Cart 0 items: $0.00

Dakota Shy Wine

TOP

OUR STORY

Dakota Shy is the story of a remarkable team brought together through our passion for the wines, history and vineyards of Napa Valley.

Our story began in 2012 when two friends and business partners, Tom Garrett and Todd Newman, who had previous years of working under other winemaking legends came together to make their own mark on Napa Valley. They set out with a goal to craft wines that could stand alongside the best the world has to offer. Their dream grew to include a first-class winery estate in the heart of Napa Valley and partnerships with 16 unique and exceptional Napa vineyards.

With one stage of the dream achieved, Todd Newman left to pursue other interests while winemaker Tom Garrett remains in place to lead our talented team as we dream even bigger.

With deep roots in Napa Valley and over a decade of producing outstanding Cabernets at Dakota Shy, Tom leads as we strive for greater quality in our wines and to provide extraordinary hospitality to everyone who visits the Dakota Shy property.

For us, Dakota Shy evokes the American Dream. Having built an incredible business from the ground up that supports our families, brings pleasure and provokes memories for our Dakota Shy family across the US – we know we are living that dream.

 



THE TEAM

Building a team of exceptional talent was critical to ensuring the success of Dakota Shy. We sought to create a diverse team whose individual skills and personalities formed a powerful equilibrium, allowing us to collectively craft impeccable wines and deliver them in a hospitable and innovative environment. No one person on this team is siloed to a specific role. If hands are needed at 5:00 am during harvest, the hospitality team will be there. If a hospitality member has a sick child at home, someone from Production will enjoy a few hours with our guests. Our teamwork and diverse skill sets allow for the fluid and dynamic experience of a family.

Tom Garrett
Winemaker, Partner

Dakota Shy is a combination of business, friendship, family and wine that is electrifying. It gives me the opportunity to use my skills in an industry that I love and to work with partners, employees and growers toward a common goal of making exceptional wines.

 

I get to work with some of Napa Valley’s most outstanding vineyard sources and growers. I collaborate daily with people who motivate and inspire each other toward greater success. All in a culture of respect, hard work and celebration of achievement.

 

With Dakota Shy, I am crafting Cabernets in league with the best in the world and expanding the boundaries of quality and precision in my winemaking.

 

My family roots in Napa Valley stretch back to the early 1950s when my great-grandmother purchased a historic Oakville vineyard property within the famed To-Kalon Vineyard. 50 years later, I began Detert Family Vineyard wines, named after my great-grandmother and made from my family’s Oakville vineyard. Over the past 20 years, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to work alongside great winemakers and mentors at Turley Wine Cellars, Joseph Phelps Winery, Robert Mondavi Winery and Revana Family Vineyard. I continue to make my family’s highly regarded Detert wines.

 

Todd Newman asked me to join him in Dakota Shy shortly after he created the brand. I am amazed by what we have accomplished since then and I know the best is still ahead.

 

 

Ryan Clark
General Manager, Partner

A love of Cabernet Sauvignon along with the beautiful natural landscape of the region drew Ryan to call Napa Valley home. Arriving in 2007, he began his wine career at Larkmead Vineyards after being a founding wine club member. After spending five years with Larkmead, Ryan transitioned to become General Manager at Kelly Fleming Wines in Calistoga. After an additional stint as GM of Checkerboard Vineyards on Diamond Mountain, he started his own consulting company assisting small wineries with operations and marketing.  Dakota Shy became his first client and then moved to a permanent position with the Dakota Shy family.

Austin Johnson
National Sales Manager

Austin was born in Louisville, Kentucky and raised by determined young parents who taught her that there is no substitute for hard work. After college, she began a career in nursing but also bartended two nights a week as relief from the day job. She loved that introduction to hospitality and got serious about it - joining the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group in Yountville. As the Private Dining and Events Manager, she was able to flex her creativity by orchestrating distinctive events and weddings. After that experience, she began working for iconic wine maker, Benoit Touquette. At the helm of his personal brands, Fait-Main and Teeter-Totter, she got an education in brand management and operations.  Just as she was ready to bridge her experience in sales and hospitality with an appreciation for operations, Dakota Shy was adding to their team. Austin feels a deep sense of connection with Todd’s journey, Tom’s winemaking and the ethos of Dakota Shy.

Alisha Kulich
Director of Sales

Alisha discovered her love of the hospitality industry through restaurants.  While attending The Ohio State University studying Art History, she began working for restauranteur Cameron Mitchell where she obtained a passion for food and wine while on the opening-staff of three different establishments. In 2002, it was time to leave her home state of Ohio and seek adventure. She decided to drive across country to San Francisco where she honed her hospitality skills as a Captain at Michelin star restaurant, Boulevard, for the next 10 years. This is where she learned that creating an unparalleled guest experience is an art form. Sharing a passion for wine with her sommelier husband led them to a life in Napa.  Learning more about wine from Michelin star Auberge du Soleil and Etude winery led her to Dakota Shy. Instantly there was a connection of humble beginnings and the love of exceptional wine.

Billy Dewey
Sales and Communication Director

After growing up in Mississippi, arrived in Napa in 2016 and immediately felt the allure of the lush and lively landscapes to which Napa calls home. Matched with a growing fascination for the wine industry, Billy decided to get hands on experience making wine by working his first harvest season at David Arthur.  Following the 2016 harvest season, Billy was determined to return to Napa and, after a call with Tom in the summer of 2017, was presented with the opportunity to do so by joining Dakota Shy for harvest. Since then, Billy stayed on as a full-time member of the cellar team and in 2021 moved over into hospitality. 

Euan Rannachan
Creative Director

Euan Rannachan was born and raised in London, England and now resides in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife and two children. 
 

Euan was classically trained in Traditional Illustrations from the Academy of Art College in San Francisco, but what he creates far exceeds such a title, for nothing about his work is traditional. Euan is constantly pushing the boundary of aesthetic expression. He is a bold, versatile artist with evolving styles and creative artistic techniques.
 

Ansel Adams once said, "You don’t take a photograph, you make it.” Euan makes magic happen. His work evokes raw emotion and he is so lucky to have found his passion, and consequently, his calling. 
 

Euan hosts annual art shows in the San Francisco Bay Area which showcase a variety of mediums, particularly photography and acrylic painting. For more information about future art shows, please click here www.euanart.com.