Megan was appointed winemaker for Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards in 2007. Having graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a degree in Soil Sciences, she earned her Certificate in Winemaking at U.C. Davis before working as an enologist for Flowers Vineyard & Winery on the Sonoma Coast, crafting Burgundy-style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. As winemaker for Cahill Winery in Sebastopol, she had the opportunity to work with Sonoma, Mendocino and Napa Valley grapes, specializing in small lot Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Bourdeaux varietals, and Syrah.
A Biography of Megan McGrath
Megan McGrath is an eighth generation Californian with a heritage profoundly tied to the land, as the
family’s Ventura County ranch was maintained until the ’70s. “My mom romanticized the farming life, and
even though I grew up in suburbia, I felt it deeply,” explains McGrath. She also remembers having a keen
sensory awareness as a young child and suggests, “I was building a catalog of tastes and smells that I now
use in my winemaking.” When McGrath was a student at Midland School in Los Olivos, she took her first
geology class from an influential teacher that inspired her to think about the world in terms of the natural
sciences.
McGrath graduated from Cal Poly
San Luis Obispo in 2001 with a degree in
Soil Sciences and earned her Certificate in
Winemaking at UC Davis. Her first job after
graduation was working for the Cachuma
Resource Conservation District, where she
was involved in promoting soil conservation
for agriculture including vineyards. Before
arriving at Lucas & Lewellen as Assistant
Winemaker under Winemaker Daniel Gehrs,
McGrath made wines in Sonoma County for
four years, most recently as the winemaker
for Cahill Winery in Sebastopol, where she
had the opportunity to work with Sonoma,
Mendocino and Napa Valley grapes. She
managed the winery facility and made wine
under the Cahill label as well as for custom
crush clients, specializing in small lot Pinot
Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Bordeaux varietals,
and Syrah.
Prior to that position, McGrath was retained
by Flowers Vineyard & Winery on the
Sonoma Coast as their Enologist, crafting
Burgundy-style Pinot Noirs and
Chardonnays. As a soil scientist, she was an
apprentice to Dr. Alfred Cass with Integrated
Wine Growing Consortium, a group of
consultants who are leaders in the field of vineyard development and management. McGrath co-authored an
article published in the journal of the American Society for Enology and Viticulture titled Compost Benefits
and Quality for Viticultural Soils. As a passionate winemaker, McGrath may adhere to centuries-old
viticultural traditions, but she is also tech savvy, utilizing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to maximize
data relating to the land, displaying it visually using points, lines and polygons.
“We make many decisions during the growing, fermenting and aging stages, but ultimately the grape
really expresses itself,” insists McGrath, who is humble about the winemaker’s role in the process.
Jim Fiolek - Executive Director Santa Barbara County Vintners Assoc
The Santa Barbara County Vintners' Association is a non-profit organization founded in 1983 to support and promote Santa Barbara County as a premium wine producing and wine grape growing region. The Vintners’ Association produces festivals, seminars and tastings and provides information to consumers and the wine and travel media.
For more info, go to http://www.sbcountywines.com/