
Northern	Kaj Ahlmann, Six Sigma Winery, Lower Lake	Fred Weibel, Jr., Weibel Family Vineyards & Winery, Hopland
Sonoma	Louis M. Foppiano, Foppiano Wine Company, Healdsburg; Thomas Klein, Rodney Strong Vineyards, Healdsburg; Julie Pedroncelli St. John, J. Pedroncelli Winery, Geyserville; Jeff Kunde, Kunde Estate Winery & Vineyards, Kenwood	Hank Wetzel, Alexander Valley Vineyards, Healdsburg; Walter Schug, Schug Carneros Estate, Sonoma; Greg Wilcox, Lambert Bridge Winery, Healdsburg; Corey Beck, Francis Ford Coppola Presents, Geyserville
Napa	Kathleen Heitz Myers, Heitz Wine Cellars, St. Helena; Dennis Cakebread, Cakebread Cellars; Suzanne Groth, Groth Vineyards & Winery, Oakville; Paula Kornell, Oakville Ranch, Napa	Pat Stotesbery, Ladera Vineyards, Angwin; Michael Honig, Honig Vineyard & Winery, Rutherford; Stephen Corley, Monticello Vineyards, Napa; Robin Baggett, Alpha Omega Winery, Rutherford

New directors at large from the North Coast

At-Large Director	Alternate
Stephen Brauer, Foster’s Wine Estates Americas, Napa	Douglas Roberts, Foster’s Wine Estates Americas, Napa
Charles Broll, Jr. , Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines, Napa	Lisa Hageman, Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines, Napa
Gary Bulger, The Hess Collection, Napa	Brian Dunn, The Hess Collection, Napa
Cindy DeVries, Brown-Forman Corporation, Hopland	Timothy Nall, Brown-Forman Corporation, Hopland
Matthew Gallo, Gallo Family Vineyards, Healdsburg	Stephanie Gallo, E. & J. Gallo Winery, Modesto
Margie Healy, Korbel Champagne Cellars, Guerneville	Daniel Baker, Korbel Champagne Cellars, Guerneville
Edward Matovcik, Foster’s Wine Estates Americas, Napa	Vacant
Jonathan Pageler, Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines, Napa	Stephenie Shah, Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines, Napa
Robert Torkelson, Trinchero Family Estates, St. Helena	Ronald Larson, Trinchero Family Estates, St. Helena
Roger Trinchero, Trinchero Family Estates, St. Helena	Michael Maher, Trinchero Family Estates, St. Helena