Antonio ‘Tony’ Herrera was born and raised in St. Helena, Napa Valley, and developed a basic understanding of vineyards and wineries at an early age. His father worked for a dozen years in the cellar at Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars. At an early age, he knew that he would one day either play professional soccer or work at a winery. As a teenager, he was lured by the enticing smell of wine in the cellars where he worked on the bottling line during summer vacations. A future in Napa Valley wine seemed inevitable. When the time was right, his thorough understanding of both English and Spanish would serve him well.
In 1997, Tony completed course work at Napa Valley College in winery management, wine chemistry, and sensory analysis. His first full-time position was on the cellar team at Dominus Estate Winery in Yountville (1998 – 1999), where he saw firsthand the blend of old-world techniques from Bordeaux and the Napa Valley approach to winemaking. He went on to two years as cellar master and lab technician at Vine Cliff Winery in the hills of eastern Oakville. In 2000, his brother Rolando tapped him to run the wine production team at his new winery, Mi Sueño, in Napa.
Since 2003, Tony has worked as assistant winemaker at Swanson Vineyards & Winery, collaborating with winemaker Chris Phelps. He performs wine analysis and leads the cellar team in all aspects of production. Nicknamed ‘El Tigre’ (Tiger) by winery staff, Tony is tireless in his pursuit of making quality wines. While extremely well-versed in both white and red wine-making, Tony’s favorite wines to drink are those based upon the red Bordeaux varieties, particularly Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
Tony plays club soccer on the El Llano team, named after the small town in Michoácan where his parents were born. He lives with his wife, Rosario, and their two daughters, Carolina and Teresa, in American Canyon. They enjoy entertaining in their home, and are well-known for their enchilidas de pollo, de queso y de papas, which are extremely harmonious with Swanson’s Merlot