Jason Valenti

A former resident of L.A. Dodger territory, Jason’s interest in wine ultimately pulled he and his family to the Bay Area to return to the restaurant business and pursue a degree in Viticulture and Enology from U.C. Davis. Upon graduation in 2005, with a wife and two children in tow, Jason took a cellar job with the venerable Paul Hobbs Winery, which evolved into a full-time Enologist position through the 2007 harvest. After a brief sabbatical at Kosta Browne Wines, Jason returned to Paul Hobbs in 2008 to become the winemaker for CrossBarn Winery; transforming CrossBarn from a secondary label into a revered brand with dedicated vineyards, state of the art facility and staff. After the 2011 harvest, Jason was approached to become the founding winemaker of a new estate project on Howell Mountain, revamping the historic White Cottage Ranch property into a top-tier Napa Valley estate. Early 2015, with the meticulous technical experience under his belt, Jason’s winemaking propensity breached into European varietals, and he joined Unti Vineyards. He looks forward to continuing top-tier winemaking and continuing Unti’s quest to produce Rhône and Italian varietals from the DCV estate… And, of course, drinking plenty of wines along the way to help prove their point.